<p>Should you cooperate with allies, or confront your adversaries? From <i>World of Warcraft</i> and <i>League of Legends</i> to <i>Minecraft</i> and <i>Fortnite</i>, <i>The Gamer’s Guide </i>shows how some of the most popular games are great teachers of international relations and represent real-world political dynamics and strategy. It’s sure to be an exciting read for political scientists and gamers alike!</p>

- Oliver Kaplan, Josef Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver,

<p>In <i>The Gamer's Guide to International Relations, </i>Michael Allen provides an incredibly comprehensive and highly accessible overview of international relations topics. Seamlessly blending insights from gaming and historical examples, this book will help readers to better understand some of the most important issues and concepts in international relations. It’s incredibly informative, but also incredibly fun to read.</p>

- Michael Flynn, Kansas State University,

Ready Player One meets Foreign Affairs—everything your students need to know about international relations through the lens of video games!The Gamer’s Guide to International Relations uses massively popular video games as a stepping stone to learning about international relations. The study of international relations concerns itself with critical topics like war, civil war, terrorism, human rights, trade, monetary policy, and the environment. Each of these areas of human need, crisis, and response can be difficult to understand. However, gamers already implicitly understand the international world through the games they play. Drawing upon lessons gamers learn through gameplay, this volume guides readers as to how their existing knowledge can help untangle some of the most complicated topics facing humanity. The book progresses by introducing readers to how scholars use the scientific method in international relations. Readers will encounter pivotal international relations theories that explain why war occurs, like realism, liberalism, and constructivism, as well as understanding concepts like the bargaining model of war. The book discusses how we learn about international politics and guides the reader through how we can research world politics and gaming. Finally, the book focuses on key interest areas like international political economy, human rights, the environment, and civil war.
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PrefaceAcknowledgmentsChapter 1: IntroductionWhy Video Games?Shared Cultural ExperienceGenerate Alternative ScenariosReal-World Scenario AnalogsSpeculative ScenariosTest Interactive StrategiesIndirect EffectsWhich Video Games?Survival Games: MinecraftBattle Royales: FortniteMultiplayer Online Battle Arenas: LoLMassively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games: World of WarcraftExplore, Expand, Exploit, and Exterminate Games: CivilizationPlan of the BookChapter 2: Realism: The Enemy of My Enemy Is in the Way of My Chicken DinnerTheoriesRealismNeorealismA Realist World and a Realist GameConclusionChapter 3: Liberalism: From Solo Queue to Flex QueueLiberalismConclusionsChapter 4: Bargaining Models of War: Making an Offer Pericles Cannot RefuseBuilding the ModelWar as a Bargaining FailureInformation ProblemsCommitment ProblemsIndivisible GoodsConclusionChapter 5: Domestic Politics: Open Sourcing World PoliticsBreaking down the StateDictators and PrincipalsOrganizational Model of Foreign PolicyBureaucratic Model of Foreign PolicyConclusionsChapter 6: Constructivism: Minecraft is What Players Make of ItThe Social Construction of International PoliticsConstructivist Approaches to International RelationsConclusionsChapter 7: Identity: Representation and Roleplaying in IRGenderWomen’s Involvement in IRImpact of International Processes on WomenCivilizationRace and EthnicityIntersectionalityConclusionsChapter 8: Studying International RelationsObservationTheoryHypothesisResearch Design and AnalysisConclusionsChapter ConclusionsChapter 9: Specific Tool: Game TheoryAssumptionsGames and Game TheoryConclusionsChapter 10: Specific Tool: Quantitative ResearchWhat Matters in LoLDataResearch Design and AnalysisConclusions about LeagueData in IRConclusionsChapter 11: Civil Wars: Violence WithinThe CausesState ResponsesHow Civil Wars EndConclusionsChapter 12: International Political Economy: TradeThe Logic of Comparative AdvantageThe Positive Externalities of TradeConclusionsChapter 13: International Political Economy: Monetary PolicyCurrency SystemsInternational ProcessesConclusionsChapter 14: Human Rights: Respect in Physical and Digital SpacesHuman Rights in IREnforcing Human RightsGaming and Human RightsConclusionsChapter 15: Global Health and the EnvironmentThe EnvironmentGlobal HealthConclusionsChapter 16: ConclusionsGames as EntertainmentGames as Microcosms of International InteractionsGames as ChannelsAppendix I: Quick Guide to the Games in the BookAppendix II: Alternative GamesAbout the AuthorGlossary
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Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9781538197240
Publisert
2025-02-26
Utgiver
Vendor
Rowman & Littlefield
Vekt
404 gr
Høyde
229 mm
Bredde
152 mm
Aldersnivå
G, 01
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Innbundet
Antall sider
198

Forfatter

Biographical note

Michael A. Allen is a professor of political science in the School of Public Service at Boise State University. His books include Beyond the Wire: US Military Deployments and Host Country Public Opinion and Poli Sci Fi: An Introduction to Political Science through Science Fiction. His work focuses on conflict, asymmetry, and foreign policy with a particular interest in the positive and negative externalities of US troop deployments overseas. His research has been published in the American Political Science Review, International Studies Quarterly, Journal of Conflict Resolution, and Foreign Policy Analysis. The games he played the most while writing this book were Balatro, Helldivers 2, and Fallout 76.