Beyond Reading: The 'Gamification' of Books (original) (raw)

Abstract

There is a fundamental shift taking place in our relationship with books. No longer perceived as distinct, physical objects to be read and stowed on a shelf, their digitization has created a complex, interconnected network of sociability, data, and engagement using e-readers and other digital media. This desire for engagement, in particular, mirrors an emerging trend in the publishing industry: the “gamification” of books. Gamification — defined as the integration of game mechanics into traditionally non-game environments — has already penetrated the publishing industry through applications such as Kobo’s “Reading Life,” which awards the reader badges, shares information with friends, and stores statistical data (e.g. number of pages turned). How do these digital trends affect our study of reading and the reception of texts in the twenty first century? Using “Reading Life” and other recent examples of “gamification” as a point of departure, this paper examines how digital books, as “active” vehicles for real-life engagement, influence the reception of texts in a digital age. In a world of social media and integration, the proliferation of digital books, I argue, has caused a trend toward increased engagement — objects that can be “played” with beyond reading itself. The future of textual studies, then, should be open to considering both the digital object and the interactive worlds which surround them. Far from Huizinga’s “magic circle,” the amalgamation of books and gaming mechanics blurs the boundaries between not only reality and entertainment, but also between the idea of “game” and “text.”

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