Revealed: designers’ secrets of creating videogames; Ian McEwan talks The Children Act

A new V&A exhibition explores the recent evolution of video games

Given that approximately 96 per cent of the developed world is playing Fortnite as you read this, it seems only right the videogames that so absorb the minds of teenagers of all ages should come under some scrutiny. The V&A Museum has stepped up, with a new exhibition that considers both the design strategies behind some of the most innovative games since the midNoughties, as well as some moral and ethical obligations with which developers are increasingly faced.

The show examines gaming culture as it exists right now, from the conscientious DIY arcade scene which blurs the lines between gaming and art, to the creative feats that can be achieved in-game, such as Jacob Granberry of Austin, Texas, who oversaw the recreation of the continent of Westeros on Minecraft. (Congrats, Jacob — now go get some sun.) You’ll see drawings, interviews, installations and source material that has provided inspiration to developers, such as a painting by surreal artist René Magritte and a viral cat video, which is no doubt exactly what Henry Cole, when he founded the V&A in 1851, had hoped for all along. But a show for our times, certainly.

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Videogames: Design/Play/Disrupt, 8 September-24 February 2019, the V&A Museum, London SW7; vam.ac.uk