Purpose of the Research This article explores simulation games (SGs) as epistemic and cultural artefacts, focusing on the role of media of representation in shaping knowledge creation and meaning-making. Drawing on perspectives from the anthropology of knowledge and epistemology, we argue that SGs communicate knowledge through symbolic forms - such as language, rules, gestures, and interactions - that are socially negotiated and context-dependent. These media embody specific worldviews and values, and their interpretation is co-constructed by designers, facilitators, and players. The purpose of this article is to provide a scientific definition of media of representation within game science. Major Findings We further examine the epistemological foundations of SGs through the lens of constructionism and constructivism, highlighting how players engage with both tacit (System 1) and explicit (System 2) modes of knowing. This dual engagement has significant implications for game design, facilitation, and scientific analysis. While analytical game science often privileges explicit knowledge, we emphasize the importance of embodied and intuitive understanding in gameplay and debriefing. Conclusions Our findings highlight the added value of an integrative framework for game science that explicitly links media of representation with cognitive systems and social processes. We show that simulation games function not only as interactive systems but as knowledge ecologies, where tacit and explicit knowing are shaped, exchanged, and transformed through media of representation. This perspective advances game science by clarifying how games actively mediate perception, interaction, and learning, rather than merely reflecting reality.
Lukosch et al. (Sun,) studied this question.
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