Videogame interfaces: conceptual route and theorethical proposal

Abstract

The interface has been largely studied within the field of informatics and, more recently, the field of game studies. The multiplicity of approaches seems to agree on some key aspects like his linking character and informative-communitive dimension. However, the notion has lost specificity and utility in designating a huge number of phenomena. This paper takes a journey through some interface concepts from the field of informatics and media studies as well as from game studies, and proposes a number of methodological adjustments that allow to relate the concept with other notion of central importance for semiotics: the device. Then, three games in which the interface acquires a decisive role in the production of meaning are analyzed.