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system within which the world of game development is rooted. Yet, time
and again as a social analyst, the very question, “isn't it 'just' software?”
has been levelled at my work studying game development. Thus, in this
chapter, I make the argument, “No, clearly it isn't just software.” Game
development is a creative collaborative process involving numerous disci-
plines rooted in a particular culture producing creative, artistic and cul-
turally important works. Software is a part of this process and part of
the very thing created, but it is not the sum of the parts. This is the video
game industry.
The chapter draws upon ethnographic participant observation with
“AAA” and independent game developers over more than seven years.
The assertions draw on these observations to provide a description of the
broader world that contextualizes the creative collaborative work of video
game developers. My dissertation work was based on more than three years
of ethnographic work with game studios in the U.S. and India (O'Donnell
2008). That work has been further expanded upon and developed into a
full-length monograph (O'Donnell 2012). I continue to perform ethno-
graphic work amongst educational game developers and independent and
hobbyist game developers.
It is ironic that as I write this chapter I return to my early writing about
the dissertation project I proposed in 2003. That project was focused more
on the work and globalization of software production. Pilot research took
me into the halls of Vicarious Visions, which was subsequently acquired by
Activision. That provided new connections that led to other game studios,
where my project morphed into attempting to better understand collab-
orative practice in the context of a global game industry. In less than nine
months, I had reframed my entire research project precisely because of the
numerous interesting and unique factors of the video game industry. At the
time, Game Studies was an emerging fi eld of inquiry in its own right, and I
wondered what an empirical study of game development would of er more
broadly. I now understand that game development work is poorly under-
stood, both at a popular level and by many researchers unfamiliar with the
fi eld. My work aims to rectify these misunderstandings and misconcep-
tions, while simultaneously helping developers understand their contextual
position in the broader video game industry.
This chapter begins by examining the historical foundations of game
development and how those early foundations of game development enable
the misconception that video games are simply software. The second sec-
tion of the chapter lays out how the process of game development and the
interdisciplinary methods of the practice distinguish it clearly from software
development practice. Third, the chapter examines dif erences between the
structure of the video game industry and that of the software industry.
The chapter then turns toward the audience and how video games intersect
with broad social and political cultures in ways that further distance games
from software. Finally, the chapter examines the implications of treating
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