In his famous book "Homo Ludens" Johan Huizinga confirmed that "Animals play just like humans do" and defined play as the anthropological basis of culture. At the same time, Wittgenstein conceived of the notion of the "language-game". Developing these research traditions further, the 43 essays in this volume examine linguistic, literary, aesthetic and pedagogical aspects of play - using examples from Antiquity up to present-day computer games. The book provides important foundations and manifold stimuli for a cultural theory of games.