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Gamers Conquered the Mainstream... What's Next?
- 1. GAMERS CONQUERED THE MAINSTREAM…WHAT’S NEXT? PHILIP MINCHIN (philipminchin.com, APILI?) ANDREW EKIN-SMYTH (Arts Victoria) ANDREW HISKENS (State Library of Victoria) SUE MCKERRACHER (Australian Library & Information Association) NICK RAPPO (Good Games) ANTONY REED (Game Developers’ Association of Australia)
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- 7. EVOLUTION OF PLAY •Mammalianbiologists: “Play is training for the unexpected”. •Playful: dogs, dolphins, monkeys. Not playful: jellyfish, beetles, worms.
- 8. EVOLUTION OF PLAY •Mammalianbiologists: “Play is training for the unexpected”. •Smart: dogs, dolphins, monkeys. Not smart: jellyfish, beetles, worms.
- 9. Ταύτα εφευρόντες, διεσκέδαζονως ακολούθως κατά της πείνης· την μεν μίαν ημέραν όλην έπαιζον, διά να μη σκέπτωνται περί τροφής, την δε άλλην διέκοπτον τα παιγνίδια και έτρωγον. Χάρις δε εις το μέσον τούτο, δεκαοκτώ έτη παρήλθον· - Ηροδοτου, Ιστοριαι, Τομος 1, 94 HISTORY OF PLAY
- 10. HISTORY OF PLAY Thesegames they invented as a resource against the famine, and thus they used to do:—on one of the days they would play games all the time in order that they might not feel the want of food, and on the next they ceased from their games and had food: and thus they went on for eighteen years. - Herodotus, History, Book 1, 94
- 11. HISTORY OF PLAY Thesegames they invented as a resource against the famine, and thus they used to do:—on one of the days they would play games all the time in order that they might not feel the want of food, and on the next they ceased from their games and had food: and thus they went on for EIGHTEENYEARS. - Herodotus, History, Book 1, 94
- 12. JOHAN HUIZINGA • Linguist •Cultural historian Founding figure of cultural history • Anti-fascist • LEGEND
- 13. JOHAN HUIZINGA • Linguist •Cultural historian Founding figure of cultural history • Anti-fascist • LEGEND
- 14. JOHAN HUIZINGA • Linguist •Cultural historian Founding figure of cultural history • Anti-fascist • LEGEND
- 15. JOHAN HUIZINGA • Linguist •Cultural historian Founding figure of cultural history • Anti-fascist • LEGEND
- 16. JOHAN HUIZINGA •Author ofHomo ludens: a study of the play element in culture •Argues that play is in everything we do
- 17. BIOLOGY OF PLAY •Childrenwho don’t play don’t learn or develop normally. •Adults who don’t play lose mental faculties faster in old age. •Rat pups forcibly prevented from playing DIE.
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- 21. So naturally weregard play and games as IMPORTANT
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- 23. SCHOOLS • Some educatorsuse play in learning: “show, don’t tell” < “play with, don’t just watch” (see also several panels right here at PAX!) • Some also engage with games as subject matter • Quest 2 Learn schools in the US using play to structure assessment not just in teaching • Games for education more common, better
- 24. SCHOOLS • Games rarelyseen as valid subject matter themselves • Structurally and administratively, play considered a “necessary pressure valve” and a break in learning • Understanding of play itself (and game design skills) rarely taught in education degrees • Systems literacy, psychological literacy/theory of mind neither assessed nor taught towards
- 25. LIBRARIES • Most publiclibraries now lend console games (librarians: PC games e-lending is coming – see me!) • Most have tabletop games somewhere • State Libraries are starting to offer some facilities, collections • Library folks get it more than most, hence… • International Games Day @ your library (igd.ala.org/about)
- 26. LIBRARIES • Not consideredpart of core “culture” business by managers & funding bodies – little budget or reporting • Metadata is terrible (no mechanics – try searching for “first-person” or “platformer” in a catalogue!) • PC games not well-supported yet (but again – see me!) • Tabletop games not even catalogued! (or loaned) • Where are TRPGs? Books that generate stories?
- 27. HEALTH •Research starting tobe done into effects of play on physical & mental health, aging, pain management, positive psychology, motivation •Child’s Play!
- 28. HEALTH •Health bodies rarelyhave games collections •Research is only useful if read and enacted! •Even Child’s Play assumes (or at least reinforces) that play is for children. Need to keep pushing on play for adults!
