The Evolution and Social Impact of Video Game Economics

Casey B. Hart is associate professor in the Department of Mass Communication at Stephen F. Austin State University.

Contents

Introduction
Casey Hart



"Show me the money!" - Shifting Fields of Capital in the Global Game Industry

Casey O’Donnell



Nintendo’s Retro Revolution: Commodified Nostalgia and the Virtual Console

Steve Cuff and Christopher Terry



Business Models, Planned Obsolescence, Externalities: Examining the Virtual Hand of the Video Game Industry

Mark D. Cruea



Prestige: A Cyclical Act for Consumer Control

Brent Kice



Free-to-play? Considering the interaction of functional factors in video game design influencing the economic effectiveness of microtransactions

Casey Hart



P(l)aying Pretty: Consuming Fairy Tales and Device Applications

Emma Whatman



Playing with and against Microtransactions: The Discourses of Microtransactions Acceptance and Rejection in Mainstream Video Games

Jan Švelch



Smart Players and Happy Consumers: Effects of Game Characteristics and Player Emotional Experiences on in-App Ad Responses

Hsuan-Yi Chou and Shaojung Sharon Wang



Gold Farming in China—and in Western Academia, Journalism, and Fiction

Bjarke Liboriussen

About the Editor and Contributors