Authority, Hierarchies and Games. An overview of multilingual language practices in Final Fantasy, Minecraft and PUBG in Twitch and live gaming scenarios

Slides of the presentation Authority, Hierarchies and Games. An overview of multilingual language practices in Final Fantasy, Minecraft and PUBG in Twitch and live gaming scenarios held by Laura Vawter in the lecture series Digital Humanities in Focus: Methods, Applications, and Perspectives at the University of Rostock (on site) on January 19, 2026. The slides are also available at: https://prezi.com/view/EN7J0b9gpRHlmyVsq00v/?referral_token=qOMOrGlnB3FN.

Abstract:

Cultural and linguistic analysis of language in digital environments and gaming scenarios is a global and interdisciplinary field that encompasses linguistics, digitalization, education, and computer science. Digital Humanities (DH) too is an interdisciplinary field that explores the relationship between philosophy, cultural studies, social sciences, and digitalization.

The exploration of digital games not only has profound implications for the transformational nature of these intersecting fields but is key to unlocking a digital culture that is central to the lives of current, younger, and future generations. Just as language is how we, as individuals, create meaning, games and participation in gaming culture are how individuals create meaning in the digital world.

This lecture discusses linguistic patterns in gaming scenarios, how players establish and shape hierarchies within gaming communities using gaming language, and its implications for future research in DH.

Bio:

Laura Vawter holds a master’s degree in didactics with a focus on linguistics and has worked as an external researcher at the Institute of Practical Computer Science, as well as as a lecturer and researcher at the Institute of English and American Studies at the University of Rostock. Her previous projects included the development and design of curricula for English as a foreign language for secondary school students within digital games. Her current doctoral project focuses on the study of language in streaming and live-gaming contexts. Among her future projects is the development and publication of a digital game.