- 29. (MAINSTREAM) MEDIA •Games AREmainstream media now (though rarely metamedia, media about media) •Most other (meta)media’s cultural coverage now somewhat includes videogames •Beginning to see more openness about play from public figures
- 30. (MAINSTREAM) MEDIA • Notconsidered part of “culture”– videogames are usually included in “tech” coverage (which is OK, but…) • Tabletop games not covered (except maybe bridge/chess notes next to crosswords) • Games still generally assumed to be “for kids” or “for kicks”; artistic value (and freedom) less assumed • Discussion about big-picture stuff largely absent
- 31. ARTS •Games ARE art (Theyare also Art, and platforms for many other arts) •Artists in other media mostly see this (though are naturally focused on their own) •Most artists & many public servants grok that play = creativity, games matter
- 32. ARTS •Art bureaucracies (government,philanthropy) structurally have little to no dedicated funding, specialist staff… or interest •Pilot federal funding for videogames cut •Eligible for “emerging & experimental” funding (um, games go back decades/millennia!)
- 33. WE NEED TORECOGNISE: •Games ARE art (They are also Art, and platforms for many other arts) •Games teach life skills and analytical thinking (with a strong link to action) •Games build community with lower barriers to participation than sport
- 34. WE NEED TORECOGNISE: • Play is important to physical and mental health, learning, creativity & innovation… • Fun is no more (nor less) trivial than beauty. (Which is to say: it can be trivial, or distract us from more important things, or disguise deeper ugliness/unfun. It can also be sublime, and research indicates there are good reasons it matters to us. It’s a key part of human nature, something we should aspire both to achieve and to understand.)
- 35. SO WHAT DOOUR PANELLISTS THINK? • Nick Rappo and Antony Reed will talk about the industry perspective • Sue McKerracher, Andrew Hiskens and Andrew Ekin- Smyth will talk about shifting perceptions of – and support for – games in the library and arts sectors • And then it’s open to the floor for a while.
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- 37. WHAT AM IPROPOSING? • Cultural change in our culture culture Specifically, recognising that games and play are culture… …and as such they deserve to be treated on a comparable footing to other kinds. (We also need to talk about this from the games side.)
- 38. WHAT AM IPROPOSING? • A national home for play We have homes for written arts, visual arts, performing arts, and screen arts (which, to be fair, does include videogames at times) – and of course sport. Why not games and play? (See also: Strong Museum of Play, NY; National Videogame Arcade, Nottingham)
- 39. WHAT AM IPROPOSING? • Australian Play, Imagination & Learning Institute (apili.org) Part archive, part library, part exhibition space, part workshop, part playspace
- 40. WHAT AM IPROPOSING? • APILI Remit (what kinds of play?) Everything that doesn’t have a home elsewhere (such as sport, music, drama) Games and game tech obviously a major focus Also toys, play equipment/furniture, unstructured play, rules-only games, play in other media…
- 41. WHAT AM IPROPOSING? • APILI Vision APILI works towards a world where play and games are as respected, studied, recorded and archived as other forms of creativity, and their full potential to bring out the best in humanity is recognised, explored and developed throughout the culture, education, health, and self-directed learning sectors.
- 42. WHAT AM IPROPOSING? • APILI Functions: Collections of games, toys & tech Spaces for hands-on play Exhibitions (on-site & toured) Academic & creative research Creator fellowships Materials for local libraries & schools eSports/competitive play Organised play support Creative workshops Clearinghouse & collaboration centre Conferences, festivals & events Industry support
- 43. YOUR THOUGHTS? •What’s missing? •What’srealistic? •What’s essential? •What’s awesome?
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- 45. WHAT’S THE PLAN? •Changethe conversation •Build, map and expand networks •Crowdsource
- 46. •Already happening (thisPAX is incredible!) •This panel, obviously! •APILI Seminar •I’m offering consulting & training to schools & libraries (also game designers/publishers) •International Games Day @ your library CHANGING THE CONVERSATION
- 47. CHANGING THE CONVERSATION •More sharing games and play! • More talking about games in a cultural context – including from the games side • More coverage of games and play in other media, and in their own terms! (e.g. Ebert…) • More discussion of the benefits of games and play
- 48. •This panel, obviously! •APILISeminar •Australian Play Alliance (australianplayalliance.org) A mailing list where you register your support for play/games and your connections, skills and particular interests BUILDING NETWORKS
- 49. BUILDING NETWORKS •Spread theword! •Gamer pride! Be confident about your interest in games and play (if you aren’t already) •Use games to network – they’re a great way to connect after all! •Be successful/skilled/connected yourself :D
- 50. •This panel =early market research (need to find out if there’s support!) •Australian Play Alliance obviously a start on assembling the crowd (australianplayalliance.org) CROWDSOURCING
- 51. CROWDSOURCING • What weneed: - Funding & in-kind support - Connections & political support - Spaces/venues (I have leads) - Word-of-mouth & popular support - Skills: Legal advice, Accounting, Event management, Architecture, UX design, Community management, Grant-writing, Graphic design, Web design, Coding, Hardware, Teaching, Prototyping, Psychology, Economics… And of course – game design
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