We have three great talks on games this week at UC Santa Cruz. All are free and open to the public. Please help spread the word!
Monday
Title: Mama Ludens vs Fanboi – What is wrong with the Gaming Revolution?
Speaker: Jessica Enevold, Assistant Professor at Lund University, Sweden and Managing Editor for the journal Game Studies
Time and Place: 2pm Monday May 16th, Engineering 2 room 599
Tuesday
Title: What will the games business look like in 5 years?
Speaker: John Davison, VP of programming at CBS Interactive for GameSpot and Metacritic
Time and Place: noon Tuesday May 17th, Media Theater (M110)
Friday
Title: Human Sexuality and Video Games
Speaker: Damon Brown, journalist for Playboy, New York Post, Family Circle, and others
Time and Place: 11am Friday May 20th, Engineering 2 Simularium (room 180)
More information below.
Monday
Title: Mama Ludens vs Fanboi – What is wrong with the Gaming Revolution?
Speaker: Jessica Enevold, Assistant Professor at Lund University, Sweden and Managing Editor for the journal Game Studies
Time and Place: 2pm Monday May 16th, Engineering 2 room 599
Abstract: It has been hailed for a while, in articles, book introductions and sales reports: the gaming revolution. Fun for all is finally here and if we put our minds to it, games may even save the world! Then, what is wrong with the gaming revolution? The question can be read both as a complaint and a celebration of what is happening. This talk questions the gaming revolution by playfully pitting Mama Ludens vs Fan-boi, here representing everyday playing practices of adult female gamers and conservative discursive elements of game culture, in a symbolic battle over ludic fun. It nevertheless welcomes the gaming revolution as a cultural evolution, but calls for a more profound and radical ludic revolution.
Bio: Jessica Enevold is Assistant Professor at the Department of Arts and Cultural Sciences, section for ethnology at Lund University, Sweden where she organizes the Digital Cultures and Games Lecture and Lab Series and works as course coordinator, supervisor and teacher in the Master’s Program Applied Cultural Analysis (MACA). She runs the research projects “Gaming Moms: Juggling Time, Play and Family Life” and “Games and Play – For Better For Worse”. She currently co-edits an anthology on Game Love and is the Managing Editor for the international journal Game Studies.
Tuesday
Title: What will the games business look like in 5 years?
Speaker: John Davison, VP of programming at CBS Interactive – GameSpot and Metacritic
Time and Place: noon Tuesday May 17th, Media Theater (M110)
Abstract: A look at the way the audience for games is changing, and how the games industry is adjusting and adapting to new tastes, technology, and trends.
Bio: John Davison is VP of programming at CBS Interactive for GameSpot and Metacritic. Davison comes to CBS’ gaming properties from IDG’s GamePro, where he served as Executive Vice President of Content. Davison’s career in game journalism spans nearly 20 years and includes high-ranking positions at outlets including Electronic Gaming Monthly, the Official PlayStation Magazine, and What They Play, a family-focused consumer site which he founded and later sold to IGN Entertainment.
Friday
Title: Human Sexuality and Video Games
Speaker: Damon Brown, journalist for Playboy, New York Post, Family Circle, and others
Time and Place: 11am Friday May 20th, Engineering 2 Simularium (room 180)
Abstract: McDonald’s has “Fast Food Nation,” the fish industry has “Cod,” but no book has successfully weaved the cautionary tales and humorous history of the world of video games into our modern society… until now. For “Porn and Pong” Playboy Magazine journalist Damon Brown spent five years exploring how the $20 billion video game industry traces our evolution in sexual mores, technological dependence and personal interaction. The VCR and the dawn of the modern porn industry parallels the first Atari systems, Reality TV skyrocketed the same year as The Sims, and the surgically-endowed Pamela Anderson was only outshined by one other woman: Lara Croft. In one of the most stimulating moments, Brown examines Presidential hopeful Hillary Rodham Clinton’s 2005 tirade against Grand Theft Auto, and how politics, hidden agendas and financial pressure affect all controversial art forms.
Bio: Damon Brown writes about sex, technology, music and video games for Playboy, New York Post and Family Circle, and is the tech columnist for AARP Online and PlanetOut. He is the author of several books, most recently “Porn & Pong: How Grand Theft Auto, Tomb Raider and Other Sexy Games Changed Our Culture.” Damon has a Masters in Magazine Publishing from Chicago’s Northwestern University and a degree in Journalism and Computing from Detroit’s Oakland University. The Jersey native considers New Orleans, Chicago and Lansing (Michigan) his hometowns, but recently established his secret headquarters in Northern California.
Directions and Parking
Directions to UC Santa Cruz: http://maps.ucsc.edu/cmdirections.html
When arriving at the main campus entrance, stop at the parking and information kiosk on the right side of the road, shortly after you come through the main entrance. Park in the pullout next to the kiosk and purchase a permit from the kiosk attendant. The attendant can also provide you with a campus map and indicate the appropriate building and parking lot/structure. Please arrive at campus 20 minutes early to allow time for purchasing permit, parking, and walking to the talk location.
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