Playing cyberculture. The case of System Shock 2

  • Alejandro Lozano University of Salamanca

Abstract

This article presents System Shock 2 as an under-examined cyberpunk videogame from the late Nineties that inherits key traits of cyberculture to understand its place within this form of digital culture that shaped the technological imaginary of the past millennium's last decade. The first part of the study introduces cyberpunk aesthetic as the most recognisable form of the nineties cyberculture and places System Shock 2 as a matured version of this science fiction genre. Then the scope focuses on this game to determine how it presents cyberpunk tropes and topics like hackers, godlike Artificial Intelligence and especially cyberspace. Cyberspace is treated as a particularly relevant case insofar this videogame displays an interactive version of this notion, providing a complementary experience to those offered by novels and movies.

Author Biography

Alejandro Lozano, University of Salamanca
Alejandro Lozano is PhD of Philosophy and researcher in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Salamanca (Spain). His area of expertise is the aesthetics of digital technologies and biotechnologies. His research also covers the aesthetics of videogame design as a part of his interest on digital media.
Published
2019-04-02
Section
Articles