Contribution at the conference « Lusor in Fabula », Université de Rouen, 8/11/2019
The discourse on video games is usually structured by dichotomies, particularly the tension between narrativity and ludic characteristics as well as the one between play and game. I used detailed and precise analysis of a few indie games to suggest that these oppositions are not really accurate to describe the experience of the player, but are nonetheless useful tools to understand the games, since they are created with those oppositions in mind. Using the well-known concepts of ludo-narrative dissonance and ludo-narrative harmony, I showed that game mechanics have a narrative value and I opened the discussion on the impact of the corporeality of the player on the building of a meaningful experience. Finally, I presented a project of research-creation that aims to explore those issues.