Paradoxes of the late modern emotional regime, as illustrated by the gaming industry

This article explores the increasing interest in the role of emotions in the late modern working world. We examine how emotional regimes are characterised and which unintended consequences accompany the set of normative emotions. We illustrate this with the example of the German gaming industry, which is seen as being at the vanguard of the late modern world of work. Our aim is to show that this is a multifaceted but (organisation-)specific emotional regime. We use selected qualitative data material from the DFG project 'The regime of emotions as a strategy? An analysis of economic subfields - emotions, emotional capital and gender in the late modern working world' (duration 2020-2024). With reference to Patulny and Olson (2019), we examine the emotions that define this specific emotional regime, which prove to be (1) complex and ambivalent, (2) individualised, (3) commodified and (4) digitally mediated. Another relevant element of the emotional regime is (5) reflexive emotional management. We illustrate that late modern emotional regimes create paradoxes such as the passion for game development and the unquestioned acceptance of overtime, which can lead to exhaustion. We also reveal prevailing gender inequalities, which are often not immediately obvious in the seemingly egalitarian gaming industry.