Immersion was the vocabulary term that got me interested in exploring board game terminology at a deeper level. Fortunately, Gordon Calleja has already written the book on this topic. Unfortunately, the book is video game specific, once you get past the intro.
Because I didn't invent the terms or definitions that I talk about in this episode, they are the ones I feel the most pedantic toward. Maybe designers could speak in terms of thematic immersion and system immersion? But hearing anyone talk about how immersive a game is tends to just make me cringe.
There was somebody online who objects to my use of the word agential and preferred if I would say mechanical. Geez, that will definitely make the nuance of meaning clearer and not be confused with any other uses of the word mechanical. I actually worked to not overuse the word mechanical in my book, otherwise it would have been tacked onto a dozen different terms: theme, actions, structures, goals, strategies, etc.
Anyway, I stand behind my points in this episode, more than probably some of the upcoming ones.
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