2021
Karhulahti, Veli-Matti; Grabarczyk, Paweł
Split-Screen: Videogame History Through Local Multiplayer Design
In: Design Issues, vol. 37, iss. 2, pp. 32-44, 2021, ISSN: 1531-4790.
Journal article Open access
Abstract | Links | Tags: Design vestigiality, Game production, Shared screen play
@article{Karhulahti2021d,
title = {Split-Screen: Videogame History Through Local Multiplayer Design},
author = {Veli-Matti Karhulahti and Paweł Grabarczyk},
url = {http://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:jyu-202005063063},
issn = {1531-4790},
year = {2021},
date = {2021-03-01},
urldate = {2021-03-01},
journal = {Design Issues},
volume = {37},
issue = {2},
pages = {32-44},
abstract = {By looking at videogame production through a two-vector model of design – a practice determined by the interplay between economic and technological evolution – we argue that shared screen play, as both collaboration and competition, originally functioned as a desirable pattern in videogame design, but has since become problematic due to industry transformations. This is introduced as an example of what we call design vestigiality: momentary loss of a design pattern’s contextual function due to techno-economical evolution.},
keywords = {Design vestigiality, Game production, Shared screen play},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
By looking at videogame production through a two-vector model of design – a practice determined by the interplay between economic and technological evolution – we argue that shared screen play, as both collaboration and competition, originally functioned as a desirable pattern in videogame design, but has since become problematic due to industry transformations. This is introduced as an example of what we call design vestigiality: momentary loss of a design pattern’s contextual function due to techno-economical evolution.