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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 14/08/2026

If you want to see more of my research, head here: bsky.app/profile/osca...

Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 14/08/2026

This leaves us with the reality that compared to other kinds of media, the most visible annual public discourses on games are hours of paid advertisements. Should that be changed? Can it be changed? And how? (That's for another time)

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 14/08/2026

I use @brkeogh.bsky.social's THE VIDEOGAME INDUSTRY DOES NOT EXIST to unpack that ideological appeal. Presenters like Keighley use the legitimizing language of autonomous art (such as "new ideas" and "community") towards the heteronomous end of driving up game sales. mitpress.mit.edu/978026254540...

mitpress.mit.edu

The Videogame Industry Does Not Exist

The videogame industry, we're invariably told, is a multibillion-dollar, high-tech business conducted by large corporations in North America, Europe, and Eas...

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 14/08/2026

Finally, I analyze showcase streams as media texts that weave together game trailers and interstitial material (featuring hosts, guests, and brand iconography), using ideological appeals to produce cycles of anticipation that can last months and (usually) even many years.

Geoff Keighley, in dark jacket and grey shirt, stands with a microphone on stage. Behind him is a large video screen an image showing "Top 10 New Steam Games, January - May 24 (by units)" and images of the games Palworld, Helldivers 2, Enshrouded, Manor Lords, Supermarket Simulator, Hades II, Dragon's Dogma II, Balatro, Deep Rock Galactic Survivor, and Buckshot Roulette. The foreground shows many audience members seated in the auditorium.

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 14/08/2026

(Understanding cultural intermediaries feels essential to mapping out the business of contemporary indie games, and the work by Perks, Parker, Whitson et al. is extremely helpful on this front: dx.doi.org/10.3998/mij.15031809.0006.202 )

Media Industries Journal website.

Article titled Autonomy, Integration, and the Work of Cultural Intermediation in Indie Games.

Matthew E. Perks
University of Waterloo
matthew.e.perks [AT] gmail.com

Felan Parker
St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto
felan.parker [AT] utoronto.ca

Jennifer R. Whitson
University of Waterloo
jwhitson [AT] uwaterloo.ca

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 14/08/2026

Though these showcases are now designed for internet livestreaming rather than convention halls, I discuss how the seasonal concentration in Northern summer shapes the strategies of not just large publishers but also indie devs working with cultural intermediaries like Wholesome Games and The MIX.

Table 1. Game Showcase Presentations, May-July 2024.

Date Show Presenter Presenter Type

Affiliated with Summer Game Fest

June 7 Summer Game Fest Summer Game Fest Event Organizer
Day of the Devs Double Fine, iam8bit Cultural intermediary
Devolver Direct Devolver Digital Indie publisher

June 8 Future of Play GLITCH Cultural intermediary
Wholesome Direct Wholesome Games Cultural intermediary
Latin American Games Showcase Latin American Games Showcase Cultural intermediary
Women-Led Games Women-Led Games Cultural intermediary
Future Games Show Future plc News publisher

June 9 Xbox Games Showcase Microsoft Platform holder
PC Gaming Show Future plc News publisher

June 10 Ubisoft Forward Ubisoft AAA publisher

Unaffiliated with Summer Game Fest
May 25 INDIE Live Expo Ryu’s Office Cultural intermediary
May 29 AG French Direct ActuGaming News publisher
May 30 Sony State of Play Sony Platform holder
May 30 Marvelous Game Showcase Marvelous Indie publisher
June 1 Next Indie Direct Next Indie Cultural intermediary
June 4 OTK Games Expo OTK Media Cultural intermediary
June 6 Guerrilla Collective Media Indie Exchange Cultural intermediary
June 7 Access-Ability Summer Showcase Access-Ability Cultural intermediary
June 12 Black Voices in Gaming / Dames4Games Media Indie Exchange Cultural intermediary
June 18 Nintendo Direct Nintendo Platform holder
June 20 LRG3 Limited Run Games Indie publisher
June 26 UploadVR Showcase UploadVR News publisher
July 1 Capcom Next Capcom AAA publisher

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 14/08/2026

Control of game information through these showcases was one way game companies created a dependency relation with journalistic outlets, as discussed by @nieborg.bsky.social and @maxwellfoxman.bsky.social in MAINSTREAMING AND GAME JOURNALISM. mitpress.mit.edu/978026254628...

mitpress.mit.edu

Mainstreaming and Game Journalism

Mainstreaming and Game Journalism addresses both the history and current practice of game journalism, along with the roles writers and industry play in conve...

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 14/08/2026

Through the 1990s and 2000s, these presentations served as displays of game publishers' autonomy and prestige as individual companies and as a collective industry distinct from toys and consumer electronics, conveyed to a wider audience through enthusiast magazines and websites.

