This article reports the study of social play events which bring people together in the same space to explore video games making and playing. Online streaming, multiplayer games and built-in spectator modes within games underpin online communal play experiences, whilst ‘alternative’ games festivals, play parties and electronic sports, provide real world spaces for people to meet, play and exchange knowledge relating to both playing and making video games. As technology has developed, communal play has found both online and real-world spaces within video games. The advent of video games challenged traditional notions of play, introducing a single player experience to what had primarily been a communal social activity. It helps to make sense of the self, to learn, to be creative and to relax.
Abstract: Play is fundamental to being Human.
