What would todays technology look like with Victorian-era design and materials? Thats the world steampunk envisions: a mad-inventor collection of 21st century-inspired contraptions powered by steam and driven by gears. In this book; futurist Brian David Johnson and cultural historian James Carrott explore steampunk; a cultural movement thats captivated thousands of artists; designers; makers; hackers; and writers throughout the world.Just like today; the late 19th century was an age of rapid technological change; and writers such as Jules Verne and H.G. Wells commented on their time with fantastic stories that jumpstarted science fiction. Through interviews with experts such as William Gibson; Cory Doctorow; Bruce Sterling; James Gleick; and Margaret Atwood; this book looks into steampunks vision of old-world craftsmen making beautiful hand-tooled gadgets; and what it says about our age of disposable technology.Steampunk is everywhere--as gadget prototypes at Maker Faire; novels; and comic books; paintings and photography; sculptures; fashion design; and music. Discover how this elaborate view of a history that never existed can help us reimagine our future.
#2901445 in eBooks 2013-05-31 2013-05-31File Name: B00DBELDEO
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Sound Play is an excellent academic book for both the experienced gamer who wants ...By Michael L AustinSound Play is an excellent academic book for both the experienced gamer who wants to learn more about reading video games as a social text and for scholars and students who want to learn more about the increasing social significance of video games. Rather than discussing music and sound on a more surface level (as one might find in a trade book); this book takes a deep look into implications of the use (and misuse) of video game sound and music. Its definitely not stogy and jargon-laden; but its very smart; astute; and frankly; fun to read.As someone who rarely finds time to play video games; I found it particularly helpful that Cheng carefully and insightfully walks you; the reader; through the games he discusses as if he were sitting next to you as you played them; giving even the most unexperienced player/ludomusicologist a remarkably clear picture of how the music; ambient sound; voice acting (really any audio) in these games colors a critical reading of a video game. Not only are music and sound considered in terms of their impact on immersion and the players experience; he digs into complex issues of gender; sexuality; and race/ethnicity; identity performativity and role-playing; ethics; and the significance of video game music and sound in a critique of these issues. His examples are among the most astute hermeneutic readings of video games and their sonic elements that Ive found (Im particularly impressed with his discussion of online player discussions regarding gender and sexual politics in TF2 found in Chapter 5). Its clearly among the best books on video game music and sound.I would STRONGLY recommend this book for music courses in which video games are discussed and for media studies courses of all sorts. Although Cheng expertly discusses music and sound in games in great detail (and includes some great transcriptions of excerpts from a few game scores); its not too technical for non-musicians. In fact; Ive already recommended the book to several of my students by virtue of the writing alone. Cheng is a beautiful writer; his prose is clear and concise; yet he paints a vivid picture in the imagination of the reader (which is apropos considering the subtitle of the book).0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. This may very well be my favorite book about video game music and sound to dateBy Elizabeth Medina-GrayThis may very well be my favorite book about video game music and sound to date. Chengs writing is clear; engaging; and sprinkled with game-inspired fun (my favorite bit of prose involves a description of Silent Hills soundscape as an "acoustic katamari"). More than that; Chengs ideas about particular video games; game sound; and players -- informed both by ethnographic research and deep probing of his own experiences -- are amazingly insightful and provocative. Over the course of reading this book; I encountered critical questions and issues I had never closely considered; and I gained new perspective on some familiar and unfamiliar games and situations. And while this book is highly valuable from an academic perspective; it is also approachable -- vastly more so than many other academic books I have read. I highly recommend it for anyone interested in video games; game music/sound; and the people who play games!0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Wide-Ranging and Insightful AnalysisBy William GibbonsThis book is a thought-provoking; well-written; and diverse look at the many roles music and sound play in video games. In Sound Play; Cheng (an award winning professor of music at Dartmouth College) focuses not on the technological aspects of game music; or even in its history; but rather on the effects of music and sound on players. The topics he addresses touch on many of the most pressing issues in gaming today; and how those topics intersect with the aural dimension of gaming: moral dilemmas reflected in the music of Fallout 3; gender issues in online play in Team Fortress 2; the nature of creative musical performance in The Lord of the Rings Online; and so on. The result is an always intriguing book that should be on the shelf of anyone interested in the serious study of game music; or of the role of games in modern culture.