A magazine excerpt from the "Press Start" section titled "E3 2000: Come Out and Play." Seven photographs depict the Electronic Entertainment Expo and feature convention-goers and people dressed as the video game characters Lara Croft, Ulala, and Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man. Written text follows: "Phew! The insanity that was the 2000 Electronic Entertainment Expo is over! Also known as E3, the show is host to all the new games and hardware that will be introduced over the next year in the U.S. This year's show marked the first time Sony showed off the U.S. PS2 hardware, and as such was given major attention by major media outlets, not just the humble gaming press like EGM. Sega and Nintendo knew they had strong competition, and came out swinging with plenty of potential blockbusters, including new games starring Sonic, Mario, and all those cuddly Pokemon. Microsoft also proved they were serious about getting into the console market---their X-Box demo blew us away, and was on the lips of many a developer and PR flunkies. The rest of Press Start this month is dedicated to the sights, sounds, and news of the show. Check the top of each page for our picks on the winners (and maybe a few losers) of the show. Until next year!"

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 14/08/2026

I examine how showcases of upcoming video games, with the Electronic Entertainment Expo as the historical flagship and Geoff Keighley's Summer Game Fest as the current one, imagine participation in game cultures through a consumerist lens of perpetually waiting for and discussing future releases.

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Reposted by Oscar Moralde

Kate Galloway @kategalloway.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

Michael Austin @michaelaustin.bsky.social & I are working on a new collection Resonant Worlds: Sound, Matter, and Environmental Design in Games. Here’s the CFP.

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Reposted by Oscar Moralde

Matt Knutson @mattknutson.bsky.social · 29/03/2026

Nearing the end of #SCMS26, and guess what's still left to talk about? P18, Reexamining Esports with @a-c-cote.bsky.social, @maxwellfoxman.bsky.social, Keung Yoon Bae, and Taylore Woodhouse. Starting in 30 min in Alpine 1.

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 27/03/2026

Really great stuff if you want a recap of the panel!

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 26/03/2026

Also cut: that time when Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello decided to write a song for Final Fantasy 14 because one of his tabletop RPG buddies told him the game's composer was a big fan www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSl6...

youtube.com

"Everything Burns" with Official Lyrics | Final Fantasy XIV

YouTube video by hungrychad

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 26/03/2026

Since I only have 20 minutes and I actually have to do scholarly analysis, had to cut a few choice music clips, like Masayoshi Soken's band getting the club jumping with a tokusatsu theme (insert "is this ska" meme here) youtu.be/dXr6aBUiBWA?...

youtu.be

FF XIV Metal Brute Justice Mode (PRIMALS Live Spin Off)

YouTube video by sakimi amada

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Reposted by Oscar Moralde

Brendan Keogh @brkeogh.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

The Journal of Games Criticism has published a new issue!! Come and read 6 great new open-access game studies articles! gamescriticism.org/issue-6-1/ #gamestudies

VOLUME 6, ISSUE 1 (JANUARY 2026)
The Wounds That Never Healed: Videoludic Trauma in Cry of Fear

by Samuel Poirier-Poulin

This article offers a conceptualization of trauma in horror video games, arguing that games can cut across the reality/fiction divide, deeply affect the emotional organization of the player, and leave them with wounds that take time to heal. More specifically, it develops the idea that Cry of Fear (Team Psykskallar, 2013) can induce a form of trauma in the player by putting them in horrifying and intense situations.

Character Affectivity in Newton and the Apple Tree

by Henri M. Nerg

This paper studies character affectivity and temporality in the Japanese visual novel Newton and the Apple Tree (Laplacian, 2017). The paper analyzes different affects and emotions that game characters evoke in players. Importantly, affect is understood here as a neuropsychological concept.

Black Sun in the Land of Shadow: DLCs and Textual Depletion in Shadow of the Erdtree (2024)

by Max Coombes

This article explores the relationship between downloadable content (DLC) and base games in producing ‘lack’ in the player and text, using Shadow of the Erdtree (2024) as its focus.

Investigating Development Crunch in Games and its Impact on Creative Expression

by Shaif Hemraj

This article explores the often negative and detrimental relationship between “crunch” and creative expression and synthesizes academic and industry conversations into a serious game prototype, Game Maker Mayhem

A Contemporary Take on Victorian Lunacy: Representations of the Asylum in the Neo-Victorian Video Game Alice: Madness Returns

by Jéssica Iolanda Costa Bispo

Considering the historical reality of Victorian asylums, this article explores Alice: Madness Returns, as it encourages a critical look at these institutions through the lens of neo-Victorianism, demonstrating a potentiality for reinterpreting the Victorian historical narrative.

Goblins for Slaughter: The Perpetuation of Racism and Classism in Baldur’s Gate 3

by Benjamin J.M. Horn

This article explores how Baldur’s Gate 3 has perpetuated Victorian-era racism and classism. To demonstrate this, the article discusses current literature on racism and monstrosity, delves into the history of the goblin, and conducts a close reading of Baldur’s Gate 3’s first act.

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 13/09/2025

When I have students look at old video game magazine ads, that is the one that gets shocks and confuses them the most. That and the one showing all the Interplay devs at a pool party

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Reposted by Oscar Moralde

Brendan Keogh @brkeogh.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

BOOK ANNOUNCEMENT! @mahliann.bsky.social, @marcuscarter.com, and myself have combined our collective brains and written a wide-reaching introduction to the complex and interdisciplinary field of Game Studies in this forthcoming book for Polity. www.politybooks.com/bookdetail?b...

