Katherine Isbister begins the first chapter with the observation that games differ from other media by offering meaningful choices and dynamic flow, two mechanisms for potential emotional impact. She then discusses how avatars, non-player characters, and character customization are design innovations that drive social emotion in players.

Games supporting multiple players interacting socially and emotionally are explored in chapter 2. The need and pleasure of having fun together motivate these games and their players. Not only are borders of mutual participation explored and exceeded; there are also examples where the very boundaries of the game’s structure itself are transgressed.

Chapter 3 studies the connection between motion and emotion. Games that involve bodily movement can deepen personal and interpersonal feeling. They can lead to physical mastery (Mavis Beacon move over!). Meditative breathing games can quell anxiety. Other physically based interfaces demand stamina and can be grueling. The social setting varies from “coopetition” among teams, similar to sports, to pure cooperation that fosters intimacy and trust.

Chapter 4 extends the partnership of games with direct physical interfaces to interactions at a distance. This can include gifting aspects improbably appearing in some massively multiplayer role-playing games (RPGs). The best example in this chapter and in the book is Journey, a collaborative pilgrimage in silence.

The notion that games can forge a community of empathy may be met with the same skepticism as the claim that Pokemon Go fosters adolescent fitness. When I first wrote that, I had not incubated any eggs, nor heard that my live-in-in-law was benefiting from the game-induced additional exercise. From the public health point of view, both goals are laudable.

I am not familiar with the games discussed, but I find their descriptions and analyses fascinating, especially Journey. I played the maze on the TX-0, my students wrote the first Mac port of Tetris, I am an addict of Eric’s Solitaire, and I appreciate the author’s passing reference to Angry Birds. Perhaps that is one reason this book appears so attractive: it does not require familiarity with the games spotlighted to appreciate the emotional investigation relayed by the author: she shares their life even as she details the design elements that underlie their vitality. Her closing words compare play in computer games and play in the real world, paying homage to designers who can build bridges.

The bottom line is that one can feel in good hands when approaching games engineered by the author and her group. The book’s index is quite useful, and her bibliographic references cover related works (including the games) well. Another book readers may find worth reading is Brenda Laurel’s Computers as theatre (2nd ed.) [1].

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