1. Prototeach, Edinburgh 2010
Chris Lowthorpe
Hosted by University of Abertay & Skillset
Why Game Studies?
Chris Lowthorpe is identi ed as the originator of this work. This right is by Creative Commons Attribution-Non-
Commercial-No Derivative Works 2.0 UK: England and Wales. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/uk/

2. The State of Play
Decade old
Multidisciplinary
Study of games, players, and contexts
Drives research - scholarly/collaborative
Increasingly established outside UK

3. Primary Targets
The Game
The Player
Contextualization
Criticism and Innovation
Industry Practices/Market Awareness

4. The Ultimate Goal?
Integration of theory and
practice to drive research,
innovation, and future
prosperity.

5. Q. What are these?
A. Students!
(according to many in industry) 5

6. Text
But we need
students like this!
6

7. Equipped for this...

8. This...

9. Or this

10. Game Studies Encouraging Innovation

11. “The more
‘traditional’ a game,
the bigger the
player numbers are,
but we are happy to
lose some of those
numbers in trying
something original.”
Alice Taylor
Education Commissioning Editor C4

12. 3 Games + 3 Developers = 1 Idea

13. “It gave me courage to experiment in light of how
others make games, particularly where games
cross boundaries into other media or incorporate
aspects of reality. Studying the theory of games
helps students try new things which may not be
possible after graduation. University provides a
safe and supportive place to try new ideas. Games
studies is a crucial foundation for that innovation.”
Rosie Ball, BA Games Art & Design, NUCA

14. Empowering a new generation
of innovative game designers

15. INTERACTIVITY
GAME STUDIES 1, CHRIS LOWTHORPE, FALL 2009

16. DRAMATIC ELEMENTS
GAME STUDIES 1, CHRIS LOWTHORPE, FALL 2009

17. “Learning the theory behind how games are
constructed, and the different elements of their
creation, gives future designers a much deeper
well of knowledge to assist in their design
processes.”
Tom Alcock, BA Games Art & Design, NUCA

18. Industry Awareness
The Business of Games
Industry Practices
The Market and ‘Audience’
IP and Copyright
Trends - Transmedia Storytelling etc.

19. Expanding of games

25. “Game Studies helped me understand the games
industry is a rapidly changing business, and it’s
important to pay attention to new trends and
technology such as Social Media and App. Stores.
And to recognize the importance of indie game
development studios. ”
Sophia George, BA Games Art & Design, NUCA

26. Games as
Culture

28. Integrate Theory and Practice
Increase Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Understand Games as Culture
Establish Space for Research
Establish Common Language
Sector Aware Graduates

29. “Game Studies is one of my favorite aspects of the
course. For me, it played a vital part in extending
my knowledge of digital games. ”
Rachel Cunningham, BA Games Art & Design, NUCA

30. Turn it upside-down!
Not why Games Studies, but why not?

31. Thanks!
twitter.com/chrislowthorpe
backstorieschrislowthorpe.wordpress.com
chrislowthorpe.co.uk