Fun Inc : Why Games Are the Twenty-First Centurys Most Serious Business

People make many assumptions about video games; only teenage boys play them, they increase anti-social behaviour and they tend to be violent. "Fun Inc." dispels these misconceptions, revealing that 40 per cent of all video game players are women, that most of the bestselling console games of all time involve no real-world violence at all, and how World of Warcraft's online community of over 12 million players is changing our understanding of what it means to be sociable in the modern world. But understanding games means a lot more than simply challenging stereotypes. Find out why the South Korean government will invest $200 billion into its video games industry over the next 4 years and how games are used to train the US Military, to model global pandemics and to campaign against human rights abuses in Africa. Game worlds are creating a new science of mass engagement that is starting to transform our understanding of economics, business and communications. Whether you like video games or loathe them, "Fun Inc." will show you that you cannot ignore them.