The term ‘gamer identity’ is hotly contested, and certainly not understood as a broadly accepted term. From the outdated stereotype of white, heterosexual, teenage boys playing Nintendo in their parents’ basement to the equally contested proclamation that “‘gamers’ are over”, the current game culture climate is such that movements as divisive and controversial as #gamergate can flourish.

For this latest special issue of Press Start, we invited submissions regarding the recent controversies surrounding the notion of player identities, with the aim of receiving papers from different viewpoints on gamer identity and culture.