Zeldology 101: Video Games Incorporated Into Liberal Arts Syllabi
When you were in school, did you ever wish you could learn “Tetris Theory” instead of Geometry, “Space Invading” instead of Astronomy, or “Mario Painting” instead of Art? Perhaps it’s not as crazy as it seems, according to some teachers. Students are now closer than ever to being able to turn their wistful video game-laden daydreams into realities.
When I first entered my New Media Studies class in college, I was delighted to discover an entire section devoted to video games in my syllabus. At first I was shocked, but then it suddenly dawned on me: if I’m perpetually being told to analyze films in my classes, why not video games? They are both visual media that people took great care to construct a certain way, and they both have massive amounts of cultural impact that merit some exploring. I gleefully watched my professor present demos of “Doom” and “The Sims,” learning new and exciting tidbits about games that were once old news to me. Consequently, this is one of the few classes that I actually attended.
