The Double Screen in Retrogaming: Memory Device between Anemoia and Memory Trigger

This article examines retrogaming as a cultural practice at the intersection of memory, nostalgia and digital media, focusing on the concept of dual-screen gaming. Defined as the integration of a playable retro video game within a host video game via a secondary in-game screen, the dual screen is conceived as a hybrid memory device that connects different temporal and playful levels within a single experience. The article builds on previous research by the same authors on the double screen, extending its theoretical framework with the introduction of a memory-oriented perspective. Drawing on the notion of games within games (Seiwald 2019), the proposal argues that embedded retro games not only highlight the ‘playfulness’ of the medium, but also serve as devices for activating memory. Through the analysis of selected case studies, the article proposes memory as a new analytical category, distinguishing between memory triggers, linked to autobiographical nostalgia, and anemoia, a mediated form of nostalgia for a past not directly experienced. The findings show how the dual-screen setup transforms memory into a playable experience, allowing players to access, reinterpret and inhabit the past. The article thus presents an updated conceptualization of the dual-screen setup, redefining its role within contemporary gaming culture