MAGIC CIRCLES AND LUSORY ATTITUDES

John Huizinga was an anthropologist who authored the seminal book “Homo Ludens” (1938). He states that play is an integral part of our society, and has played an important role in our evolution. It can serve a useful purpose, from venting energy to enhancing cognitive faculties. Games possess four key elements; they are voluntary, they are outside real life, they have set boundaries and promote social groups. With regard to this, the term ‘magic circle’ was coined. Upon embarking on a gaming experience, players enter this magic circle- a special context specifically for that game in which play takes place. In the case of a digital game there would be a physical and psychological aspect to the magic circle; the gamer is psychologically engaged, however through a physical medium- a console and a screen, for example. Closely linked to the magic circle is the concept of the ‘lusory attitude’ – the state of mind gamers are in when inside the magic circle. This may for example be a competitive one if –as I did- they are playing a sporting game such as Pro Evo. 6, or a strategic one if playing an RPG strategy such as Command and Conquer. I often find myself playing Pro Evolution Soccer when a few friends and I are bored, and feel that it is fitting for application to Huizina’s theories. Pro Evolution Soccer is obviously embarked upon voluntarily (I would have played it anyway, regardless of whether it was to assist with my module), the players (in my case a bunch of students) find themselves the omniscient puppeteers of an entire professional football team, thus placing the game very much outside of real life, there are only so many moves at a players disposal, and each is subject to the 90minute time constraint, off-side rules etc. and each player complies with the aim of the game which is to score goals, making us subject to boundaries and constraints. I have personally found this game to be an extremely sociable one. I’ve been a guest at many ‘Pro Evo’ nights, in which a group will get together for a playoff tournament. The game also has something of a cult following, with competitions run worldwide by Konami – the distributors. I am not a football fan, and don’t care much for watching the game, however when Playing Pro. Evo, I feel that I certainly adopt a ‘lusory attitude’ in that I become competitive, thinking of ways to score goals thus defeating my opponent to the point where I find myself devising gameplans in my head – a state of mind I rarely find myself in otherwise.