Costume Agency in German Larp

Rafael Bienia's study "Costume Agency in German Larp" applies actor-network theory to examine how costumes shape live-action role-playing (larp) in Germany. Drawing on participant observation of three larps (Alcyon 15, Alcyon 16, and Epic Empires 2012) along with interviews, the work argues that larp operates as a network of material, narrative, and ludic dimensions, and that costumes acquire agency by altering material arrangements and prompting adjustments from other actors. The central thesis holds that costumes are not passive props but active participants that help make larp function, push the hobby toward the "360° illusion" ideal, and contribute to the dominance of the Fantasy genre.

The study traces a pivotal turning point in the 1991/92 DragonSys rulebook, which counted real metal armor as game armor points and thereby tied game mechanics directly to costume choices and commercial demand for armor. Players who valued "ambience" favored individual, self-made costumes over mass-produced ones, though do-it-yourself modification and shared tutorials steadily improved quality across the community. The author's fieldwork includes roughly forty larps since 2006 and twenty semi-structured interviews, situated within an estimated 30,000–40,000 active German players and 660–780 officially announced larps annually between 2006 and 2011.

The analysis concludes that agency has shifted from human players and organizers toward material actors. Costume investment discourages character death, steers narratives toward Fantasy, which accounts for roughly 80% of announced German larps, and raises ethical concerns as rising costume quality and falling prices depend on cheaply sourced chainmail. The study presents a network perspective as a multi-centered alternative to the "material turn" in game studies, while treating labor conditions in metal sourcing as an open question for further inquiry.