In this class, students will analyze the use of mythology, particularly classical mythology, in the creation and narratives of video games. As a new and constantly evolving genre, video games are currently one of the most prevalent forms of classical reception. Given that the nature of reception has always been a significant measure of cultural change, video games constitute a valuable asset by providing new avenues for thought, innovative research, and interactive learning. This course proposes a global, pluralistic, and interdisciplinary approach to the interaction between myths and video games. We will study the video game space as a site for reconstructing archaic mythological structures. Students will focus on examples of mythological narratives in video games from the 1980s to the present. We will identify trends in constructing plots in narrative games according to the principles of myth theories and examine how new technologies can tell new stories. Since the video game experience involves the player actively engaging with history rather than passively contemplating it, students will examine the replication of mythological elements within the environment of new interactive media and how this process dynamically transmits mythological motifs into the gaming experience.
Meets NEW GEN ED: HU