The Interactive Book: How Gamebooks Foreshadowed Digital Culture
Francesco Ciaponi delves into the evolution and cultural significance of gamebooks (Libri Game), highlighting their foresight into digital culture elements such as non-linear narratives and the diminishing role of authorship. This genre originated with works like 'Consider the Consequences!' by Doris Webster and Mary Alden Hopkins (1930) and Jorge Luis Borges' 'Examination of the Work of Herbert Quain' (1941). In the 1950s, B.F. Skinner utilized early gamebooks for educational purposes. The 1980s marked a high point with Transworld's 'Tracker Books' series (1972–1980) and Lippincott's 'The Adventures of You' series, inspired by Dungeons & Dragons. Sales fell in the 1990s due to the rise of digital gaming. A resurgence started in Italy in 2010, featuring new series and reissues. Ciaponi connects gamebooks to Deleuze and Guattari's ideas and references Netflix's 'Bandersnatch' (2018) as a contemporary illustration.
Key facts
- Gamebooks allow readers to choose their own path through numbered paragraphs.
- Early precursors include 'Consider the Consequences!' (1930) by Doris Webster and Mary Alden Hopkins.
- Jorge Luis Borges' 'Examination of the Work of Herbert Quain' (1941) offered nine possible endings.
- B.F. Skinner used gamebooks for behavioral experiments in the 1950s.
- The commercial peak was in the 1980s with series like 'Tracker Books' (1972–1980) and 'The Adventures of You'.
- Edward Packard's 'Sugarcane Island' (1976) and R.A. Montgomery's 'Journey Under the Sea' (1977) were key titles.
- Gamebooks were influenced by Dungeons & Dragons.
- In Italy, EL reprinted the 'Ninja' series in 2010; Edizioni Librarsi revived the genre from 2017.
- Netflix's 'Bandersnatch' (2018) is cited as a modern interactive narrative.
- Ciaponi links gamebooks to Deleuze and Guattari's rhizome theory and the concept of the prosumer.
Entities
Artists
- Francesco Ciaponi
- Doris Webster
- Mary Alden Hopkins
- Jorge Luis Borges
- B.F. Skinner
- Edward Packard
- R.A. Montgomery
- Gilles Deleuze
- Félix Guattari
- Frank Rose
- Jay David Bolter
Institutions
- Transworld
- Lippincott
- EL
- Edizioni Librarsi
- Netflix
- Artribune
- Università di Pisa
Locations
- Italy
- United States
- United Kingdom