2026 (Current Year) Faculty Courses School of Environment and Society Department of Social and Human Sciences Graduate major in Social and Human Sciences

Special Lecture on Advanced Topics in Social and Human Sciences SB 2

Academic unit or major: Graduate major in Social and Human Sciences
Instructor(s): James Frances Loftus
Class Format: Lecture (Face-to-face)
Media-enhanced courses: -
Day of week/Period (Classrooms): 3-4 Mon (M-135)
Class: 2
Course Code: SHS.L418
Number of credits: 100
Course offered: 2026
Offered quarter: 2Q
Syllabus updated: Mar 5, 2026
Language: English

Syllabus

Course overview and goals

Archaeogaming: Digital Worlds and the Human Past

This course introduces archaeogaming, an emerging area of research that applies archaeological concepts and ways of thinking to digital games. Focusing on game spaces, material representations, temporality, and player behavior, the course examines how the human past is constructed and interpreted within digital media.
The goal of the course is to develop an archaeological perspective on games by applying core concepts such as material culture, context, interpretation, and uncertainty, and to consider how ideas about the past are shaped and negotiated in contemporary digital environments.

Course description and aims

1. To apply core archaeological concepts such as material culture, context, and interpretation to the analysis of digital games.
2. To observe and analyze game spaces, material representations, and player behavior from an archaeological perspective.
3. To critically evaluate representations of the human past in digital games and articulate those evaluations clearly.

Student learning outcomes

実務経験と講義内容との関連 (又は実践的教育内容)

The instructor has participated in numerous archaeological excavations and has extensive experience in digitizing important material cultural heritage to preserve the past for future generations.
This course integrates real-world case studies from the instructor’s fieldwork, providing students with tangible examples that directly connect course content to practical archaeological scenarios.

Keywords

Archaeology, Archaeogaming, Material Culture, Digital Media

Competencies

Specialist skills
Intercultural skills
Communication skills
Critical thinking skills
Practical and/or problem-solving skills

Class flow

1) Students are required to submit a comment paper with short questions or interests regarding the contents of the lecture. Discussion related to those questions will be conducted in the following class.
2) Due to the nature of the class contents, photos or discussions which some students may find upsetting will be utilized (human skeletons, human evolution, death, photos of diseases, etc.).

Course schedule/Objectives

	Course schedule	Objectives
Class 1	Introduction to Archaeology	Understand the following: •　What archaeology is and what archaeologists study •　How objects and material culture are used as evidence •　The role of context and interpretation in reconstructing the past •　How cultural meaning is inferred from material remains
Class 2	What Is Archaeogaming?	Understand the following: •　The definition and scope of archaeogaming •　The difference between archaeology of, in, and through games •　How virtual worlds can be treated as archaeological spaces •　How player activity creates digital material culture
Class 3	Japanese Archaeology in Gaming	Understand the following: •　How Japanese archaeological aesthetics influence game design •　The use of ruins, landscapes, and deep time in the Zelda series •　How material culture is implied through visual and environmental storytelling •　The relationship between myth, memory, and archaeology in Japanese games
Class 4	Final Project Workshop	Discuss the following: •　How to structure a game pitch with archaeological themes
Class 5	Play Session 1: Archaeology Without a Script	Understand the following: •　How players reconstruct past worlds without being told a story •　How meaning emerges through exploration and discovery •　How uncertainty and absence function as archaeological signals •　How players act as interpreters of incomplete evidence
Class 6	Play Session 2: Observing Player Behavior	Understand the following: •　How players interact with game worlds in practice, not in theory •　How player behavior differs from intended design or narrative •　How meaning emerges from repeated player actions
Class 7	Final Project & Review	Conduct the following: •　Final project presentations •　Course review and discussion

Study advice (preparation and review)

To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.

Textbook(s)

None

Reference books, course materials, etc.

Reference materials for the next class to be distributed in print form during the class

Evaluation methods and criteria

Class engagement (in-class comment paper): 50% , Final Presentation: 50%

Related courses

LAH.S447 ： Essence of Humanities and Social Sciences56:Archaeology & Biological Anthropology
LAH.C661 ： Collaboration across STEM and Liberal Arts: Decoding Human Evolution & Culture through Innovative Science & Technology [1]
LAH.C660 ： Collaboration across STEM and Liberal Arts: Decoding Human Evolution & Culture through Innovative Science & Technology [2]

Prerequisites

No prerequisites

Contact information (e-mail and phone) Notice : Please replace from ”[at]” to ”@”(half-width character).

loftus.f.3f80[at]m.isct.ac.jp

Office hours

Contact by e-mail in advance to schedule an appointment

Other

There is a possibility that the class contents may change