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 26/08/2025

Alt text: A clip from the claymation film The Wrong Trousers (dir. Nick Park, 1993). Gromit the Dog is at the head of a speeding toy train and laying down railroad track just as the train passes over it. Wallace the Human, in his underpants after losing the titular trousers, flails about helplessly

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 26/08/2025

Tackling two new course preps after spending most of the past month making a cross-country move which was also the first time moving in 15 years

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 08/08/2025

Also with my last credits I took a chance on the claw machine, and I choose to believe this is an auspicious sign for my travels

A plush Donkey Kong in front of the claw machine from which he emerged

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 08/08/2025

Instead I remembered I still had credit on a Round1 card, and since I am moving to apparently the place in the continental US most distant from any Round1s (actually it's probably northern Montana but St. Louis is close) I played some DANCERUSH STARDOM, because who knows when I'll get another chance

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 07/08/2025

In the 15 years I have lived near the LA County Museum of Art, I have been there exactly once lol (I saw THE CLOCK), maybe I should go back while I still have time

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 06/08/2025

Major update -- I will be joining the Film and Media Studies faculty at Washington University in St. Louis as a Visiting Lecturer! Looking forward to helping them develop their digital media studies curriculum. Happy to connect with folks in the Midwest! fms.wustl.edu/people/oscar...

fms.wustl.edu

Oscar Moralde

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 30/07/2025

It's really quite illuminating, less in the way of any biographical drama but far more about contextualizing his scholarly and political projects within a personal-familial trajectory. Though we do learn about how he becomes obsessed with espresso when the first machine arrives in London

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 30/07/2025

I read this line in Stuart Hall's memoir FAMILIAR STRANGER and had to stop and stare out the window: "I had by then given up the project to become a creative writer and I didn't know enough music or play well enough to become a musician. Out of such 'failures' are critics and theorists made!" (132)

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 05/04/2025

Looking forward to chairing this #SCMS25 panel on Video Games and Advertising later today! 5:15 to 7:00 (and then the SIG social is right after...)

N18 Video Games and Advertising
Industry, Ideology, and Identity
Swissotel Alpine 1 (Lucerne Level)
Ben Latini, "Is that Dude Cool or What?": Video Game Comics, Masculinity, and the Cultural Construction of the Gamer
Evan Lauteria, "Japanese Game Advertisements, Localization, and Mythologies of Cultural Difference"
Megan Condis and Jess Morrissette, "Console Wars: How Nintendo and Sega Shaped the Image of Gaming in the 1990s"
Oscar Moralde, "Video Game Industry Showcase Presentations and the Construction of Perpetual Anticipation"

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 03/04/2025

If you've read this far, I suspect you may have an interest in upping the view count on my dissertation. If not for the triangulation of Merleau-Ponty and Hannah Arendt through CRUSADER KINGS III, at least to see my HADES winstreak memorialized in the conclusion... escholarship.org/uc/item/3180...

escholarship.org

The Protopolitics of Play: From Gameworlds to Playing-in-the-World

Author(s): Moralde, Oscar John Arellano | Advisor(s): Mamber, Stephen | Abstract: How might we understand the medium of video games beyond the static structures of encoded processes and audiovisual si...

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 03/04/2025

And considering the tactility of the interface, in how games can create the "feel" of objects in the gap between what you see and what you touch, is something that continues to thread through my work years after I looked at how PAPERS, PLEASE did it... works.hcommons.org/records/znyx...

works.hcommons.org

Well Played V4 N1: DiGRA and GLS

The Well Played Journal is a forum for in-depth close readings of games that parse out the various meanings to be found in the experience of playing a game. It is a reviewed journal with CfPs for subm...

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 03/04/2025

Like the idle game's relation to time, the walking simulator's reconfiguration of space in front of the player allowed for thinking about landscapes in games and what it means to get "lost in gamespace"... mediafieldsjournal.org/haptic-lands...

mediafieldsjournal.org

Media Fields Journal - Haptic Landscapes

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 03/04/2025

One fascinating excursus of this focus on embodied aesthetics was tracing the intersection of fashion and the athletic body in the culture of the NBA... doi.org/10.1111/jpcu...

doi.org

The NBA Dandy Plays the Fashion Game: NBA All‐Star All‐Style and Dress Codes of Black Masculinity

Click on the article title to read more.

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 03/04/2025

Hello! I teach and research embodied video game aesthetics and ideology, particularly in looking at how games fit into the timetables of everyday life, as in my study of the idle/clicker game genre: www.invisibleculturejournal.com/pub/wait-wai...

invisibleculturejournal.com

Wait Wait… Don’t Play Me: The Clicker Game Genre and Configuring Everyday Temporalities

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Oscar Moralde @oscarmoralde.com · 03/04/2025

I have basically been radio silent on social media since 2020ish for The Reasons You Might Guess. However, at this point necessity is the mother of posting, so here we go...

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