Genuinely ecstatic we have this chapter in Writing Game Histories. An amazing range of perspectives from people who care about what games do to history & vice versa. And at the core of it, a clear sense of why thinking thoughtfully & creatively about history, play (and research!!) matters so much

We're a bit late doing this but announcing our new theme - Nations - and the full call for contributions. As usual it's an open call, and full details are available on the HGN blog here: www.historicalgames.net/call-for-con...

If you missed last month’s discussion panel for our Analogue theme, you can now find a recording of the event on the HGN blog and YouTube channel! Watch this space for our next theme announcement, coming soon… www.historicalgames.net/recording-hg...

Very proud of the theme of this edition. Come and join us to talk about possible pasts, possible worlds, and possibilities for our collective future through the study of history.

My thesis “Archaeological Game Design: Video Game Archaeology as Interpretive Play and Play Preservation” is now online and open access! You can access the official version here, however this has some figures redacted: qmro.qmul.ac.uk/xmlui/handle...

My book, "The Middle Ages in Computer Games" is out in paperback tomorrow (2 Jun). If you've been waiting to get hold of it, now could be a good time! boydellandbrewer.com/book/the-mid...

Was delighted to contribute with my fellow series editors to this piece on intersections between the Humanities disciplines and game studies in our series and more broadly, as part of a great collection!

Writing Game Histories edited by Esther Wright, Iain Donald & Nick Webber explores how games shape—and are shaped by—our understanding of the past, offering a clear introduction to the fast‑growing field of Historical Game Studies. Discover the book https://bit.ly/4sAXVLm

LOVE THIS! Here’s the US link:

Publication day. Thank you to @enwright.bsky.social, Iain, and Nick for making this so. I think this is a meaningful contribution to the field of historical games. My chapter is on historical rhetoric and board games, with a case study on Crisis: 1914. lnkd.in/evi5Z7Nw

So happy I could contribute the text Historical Theory and Game Design to the amazing Writing Game Histories anthology by @enwright.bsky.social, Iain Donald, and @doktornick.bsky.social! ✍️🕹️📜 Hit me up if you want to chat about anything related to historical game development 😺 Link in the comment!

Absolutely thrilled to have a chapter in this book (alongside other wonderful historical game developers and academics)! Huge congrats to Esther, Nick, and Iain 🎉 Can’t wait to read the book!

It's publication day for Writing Game Histories!! 🥳🎉 Please do recommend it for your library, but it's also out in paperback so not as hideously expensive as academic books can be: www.bloomsbury.com/uk/writing-g... @doktornick.bsky.social @doni.bsky.social @historygamesnet.bsky.social

Don’t forget to sign up to our Analogue event this coming Tuesday (19th May, 16:00 UK time) over on TicketTailor! www.tickettailor.com/events/histo...

New on the HGN blog today! Guest speaker for our upcoming “Analogue” discussion panel Liz Davidson (@beyondsolitaire.bsky.social) reflects on 3 recent historical board game projects, and the balance between “authenticity” and “accuracy” in game design: www.historicalgames.net/accuracy-vs-...

Our next HGN panel is coming up next week, 19th May. Our brilliant panel will be talk all things analogue games and history Come join us! 👇👇

New today on the HGN blog - the first post from our event panellists! Izzy Bartley explores the coloniality of collecting in museums and Western boardgames. www.historicalgames.net/parallel-play/ #gamestudies #historicalgames #gtp #skystorians

Our Analogue theme event will take place online on Tuesday 19 May, 16:00-17:30 UK time - just 2 weeks away! We're joined by the excellent Izzy Bartley, @beyondsolitaire.bsky.social, and @theoldkingscrown.bsky.social. Tickets here: www.tickettailor.com/events/histo... #gamestudies #skystorians #gtp

Your perspective matters! We’re assessing HGN’s impact, and your input will shape our future work. If you’ve attended an event, read our blog or followed us, we’d like to hear from you. ⏱️Survey takes only 2–5 minutes Thank you for being part of our community forms.cloud.microsoft/e/3vawgZSsST

Come help us shape the future of video game heritage in Scotland! New AHRC PhD opportunity for anyone interested in video game heritage and want to work with National Museums Scotland, Abertay Uni and Uni of Glasgow, apply! Applications due 11/05/2026 ce0173li.webitrent.com/ce0173li_web...

This Friday (24th; 6pm UK/1pm Eastern) I'm speaking with Daniel J. Finnegan on our work with the Cardiff Heritage Jam, engaging students with local history & heritage through games, for this Teaching Game Studies roundtable (in excellent company, too!) Register here: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

it's that time of year again...are you a historical videogame player living in the Netherlands? do you want to contribute to player-focused research on past-play? come sign up for a gameplay session so i can watch you 👀 for science! check out edu.nl/cd849 to learn more 🏛️🎮⚔️🎲

Had a brilliant time talking to Liz for @beyondsolitaire.bsky.social podcast. A very wide ranging chat on researching and teaching historical games!

The first post for our Analogue theme is up! @malcolmcraig.bsky.social explores depictions of armed American masculinity in a Cold War context across Tabletop Role-Playing Games like Delta Force: America strikes back!, Twilight: 2000, & The Price of Freedom: www.historicalgames.net/manly-men-wi...

