Unboxing Japanese Videogames: A Metadata-Based Approach to the Production and Distribution of Spatial Instability
A new perspective on the spatial complexity and plurality of Japanese videogames.


Unboxing Japanese Videogames uncovers the complex and plural spatialities of commercial videogames published in Japan between 1985 and 2015. Rejecting the “boxing” inherent in the phrase “Japanese videogames,” Martin Roth explores a series of spatialities that unfold in videogame production and distribution. The book develops a notion of spatialization that is applied in the analysis of contents or genre distributions in Japan, the US, the UK, Germany, and France, the distribution of videogame works across different important markets, the geography of actors involved in videogame production and their gradual spatialization over time, and the functional spatialization of game production across a diverse range of platforms.

The book is the first English-language study to provide an overview of the subject and also the first to explore the spatial history of FromSoftware games. It stands out because it does so quantitatively, offering a macro-perspective on the field of commercial videogames instead of relying on sales statistics or case studies. In addition to a wide range of related scholarship in English, the book engages actively with scholarship and other relevant resources in Japanese. Over 30 visualizations make the findings of the book tangible and invite the reader to explore the spatial complexity of commercial videogames further.
1145649186
Unboxing Japanese Videogames: A Metadata-Based Approach to the Production and Distribution of Spatial Instability
A new perspective on the spatial complexity and plurality of Japanese videogames.


Unboxing Japanese Videogames uncovers the complex and plural spatialities of commercial videogames published in Japan between 1985 and 2015. Rejecting the “boxing” inherent in the phrase “Japanese videogames,” Martin Roth explores a series of spatialities that unfold in videogame production and distribution. The book develops a notion of spatialization that is applied in the analysis of contents or genre distributions in Japan, the US, the UK, Germany, and France, the distribution of videogame works across different important markets, the geography of actors involved in videogame production and their gradual spatialization over time, and the functional spatialization of game production across a diverse range of platforms.

The book is the first English-language study to provide an overview of the subject and also the first to explore the spatial history of FromSoftware games. It stands out because it does so quantitatively, offering a macro-perspective on the field of commercial videogames instead of relying on sales statistics or case studies. In addition to a wide range of related scholarship in English, the book engages actively with scholarship and other relevant resources in Japanese. Over 30 visualizations make the findings of the book tangible and invite the reader to explore the spatial complexity of commercial videogames further.
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Unboxing Japanese Videogames: A Metadata-Based Approach to the Production and Distribution of Spatial Instability

Unboxing Japanese Videogames: A Metadata-Based Approach to the Production and Distribution of Spatial Instability

by Martin Roth
Unboxing Japanese Videogames: A Metadata-Based Approach to the Production and Distribution of Spatial Instability

Unboxing Japanese Videogames: A Metadata-Based Approach to the Production and Distribution of Spatial Instability

by Martin Roth

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Overview

A new perspective on the spatial complexity and plurality of Japanese videogames.


Unboxing Japanese Videogames uncovers the complex and plural spatialities of commercial videogames published in Japan between 1985 and 2015. Rejecting the “boxing” inherent in the phrase “Japanese videogames,” Martin Roth explores a series of spatialities that unfold in videogame production and distribution. The book develops a notion of spatialization that is applied in the analysis of contents or genre distributions in Japan, the US, the UK, Germany, and France, the distribution of videogame works across different important markets, the geography of actors involved in videogame production and their gradual spatialization over time, and the functional spatialization of game production across a diverse range of platforms.

The book is the first English-language study to provide an overview of the subject and also the first to explore the spatial history of FromSoftware games. It stands out because it does so quantitatively, offering a macro-perspective on the field of commercial videogames instead of relying on sales statistics or case studies. In addition to a wide range of related scholarship in English, the book engages actively with scholarship and other relevant resources in Japanese. Over 30 visualizations make the findings of the book tangible and invite the reader to explore the spatial complexity of commercial videogames further.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780262382908
Publisher: MIT Press
Publication date: 02/25/2025
Sold by: Penguin Random House Publisher Services
Format: eBook
Pages: 192

About the Author

Martin Roth is Associate Professor at Ritsumeikan University and a research fellow at Stuttgart Media University. He works on videogames, play, and digital culture, with a regional focus on Japan. His first monograph Thought-Provoking Play is available open access from ETC Press.
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