Why archaeologists study virtual worlds from video games
During the 2020 pandemic lockdown, scientists Alex and Pat were drawn into the intricate worlds of video games developed by the Japanese studio From Software, spending hours outside of work exploring and documenting their findings for a YouTube audience. The duo engaged in thorough research in an attempt to unravel the mysteries and histories presented within these games, an endeavor that aligns with the emerging academic discipline of archaeogaming. Championed by archaeologist Andrew Reinhard, this field of study delves into the cultural, historical, and architectural elements of video games, with Reinhard himself performing extensive archaeological studies on games like Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim and No Man’s Sky for his PhD thesis.
Keywords: pandemic lockdown, scientists, video games, From Software, YouTube, explorations, research, archaeogaming, Andrew Reinhard, cultural, historical, architectural elements, Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim, No Man’s Sky, PhD thesis.
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