In the Jenkins essay included in "First Person," he argues that games represent "spatial stories" which he likens to the mode of storytelling found in genre fiction, notably fantasy and science fiction. Writing about these examples, Jenkins says, "Often such works exist on the outer borders of literature." This is correct to be sure, but I would say that spatial storytelling has more of a place in"great literature" than Jenkins gives it credit for. What is a picaresque novel if not an example of spatial storytelling?" The focus is not on the inner state of the character, but rather on the various environments and situations that the character wanders into.

Several people have offered confessions of one sort or another on our blog, including Grumpymutt's confession that he really enjoys playing video- and computer games, marmalade's confession that she is addicted to reading the New Yorker, and Shock and Awe's confession that he had never really thought about videogames from an academic perspective until the past couple of weeks.

Well, I have my own confession to make: I am not competitive. And I worry about this because it's a stereotypically female trait. Perhaps I should clarify: I am competitive about some things; I strive to do well at things I enjoy or I think are important. But there is a difference between competition and diligence, and although I am regularly diligent, I rarely feel that that diligence is of a competitive nature-- and if it is, then it's more of a competition-against-what-I'm-capable-of-doing-type thing.