Tomoe Moriyama

DATE:       October 20th 2008 2-4 PM
PLACE:     Interface Culture Lab, Sonnensteinstr. 11-13, 2. floor
Lecturer:   Gonzalo Frasca
Title:         "Playing with meaning: videogames that convey ideas"

abstract:
Videogames are now a major part of our culture. Like many other forms in their early stages, it is currently perceived merely as entertainment. However, videogames –as well as traditional, non-electronic games– can communicate ideas and values. Even though this is normally understood within the frame of "serious games" (for education, training or advertising), communicating specific ideas can also be an essential tool for desiging entertainment. This talk will review different techniques on how toys, games and videogames convey meaning.

biography:
Gonzalo Frasca, Ph.D., is a game designer, researcher and entrepreneur. He’s co-founder and Chief Creative Officer at Powerful Robot Games, one of the largest game studios in South America. His latest hit game for Cartoon Network, AwesomeHouseParty.com, gathered over 22 million player accounts.
Frasca's research focuses on game rhetoric, the relationship between play and game and games and politics. In 2003, Frasca co-created the first official videogame ever commissioned for a US Presidential election.  Frasca currently lives in Uruguay and sometimes blogs at Ludology.org