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1-up MegaZine!!!!
an interview with Raina Lee (part 2)

You talk about the gaming 'lifestyle'. What are the activities and accoutrements of the lifestyle? Pacman tattoos? A love of 8-bit music?

Gaming lifestyle is not just what certain commercial game companies think it is; wearing an Atari T-shirt or watching G4 Television (Video game cable channel in the states).

It's about realising that - like other media like film, telelvision, music, or literature - game culture and fandom is a very intimate and meaningful part in people's lives.

For example, if you have a particular revelation while playing Tetris when you are in the hospital paralyzed from the waist down, and Tetris becomes your way of living and experimenting with space for the time being (an actual article in Issue 1 of 1-Up), then Tetris can be a way of relating to the world.

Or if, as a girl growing up, you identified with a particular female avatar in Street Fighter 2 , that avatar forms part of your identity, becomes a metaphor for who you are, in the same way that people relate to characters in books or films.

One thing I am interested in doing with 1-Up is making those connections with the ways games and game situations can relate to greater everyday life, and how we make sense of it.

Do you feel that non-gamers or occasional gamers are interested in reading video games writing? Is there value in attempting to explain the experience of visiting a game's world to someone who has no intention of doing so?
Non-gamers are not interested in reading traditional games journalism because it's not about a relatable experience-- it's aimed at the hardcore game fan, full of specs, reviews, and references to other games. It's a very insular kind of writing.

I am really flattered when non-gaming people, especially girls, pick up 1-Up, because I realize that there is a way to write to non-gamers, a way to relate games to the world outside - real life, art, movies, travel, and so on - that is interesting and accessible.

There is an interdisciplinary world of art and experience out there, and games are part of it.

Please see www.1up-zine.com for further information, including details of how to order, subscribe or contribute.
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1-up MegaZine!!!! an interview with Raina Lee (part 2)
You talk about the gaming 'lifestyle'. What are the activities and accoutrements of the lifestyle? Pacman tattoos? A love of 8-bit music? Gaming lifestyle is not just what certain commercial game companies think it is; wearing an Atari T-shirt or watching G4 Television (Video game cable channel in the states). It's about realising that - like other media like film, telelvision, music, or literature - game culture and fandom is a very intimate and meaningful part in people's lives. For example, if you have a particular revelation while playing Tetris when you are in the hospital paralyzed from the waist down, and Tetris becomes your way of living and experimenting with space for the time being (an actual article in Issue 1 of 1-Up), then Tetris can be a way of relating to the world. Or if, as a girl growing up, you identified with a particular female avatar in Street Fighter 2 , that avatar forms part of your identity, becomes a metaphor for who you are, in the same way that people relate to characters in books or films. One thing I am interested in doing with 1-Up is making those connections with the ways games and game situations can relate to greater everyday life, and how we make sense of it.
				Do you feel that non-gamers or occasional gamers are interested in reading video games writing? Is there value in attempting to explain the experience of visiting a game's world to someone who has no intention of doing so? Non-gamers are not interested in reading traditional games journalism because it's not about a relatable experience-- it's aimed at the hardcore game fan, full of specs, reviews, and references to other games. It's a very insular kind of writing. I am really flattered when non-gaming people, especially girls, pick up 1-Up, because I realize that there is a way to write to non-gamers, a way to relate games to the world outside - real life, art, movies, travel, and so on - that is interesting and accessible. There is an interdisciplinary world of art and experience out there, and games are part of it. Please see www.1up-zine.com for further information, including details of how to order, subscribe or contribute. home >>