A Digital Flaneur

I have been a Flaneur for as long as I can remember. I kept my eyes to the
sights around me rather than the path. The parts of the city no one else
seemed to focus on is what got me interested in creating spaces that others
can get lost in, particularly within the gaming world. However, I found out early
that creating spaces purely for this aesthetics was boring to traverse. The
lecture on the Flaneur was a revelation. The only way to create a space to get
lost in for the pleasure of it was to first create a space with another purpose!
In Raymond Lucas, Taking a Line for a Walk, where he speaks of the labyrinth
summed this up perfectly to me. He speaks of the horror of the totality [of
the] labyrinth, where the path to the desired centre is always clear, but can
only be found by those who can avoid its invisible dangers (Lucas 2008,
p.182). This horror is the totality of the space you (or the player) are in. It
would be overwhelming to try and comprehend the entire city or game world
so we focus on tasks given to or set by us, alongside set restrictions, thus
avoiding the invisible dangers.
Larissa Hjorth speaks of how the Flaneur has been modernized to become the
Phoneur, where the Flaneur has become part of the informational network
flows constituting contemporary urbanity (Hjorth 2011, p.87). She then
continues to link this idea to Parkour, where the user sees the city rather as a
series of physical obstacles to overcome (Hjorth 2011, p.87).
As game designers, we need to pay close attention to how we develop the
game world so that it is believable enough for the user. Only then can we
deliver whatever message we want effectively.
(300 words)
References
Hjorth, L. (2011). Games and Gaming: An Introduction to New Media. Berg.
Lucas, R. (2008). Taking a Line for a Walk: Walking as an Aesthetic Practice.
Ways of Walking: Ethnography and Practice on Foot. Hampshire: Ashgate.