Though video games are an immensely popular artform, few members of our Literature department are aware of the emotional impact that the narratives of video games have upon their Players. Using funds from an Undergraduate Research Award Grant, I traveled to the Escapist Expo in Durham, NC, to interview gamers about the most emotional experience they’ve ever had while playing video games. Many of the interviewees nearly cried while recounting traumatic events from their favorite games, some that had been played over twenty years ago. This data sets the context necessary to prove that video games are a powerful form of interactive literature. My paper focuses on the Bioshock series of video games in particular, and how they utilize the immersive element of interactive fiction in order to force the Player to reevaluate their beliefs of religion, race, and social class, creating an emotional experience worthy of literary study.
