Product details
Biographical note
Michael A. Allen is a professor of political science in the School of Public Service at Boise State University. His books include Beyond the Wire: US Military Deployments and Host Country Public Opinion and Poli Sci Fi: An Introduction to Political Science through Science Fiction. His work focuses on conflict, asymmetry, and foreign policy with a particular interest in the positive and negative externalities of US troop deployments overseas. His research has been published in the American Political Science Review, International Studies Quarterly, Journal of Conflict Resolution, and Foreign Policy Analysis. The games he played the most while writing this book were Balatro, Helldivers 2, and Fallout 76.
<p>Should you cooperate with allies, or confront your adversaries? From <i>World of Warcraft</i> and <i>League of Legends</i> to <i>Minecraft</i> and <i>Fortnite</i>, <i>The Gamer’s Guide </i>shows how some of the most popular games are great teachers of international relations and represent real-world political dynamics and strategy. It’s sure to be an exciting read for political scientists and gamers alike!</p>
- Oliver Kaplan, Josef Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver,
<p>In <i>The Gamer's Guide to International Relations, </i>Michael Allen provides an incredibly comprehensive and highly accessible overview of international relations topics. Seamlessly blending insights from gaming and historical examples, this book will help readers to better understand some of the most important issues and concepts in international relations. It’s incredibly informative, but also incredibly fun to read.</p>
- Michael Flynn, Kansas State University,
Ready Player One meets Foreign Affairs—everything your students need to know about international relations through the lens of video games!
The Gamer’s Guide to International Relations uses massively popular video games as a stepping stone to learning about international relations. The study of international relations concerns itself with critical topics like war, civil war, terrorism, human rights, trade, monetary policy, and the environment. Each of these areas of human need, crisis, and response can be difficult to understand. However, gamers already implicitly understand the international world through the games they play. Drawing upon lessons gamers learn through gameplay, this volume guides readers as to how their existing knowledge can help untangle some of the most complicated topics facing humanity. The book progresses by introducing readers to how scholars use the scientific method in international relations. Readers will encounter pivotal international relations theories that explain why war occurs, like realism, liberalism, and constructivism, as well as understanding concepts like the bargaining model of war. The book discusses how we learn about international politics and guides the reader through how we can research world politics and gaming. Finally, the book focuses on key interest areas like international political economy, human rights, the environment, and civil war.
Preface
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1: Introduction
Why Video Games?
Shared Cultural Experience
Generate Alternative Scenarios
Real-World Scenario Analogs
Speculative Scenarios
Test Interactive Strategies
Indirect Effects
Which Video Games?
Survival Games: Minecraft
Battle Royales: Fortnite
Multiplayer Online Battle Arenas: LoL
Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games: World of Warcraft
Explore, Expand, Exploit, and Exterminate Games: Civilization
Plan of the Book
Chapter 2: Realism: The Enemy of My Enemy Is in the Way of My Chicken Dinner
Theories
Realism
Neorealism
A Realist World and a Realist Game
Conclusion
Chapter 3: Liberalism: From Solo Queue to Flex Queue
Liberalism
Conclusions
Chapter 4: Bargaining Models of War: Making an Offer Pericles Cannot Refuse
Building the Model
War as a Bargaining Failure
Information Problems
Commitment Problems
Indivisible Goods
Conclusion
Chapter 5: Domestic Politics: Open Sourcing World Politics
Breaking down the State
Dictators and Principals
Organizational Model of Foreign Policy
Bureaucratic Model of Foreign Policy
Conclusions
Chapter 6: Constructivism: Minecraft is What Players Make of It
The Social Construction of International Politics
Constructivist Approaches to International Relations
Conclusions
Chapter 7: Identity: Representation and Roleplaying in IR
Gender
Women’s Involvement in IR
Impact of International Processes on Women
Civilization
Race and Ethnicity
Intersectionality
Conclusions
Chapter 8: Studying International Relations
Observation
Theory
Hypothesis
Research Design and Analysis
Conclusions
Chapter Conclusions
Chapter 9: Specific Tool: Game Theory
Assumptions
Games and Game Theory
Conclusions
Chapter 10: Specific Tool: Quantitative Research
What Matters in LoL
Data
Research Design and Analysis
Conclusions about League
Data in IR
Conclusions
Chapter 11: Civil Wars: Violence Within
The Causes
State Responses
How Civil Wars End
Conclusions
Chapter 12: International Political Economy: Trade
The Logic of Comparative Advantage
The Positive Externalities of Trade
Conclusions
Chapter 13: International Political Economy: Monetary Policy
Currency Systems
International Processes
Conclusions
Chapter 14: Human Rights: Respect in Physical and Digital Spaces
Human Rights in IR
Enforcing Human Rights
Gaming and Human Rights
Conclusions
Chapter 15: Global Health and the Environment
The Environment
Global Health
Conclusions
Chapter 16: Conclusions
Games as Entertainment
Games as Microcosms of International Interactions
Games as Channels
Appendix I: Quick Guide to the Games in the Book
Appendix II: Alternative Games
About the Author
Glossary
Product details
Biographical note
Michael A. Allen is a professor of political science in the School of Public Service at Boise State University. His books include Beyond the Wire: US Military Deployments and Host Country Public Opinion and Poli Sci Fi: An Introduction to Political Science through Science Fiction. His work focuses on conflict, asymmetry, and foreign policy with a particular interest in the positive and negative externalities of US troop deployments overseas. His research has been published in the American Political Science Review, International Studies Quarterly, Journal of Conflict Resolution, and Foreign Policy Analysis. The games he played the most while writing this book were Balatro, Helldivers 2, and Fallout 76.