http://gamestudies.org The international journal of computer game research J. Alison Bryant, Anna Akerman, Jordana Drell http://gamestudies.org/1001/articles/bryant_akerman_drell This article details the “user-centered” research process adopted to create Nintendo DS games for preschoolers and addresses how new titles for specific populations can be approached. We review the role of exploratory and formative research in game development for young audiences and provide findings and design tips from the laboratory and field. Sarah Wanenchak http://gamestudies.org/1001/articles/wanenchak This paper examines a game where sociological rules of interaction are adapted to fit an online context free from face to face encounters, and where these adapted rules are further stretched to fit interactions designed to construct a narrative that exists on both the individual and the communal levels. Ethan Ham http://gamestudies.org/1001/articles/ham Game designers often limit the availability of powerful cards in collectible card games. This approach can have negative consequences on a game’s suitability for casual play. This paper explores case studies of two online collectible card games and a design philosophy that argues that powerful game effects should be commonly available to players. Vili Lehdonvirta http://gamestudies.org/1001/articles/lehdonvirta This article criticises influential MMO scholarship approaching virtual worlds as if they were outside the real world, and presents an alternative view based on Anselm Strauss’s concept of overlapping social worlds. MMOs are seen as sites where the world of players meshes with families and workplaces, and often flows over to other sites and forums. Celia Pearce http://gamestudies.org/1001/articles/pearce_celia Rand Miller, who with his brother Robyn designed Myst, the first blockbuster CD-ROM, talks about his legacy of vanguard game design, and the complex history of its multiplayer sequel Uru: Ages Beyond Myst. This interview, conducted via e-mail, took place shortly before the third re-opening of Uru. Richard Bartle http://gamestudies.org/1001/articles/bartle Review of "Digital Culture, Play and Identity: A World of Warcraft Reader" edited by Hilde G. Corneliussen and Jill Walker Rettberg, (MIT Press, 2008). Frans Mäyrä http://gamestudies.org/1001/articles/mayra Review of "Cheating: Gaining Advantage in Videogames" by Mia Consalvo, (MIT Press 2007). Cynthia Haynes http://gamestudies.org/1001/articles/haynes Review of "Critical Play: Radical Game Design" by Mary Flanagan (MIT Press, 2009) Ragnhild Tronstad http://gamestudies.org/1001/articles/tronstad Review of "Critical Play: Radical Game Design" by Mary Flanagan, (MIT Press, 2009). Guest Editors - Jakobsson & Sotamaa http://gamestudies.org/1001/articles/cfp_game_reward_systems Digital games have a long history of rewarding players for their efforts. The prolific use of rewards indicates that they play an important part in shaping the gaming experience. Still, the appeal of game rewards remains heavily underresearched. This special issue is dedicated to the exploration of all aspects of game rewards and reward systems.