How to Cite a Game

New technologies like video games can create havoc for old citation systems. When MLA and APA citations were developed, the world was decades away from "Pong" and board games had yet to develop narrative plot lines. While books can be easily referenced with page or paragraph numbers, video and board games can be recursive or change every time they are played. Help your readers locate aspects of a game by providing as much detail as possible in the body paragraphs. For instance, "The Legend of Zelda" may have recognizable levels or chapters. Likewise, "Dungeons & Dragons" may contain standard plot lines or maps.

Instructions

  1. MLA

    • 1

      Record the title, publisher, version, year of publication and URL, if the game is downloaded from the Internet. These steps are identical for box, or print versions of a game.

    • 2

      Italicize the title of the game -- capitalizing all words other than articles and prepositions -- followed by a period.

    • 3

      Print the publisher name and version number, abbreviated as "Ver." and conclude with a period. For example: Electronic Arts Media. Ver. 3.02.

    • 4

      Type the year of publication and include the URL, for downloaded games, in carrots. For example: 2004. <http://www.samplegame4u.net>. If citing a video game, end your citation with "Electronic," or "Print" for box games.

    APA

    • 5

      Record the same information for MLA formatting, including the URL for downloaded games.

    • 6

      Print the game title in quotation marks with the period inside the quotation.

    • 7

      Italicize the publisher's name followed by a period.

    • 8

      Type "N.p." to indicate non-print or electronic sources. Use a comma, followed by the publishing date. Additionally, type "Web," if a game was downloaded from the Internet, and include the URL in carrots. For example: N.p. 2004. Web. <http://www.samplegame4u.net>.

    In-Text Citations

    • 9

      Reference as much detail about the game as possible in the body of your writing, as there are often no definite reference markers in video or board games.

    • 10

      Print the game title within parentheses.

    • 11

      Type quotation marks around the title for APA citations and leave the titles unmarked for MLA citations.

Learnify Hub © www.0685.com All Rights Reserved