Small acts of self: practices of personal vignette games

This thesis focuses on personal vignette games as a medium for sharing and exploring the self. It investigates the central thesis question, how vignette games are used to explore personal experiences, examining the creative potential of vignette games as a form of human connection, personal practice and poetic expression. The making of personal vignette games, and the circumstances which lead to their creation, are not often considered within the realm of game studies. However, the exploration of videogames as a personal, everyday and approachable art form is of vital importance to extending the conversation around the creative and social role of digital games.

Taking a mixed methods approach, the thesis breaks the central question into three sub-questions: how does the personal vignette game portray an author’s personal experiences, what are the authors’ connections to the personal vignette game, and what is the significance of personal creative process. The studies undertaken focus on three key elements that shape the way the medium is used to share personal experiences: the creators making them, the creative methods used, and the games themselves. Through a combination of close reading games, interviewing creators and creating personal vignette games of my own, I uncover dynamics of personal vignette games within the various contexts which shape them.

Throughout this thesis, I situate the personal vignette game within their private, playful and social contexts. I argue that the approachable, transgressive and often abstract form of the vignette game has helped this mode of digital self-expression to flourish outside the boundaries of what might be traditionally considered “game design”. I explore the personal vignette game as a collection of shared perspectives through play, as well as a social connection and a free-form exploration of the self. I present also an ethos for approaching the personal vignette game, whether creating, playing or contemplating the works from a critical standpoint.