Ambivalence du tourisme vidéoludique

Quelles dynamiques pour les voyages au cœur des sociétés virtuelles ?

Abstract

Traveling into the heart of virtual societies is an ambivalent tourist activity conditioned by gaming subgenera. If GTA-like (for Grand Theft Auto) level-design transforms the city into an open world where the player can live and interact with inhabitants, the horror series Silent Hill forces players to move into dead zones deprived of any social life. With this ambivalence, Silent Hill transforms tourism in GTA-like into dark tourism and modifies the possible uses in these virtual worlds. These specific gaming experiences linked to a touristic approach shine a light on the relationship that gamers build with the playgrounds (and the game space) while they play. On a larger scale, these experiences give the opportunity to set the boundaries of videogame space practices related to the notions of immersion and/or journey.