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Tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs) have been attracting academic attention since the 1980s, starting with Gary Alan Fine’s monograph Shared Fantasy: Role-Playing Games as Social Worlds. In the following decades, the cultural impact of role-playing games has only grown. Specifically, Dungeons & Dragons has inspired countless blockbuster video games and entered mainstream popular culture by being referenced and showcased in hit TV series like Stranger Things. In 2010s, TTRPGs have also spawned a new form of spectator entertainment – actual play with shows like Critical Role, which has become a successful transmedia franchise with its own spin-offs and tie-ins.
This course approaches TTRPGs from a media/game studies perspective, including concepts and theories such as mediatization or critical political economy. The goal is to understand role-playing games as both media artifacts/texts and play experiences by analyzing the impact of narrative themes and mechanics as well as the broader production contexts. To do so, the course will be based on an active and critical engagement with selected examples of TTRPGs, showcasing both the conventions and subversions in this area. Each session will start with a theoretical introduction by the lecturer and a class discussion about the assigned reading. Afterwards, we will go over the fortnightly assignments, leading us to a TTRPG playthrough. To unpack and analyze the play experience, we will debrief using conceptual inventory and methodological frameworks acquired throughout the course. The class requires active participation and in-person attendance. The students will be asked to prepare for the fortnightly sessions by doing the assigned readings. The final assignment uses the format of the so-called UnEssay – students choose their own topics related to the core themes of the class and present the UnEssay in any way they please (paper, homebrew game content, actual play, presentation, video essay, website, etc.; more on the format below). The class will consist of seven 160-minute sessions (with a 10-minute break in the middle) scheduled every other week. This format is necessary for in-class playthroughs of TTRPGs. Last update: Švelch Jan, Mgr., Ph.D. (20.01.2025)
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Grading scale: A: 91–100%, B: 81–90%, C: 71–80%, D: 61–70%, E: 51–60%, Fail: 0–50% Final grade consists of four parts: (1) attendance & class participation; (2) fortnightly class assignments; (3) Discord participation, and (4) UnEssay. Attendance & class participation: 28% (attendance is mandatory; rated based on quality of preparation; participation in each of the seven sessions contributes up to 4% toward the final grade) Fortnightly class assignments: 45% (see the exact percentage points for individual assignments below; rated based on quality) Discord participation: 7% (max 2% per comment or post on top of the fortnightly assignments; capped at 7%) UnEssay: 40% (mandatory; rated based on quality) To successfully complete the class, students need to score at least 51% from among the graded parts of the course – attendance and UnEssay (including Assignment 6: UnEssay Proposal) are mandatory. In total, it is technically possible to earn 120% if students submit all assignments and score the maximum points from all assignments and class activities. Assignments 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 are voluntary. Use of Generative AI: For all the written assignments, students must explicitly disclose any use of generative AI and language models (such as ChatGPT, Copilot, Claude) and in what capacity they were used to complete the assignment according to the guidelines set by FSV UK, and they must adhere to the broader ethical recommendations provided by Charles University. Students should carefully evaluate the information provided by AI tools and ensure that their final work reflects their own contribution and analysis. It is encouraged that students use generative AI only as tools for improving their assignments (such as in proofreading), but do not rely on them in terms of the original analytical or creative ideas and contributions. The lecturer will not use any AI tools for grading of the assignments or for preparation of teaching materials. Last update: Švelch Jan, Mgr., Ph.D. (15.01.2026)
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Fine, Gary Alan. 2002 [1983]. Shared Fantasy: Role-Playing Games as Social Worlds. The University of Chicago Press. Hedge, Stephanie, and Jennifer Grouling, eds. 2021. Roleplaying Games in the Digital Age: Essays on Transmedia Storytelling, Tabletop RPGs and Fandom. Studies in Gaming. McFarland. Jones, Shelly, ed. 2021. Watch Us Roll: Essays on Actual Play and Performance in Tabletop Role-Playing Games. McFarland. Peterson, Jon. 2020. The Elusive Shift: How Role-Playing Games Forged Their Identity. Game Histories. The MIT Press. Trammell, Aaron. 2023. The Privilege of Play: A History of Hobby Games, Race, and Geek Culture. New York University Press. Zagal, José P., and Sebastian Deterding, eds. 2018. Role-Playing Game Studies: Transmedia Foundations. Routledge. Last update: Švelch Jan, Mgr., Ph.D. (10.01.2024)
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Link to the up-to-date syllabus for 2025/2026: syllabus JKM153 Role-Playing Game Studies Research Seminar 2026.docx Session 1 Theory: Introductions & Safety Tools Assignment 1: Fill in the Tabletop Safety Checklist. Playthrough: For the Queen (DM-less TTRPG) Session 2 Theory: TTRPG History & Combat Simulations Reading: Chapter 2: Player vs. Environment (37–69) of Švelch, Jaroslav. 2023. Player vs. Monster: The Making and Breaking of Video Game Monstrosity. Playful Thinking. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press. Assignment 2: Transform a classic D&D monster. Optional Assignment: Create a Shadowdark character (you can use the online tool https://shadowdarklings.net/) Playthrough: Shadowdark’s starter adventure Lost Citadel of the Scarlet Minotaur (dungeon crawl TTRPG with modernized and streamlined mechanics)
Session 3 Theory: Political Economy of TTRPGs Assignment 3: Build a character on a monetized digital TTRPG platform. Playthrough: Shadowdark (continued from the previous session) Session 4 Theory: Actual Play and Mediatization of Role-Playing Games Assignment 4: Analyze an actual play episode, excluding Critical Role. Playthrough: Session Zero for upcoming playthrough sessions (selecting the game, creating characters) Session 5 Theory: Genre, Theme, and Mechanics in TTRPGs Reading: Albom, Sarah. 2021. “The Killing Roll: The Prevalence of Violence in Dungeons & Dragons.” International Journal of Role-Playing, no. 11 (December): 6–24. https://doi.org/10.33063/ijrp.vi11.281. Assignment 5: Analyze representation of colonialism, disability, racism, or sexism. Playthrough: a modern or non-fantasy TTRPG (voted by students from options offered by the lecturer, e.g., Candela Obscura, Mothership, Mythic Bastionland, Outgunned, Wanderhome); continued in Sessions 6 and 7 Session 6 Assignment 6: Prepare a proposal for your UnEssay. Playthrough: continued from the previous session Session 7 Playthrough: continued from the previous session and final debriefing Last update: Švelch Jan, Mgr., Ph.D. (15.01.2026)
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