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  • © 2020

Exploring Minecraft

Ethnographies of Play and Creativity

Palgrave Macmillan
  • Unites the disciplines of game, media, and cultural studies and education through the lens of Minecraft
  • Provides empirical case studies, critical discussion of research methods in game studies, and additional context and material on state-of-the-art developments in mobile, AR, VR and pervasive location-based games
  • Aims to clearly identify significant cultural issues for game developers and designers, while also being of key relevance to educators and theorists across a broad spectrum of disciplines that are interested in the intersection of media evolution and cultural practices

Part of the book series: Palgrave Games in Context (PAGCON)

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Table of contents (8 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xiv
  2. The Phenomenon

    • Larissa Hjorth, Ingrid Richardson, Hugh Davies, William Balmford
    Pages 1-23
  3. Context

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 25-25
    2. Exploring Play

      • Larissa Hjorth, Ingrid Richardson, Hugh Davies, William Balmford
      Pages 27-47
    3. Understanding Play

      • Larissa Hjorth, Ingrid Richardson, Hugh Davies, William Balmford
      Pages 49-73
  4. Spaces of Play

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 75-75
    2. Play Practices and Modalities

      • Larissa Hjorth, Ingrid Richardson, Hugh Davies, William Balmford
      Pages 77-97
    3. Metagaming and Paratextual Play

      • Larissa Hjorth, Ingrid Richardson, Hugh Davies, William Balmford
      Pages 99-120
  5. Places of Play

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 121-121
    2. Playing at Home

      • Larissa Hjorth, Ingrid Richardson, Hugh Davies, William Balmford
      Pages 123-144
    3. Games in Institutional Spaces

      • Larissa Hjorth, Ingrid Richardson, Hugh Davies, William Balmford
      Pages 145-166
    4. Playing During COVID-19

      • Larissa Hjorth, Ingrid Richardson, Hugh Davies, William Balmford
      Pages 167-182
  6. Back Matter

    Pages 183-189

About this book

This book directs critical attention to one of the most ubiquitous and yet under-analyzed games, Minecraft. Drawing on three years of ethnographic fieldwork into mobile games in Australian homes, the authors seek to take Minecraft seriously as a cultural practice. The book examines how Minecraft players engage in a form of gameplay that is uniquely intergenerational, creative, and playful, and which moves ambivalently throughout everyday life. At the intersection of digital media, quotidian literacy, and ethnography, the book situates interdisciplinary debates around mundane play through the lens of Minecraft. Ultimately, Exploring Minecraft seeks to coalesce the discussion between formal and informal learning, fostering new forms of digital media creativity and ethnographic innovation around the analysis of games in everyday life.





Authors and Affiliations

  • RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia

    Larissa Hjorth, Ingrid Richardson, Hugh Davies, William Balmford

About the authors

Larissa Hjorth is Distinguished Professor and Director of the Design & Creative Practice Platform at RMIT University, Australia.

Ingrid Richardson is Professor in the School of Media & Communication at RMIT University, Australia.

Hugh Davies is a postdoctoral fellow in the Design & Creative Practice Platform at RMIT University, Australia.

William Balmford has a PhD in media and communications from RMIT University, Australia.




Bibliographic Information

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access