Style Makes the Player? The Relation between Playstyle, Aesthetics and Subjectivity

In this article I investigate playstyle as an aesthetic form of metaplay and explore its relation to subjectivity in terms of self-cultivation. By playstyle I refer to the player's way of accomplishing practical actions framed by the gameplay task. I suggest that instead of a marker for personality types or a tool for optimizing competitive gameplay performance, playstyle should be viewed as aesthetic preference on how to reach the goal of a game. As an aesthetic phenomenon, forming a playstyle is a process of self-cultivation, but its relation to the player's personality cannot be determined clearly. I inspect playstyle in terms of embodiment, somatic style, and habit, highlighting its twofold nature between deliberate practice and unreflective spontaneity.