BurgerTime: A Proceduralist Investigation

Abstract

This paper explores the foundations and implications of interpreting videogames as representational procedural artifacts. Where our previous work established a method of proceduralist readings, close readings of videogames that emphasize the representational power of a game’s rules, to interpret videogames intentionally authored to represent, this study attempts to apply the method to a game was not: the classic arcade game BurgerTime. Interpreting BurgerTime provided a challenge to the proceduralist perspective that required investigating its outer limits and assumptions. In the end, a comprehensive reading is achieved by considering the gameplay of expert players: those who understand the rules of a game the most.