- What fictional LC call number would you assign this book?
- What are the categories for the codes that you assigned?
- Did you consider any other options? Was it difficult to arrive at this call number? Are there any unique challenges associated with trying to catalogue “video games” in the Library of Congress?
I would assign Before The Crash in the GV1469.15-1469.62 range, which pertains to the categories of “Computer games, video games, fantasy games”.
I considered and explored several options before arriving at this category. My first instinct was to go in the Technology section (T), as video games are fundamentally a technological invention. However, the T seemed to be mostly about classical engineering disciplines, with no coverage of computers or video games. Then, due to the historical nature of the book, I looked through the History-related classifications, such as E, F (History of the Americas), and D (World History). I found that these categories seemed to deal with history in a larger scope, focused on the big historical events of each region, with no mention of modern technological history and video games. Finally, I decided to try G (Geography, Anthropology, Recreation), hoping that video games would fall under the Recreation umbrella. My hunch was right, and I found the GV1469.15-1469.62 range above, which explicitly includes video games. I think that this is likely the best possible match in the Library of Congress cataloguing system.
As can be seen from my roundabout path to finding the appropriate code, there are certainly some challenges when it comes to cataloguing video games, although I’m not sure I would call these challenges unique. The specific challenge with this book is they sit at the intersection of technology, culture, art, and history, while the LC system seems to expect a single dominant identity. Even if we remove the aspect of history by considering a book that is purely about video games, it would still be difficult to categorize; video games primarily serve as recreation/entertainment, but it is a technological product that heavily relies on (and influences) art and culture. We could even make it more complicated by considering that video games can be used for non-recreational purposes like education! In general, many interdisciplinary mediums/subjects will probably require revisions to existing cataloguing systems, making the problem not just unique to video games. Some examples that come to mind are graphical novels, podcasts, and memes.