No Cyclones in Age of Empires: Empire, Ecology, and Video Games

Abstract

This chapter analyzes games themed around exploration, which have an express colonial premise, and empire-building games that depict the exploitation of flora and fauna, particularly in settings of colonialism and empire. The discussion also addresses other games where hunting is directly connected to the colonized landscape. In doing so, the chapter addresses larger questions raised by postcolonial ecocriticism in the context of video game cultures. Such a discussion aims to supplement the ongoing discourse on ecocritical issues in video game studies as well as to broaden the ambit of postcolonial thinking around ecology, especially by extending the framework to newer digital narrative media such as video games.