Historical Foundations: Introduction

Exploring the history and culture of video gaming provides a window into many of the main themes of our project. In addition to reviewing the historical evolution of video games, this section begins to seek out and explore the role of gender as a factor in the design, marketing, and consumption of early games. While such a project is made more challenging given the sheer amount of material to be reviewed, it is hoped that we can provide a plausible, historical overview, while also raising a series of thought-provoking questions and issues about gender and culture. Three important, interrelated issues emerge from this effort, namely the identity of game developers, the identity of intended gaming audiences, and the actual content of games.

NOTE: Except where otherwise noted, the historical information presented in this section was drawn from Baratz (2001), Burnham (2001), and Hunter (2000), as listed in the References and Further Reading page. Additional details were drawn from sites listed on the Categorized Links page.