Module manager: Dr Nick Robinson
Email: N.Robinson@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2026/27
This module is approved as a discovery module
Do games lead to increased violence? Do they denigrate women? Do they legitimate military conflict? Why do the Japanese and American industries produce such different games? Why does the political establishment respond the way it does? Do they provide effective spaces for political activism? What impact do games have on policy? Do they, for example, lead to illiberal policing? How do we understand the messages contained within games and situate them in context? Games are the fastest growing leisure industry in the world, are played by almost half of the adult population in many industrialised countries and are being increasingly debated both socially and academically in terms of their impact and meaning. This module contributes to this debate, offering a combination of reflective thinking on how we understand the political, social and cultural impact of games and considered debate into how we might better understand the messages contained within the games themselves. Perhaps, predictably an enthusiasm for playing games as well as talking and writing about them are crucial!
The module is designed to allow for greater understanding of video games, evidenced by analysis of their political and social implications, and enabling students to analyse the meanings within games
On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
1. Demonstrate a critical capacity to read meaning into games
2. Awareness and critical capacity to place games in their social and political context
3. Appreciate and critically evaluate the appropriateness of different theoretical and conceptual approaches to understand the impact of games and gaming in terms of politics, society and culture;
4. Demonstrate a critical appreciation of the core concepts and processes of the study of videogames as well as demonstrate competency with specialist theories and literatures relevant to specific areas of study.
On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
1. Communicate complex information, ideas, problems, and solutions in written formats
2. Use a range of digital technologies to find, retrieve and process data literature and other sources to produce written outputs .
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Workshop | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Lecture | 11 | 1 | 11 |
| Seminar | 11 | 1 | 11 |
| Private study hours | 177 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 23 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
A formal formative assessment opportunity will be provided for the summative assessment task, which is specifically pedagogically aligned to that task. As part of this, each student will receive feedback designed to support the development of knowledge and skills that will be later assessed in the summative task.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | - | 100 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated
Check the module area in Minerva for your reading list
Last updated: 30/04/2026
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team