(The Cartridge Lit blog.)
I started writing fiction because while playing MMOs I was trying to create a narrative with the character within the very narrow confines of those games. After a while it got so frustrating being locked inside a game narrative with minimal variation and leeway, I stopped playing and started writing instead.
For the record: Cartridge Lit and its editors are vehemently in opposition to the “gamergate” group and completely in support of more diversity in video game creation, recreation, and criticism.
The new literary review site Piece Meal Reviews has a review of Thomas Nowak’s “Flashcards” up on their site now.
I remember being a kid and playing Pokémon Red in bed, under the covers with a flashlight because it was later than I was supposed to be up; my mom eventually took my Game Boy away on weekdays. Sitting on my grandparents’ kitchen floor playing Mario: 6 Golden Coins. I had a pretty substantial Christmas meltdown in ’98 when literally all of my cousins got Ocarina of Time and I didn’t.
There aren’t enough games with real emotional depth. Of course there are exceptions to that statement, but games that actually make you feel something are few and far between. I think this is especially true if you are a woman. So many games either ignore women’s agency or use them as eye candy.
We think video games are literature, and so why shouldn't there be literature about video games? That's the question we're hoping to answer here. Read more.
