Why Game Studies Now? Gamers Don't Bowl Alone

Researchers are encouraged to study the social uses and effects of gaming before stereotypes form and guide both their own and the public's thinking. The rise of online games comes at a particular historical moment for social reasons as well as technological ones and prompts a wide array of questions. The transition of public life from common spaces to private ones is exemplified in the move of game play from arcades to homes. As our real-world civic and social institutions experience steady decay, what is the impact of transferring our social networks and communities into virtual spaces? Will games become our new third places, and how will that affect us? These are questions researchers can answer but ones that need to be addressed before ideologues, defenders, and attackers muddle empiricism.