New post on the HGN blog: for “Fictions,” Christopher Gerteis discusses HashimaXR, an immersive heritage project that grapples with the blurring of historical fact and fiction, contested historical and political memory & the meaning of “historical play” www.historicalgames.net/island-that-...

New FUNDED PhD opportunity with me, @doktornick.bsky.social, and @bomlab.bsky.social on 'Playing in Public: Game-Based Interventions for Sustainability, Community and Environmental Engagement' as part of the CreaTech Frontiers CDA scheme! Deadline: 10 April Details: www.bcu.ac.uk/research/our...

M*A*S*H ended 43 years ago today with the 2 1/2 hour finale, “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen.” The groundbreaking final episode still holds the record for the most watched scripted television show of all time!

We're trying something new - if you've signed up to the mailing list, you should have the first HGN newsletter (baby steps). We've moved e-mail platforms so do check any spam or junk folders! If you have signed up you can here: www.historicalgames.net/contact/

New HGN theme up now!! 👇

If you need evidence that the HGN blog is the place to go for quality #historygames writing, look no further than this piece. Absolutely fantastic dive on the complexities of video game time - even in historical games that may look very simple on the outset.

New on the HGN blog, the next post in our Fictions theme. Sara Morini explores how Raid on Taihoku reworks time to create narrative fiction and rewrite history. Enjoy! www.historicalgames.net/raid-on-taih... #gamestudies #gamingthepast #skystorians

Had a fantastic time speaking to the history departmental seminar at Cardiff University yesterday. Great questions and conversations with a brilliant and collegial group of historians. Thanks so much to @enwright.bsky.social & @mrfw17thc.bsky.social for the invitation and for such a warm welcome!

A bit of weekend listening/watching to brighten your Sunday!

On the HGN blog: an interview with @drandrewsneddon.bsky.social & Dr Victoria McCollum @ulsteruni.bsky.social on the amazing Witches of Islandmagee project. Huge thanks to Kirstin Mitchell (HGN Research Assistant Extraordinaire) for leading this conversation! www.historicalgames.net/interview-wi...

New HGN blog for our “Fictions” theme: Marie Rodet writes about USAWA - an Afrofuturist game co-created with Kenya-based game studio Jiwe. The post explores the use of fiction as historiographical method, the “problem of representation”& ethical game design: www.historicalgames.net/fiction-as-h...

Hats off to whoever did this (and the beautiful model).

History ended in the 2000s. now this is History NG+

1753. WRITING GAME HISTORIES ​ 👉 www.thevideogamelibrary.org/book/writing... "An accessible guide to Historical Game Studies, exploring how games represent, shape, and create history across digital and analogue forms" #Books #Booksky #Gaming #VideoGames #GameStudies #GamingThePast

I'm extremely excited that the Forum section I'm co-organising with the amazing @enwright.bsky.social on British historical game studies has been green lit by a journal. More details to come in due course. What a nice way to end the semester.

In addition to being a stunningly beautiful cover, choosing an image from a video game that remediates classical board game aesthetics illustrates the balance the volume tried to achieve between digital and analogue approaches. I'm super eager to put my hands on this book!

And now, Writing Game Histories (2026) with cover art (courtesy of @murthynikhil.bsky.social’s Syphilisation) www.bloomsbury.com/uk/writing-g...

Nic & I wrote hundreds of events for Amberspire, so I can say (with some bias) that the game’s world is so considered & interesting, but allows the player to form their own narrative that is reflected back at them in the cities they build. I’m proud to work on it, and everyone should wishlist it!!

I wrote a new article: it’s on the Fallout franchise, & it’s just been published in Games&Culture I’m currently trying to wrap my head around a bigger project on historical video game promotion and branding & this article is a slice (in progress) of that + it’s open access! doi.org/10.1177/1555...

I wrote a new article: it’s on the Fallout franchise, & it’s just been published in Games&Culture I’m currently trying to wrap my head around a bigger project on historical video game promotion and branding & this article is a slice (in progress) of that + it’s open access! doi.org/10.1177/1555...

Are you a scholar in Games Studies, Museum Studies and/or Digital Humanities and want to help NMS develop research in Collecting Video Game Heritage? Come and apply to be an IASH Fellow at the University of Edinburgh! Applications Opens - Dec 25 Closes - April 26 www.iash.ed.ac.uk/iash-nationa...

Exciting news! Some of the most creative voices in the field have contributed to this volume. #gamingthepast #historygames

Just a reminder that this call is open if the overlap of history, fiction and games is your thing!

The Rockstar union case made its way into UK Parliament earlier today

A project that started with a DiGRA23 workshop is finally, nearly out in the world! Coming May 2026 from Bloomsbury’s Writing History series, Writing Games Histories is a collection of essays on historical game studies methods&approaches. Find the ToC here: www.bloomsbury.com/uk/writing-g...

hey y'all! my questionnaire on player experience in historical videogames is now LIVE! if you play videogames about the past, we want to hear from you! edu.nl/7w3yn