A New Virtual Ethics

We are witnessing the collapse of the postwar consensus, the implosion of the caring society. In times of social, economic, and political insecurity, egotism spreads. Many popular videogames follow a logic of consumerist self-gratification and self-empowerment. Deeply political, videogames contribute to the transformation of players, causing a need for change in what game designers do and how and why they do it. Awareness of the socio-political and cultural contexts can be promoted by the mainstream videogame market for critical active participation.
This book focuses on the need for individual self-realization in Western societies and how it manifests in the various dimensions of videogames. Videogames remind us that we can never be isolated in a world defined by complexity and interlaced systems. Connecting videogames and new Neo-Kantian virtual ethics builds upon notions of agency, mutual respect, and obligation. This addresses humans in their entirety as thinking, acting, and feeling agents through engagement, immersion, and involvement.

René Reinhold Schallegger is an associate professor of British, Canadian, and game studies at the University of Klagenfurt (Austria).
Series editor Matthew Wilhelm Kapell teaches American studies, anthropology, and writing at Pace University in New York.

René Reinhold Schallegger. Series Editor Matthew Wilhelm Kapell
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 238
Bibliographic Info: bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2024
pISBN: 978-1-4766-9186-2
eISBN: 978-1-4766-5444-7
Imprint: McFarland
Series: Studies in Gaming

Acknowledgments ix

Preface 1

Introduction: The 1920s and the Early NFL 3

One. Before the NFL Came to Providence 7

The Early Years of the Independent Steam Roller 7

The Cycledrome 18

Two. The Early Years (1925–1927) 22

1925—The Inaugural Season 22

1926—Excitement Turns to Disappointment 38

1927—Conzelman Arrives and Fortunes Change 52

Three. The NFL Champions (1928) 68

1928—The Top of the Mountain 68

Four. Aftermath and Demise (1929–1931) 95

1929—The Championship Hangover 95

1930—The Steam Roller Contends but Attendance Falls Off Sharply 109

1931—More Games, Fewer Fans, the End Is Near 121

Epilogue: The End and the Steam Roller Legacy 135

A Steam Roller Who’s Who 143

Appendix: ­Year-by-Year Results, Team Rosters and Statistics 227

Chapter Notes 257

Bibliography 263

Index 273