CFP: 2015 DiGRA Australia Conference
Inclusivity in Australian Games and Game Studies
We are delighted to announce that the second annual DiGRA Australia conference will be held at the University of New South Wales, 29th – 30th of June. The theme for DiGRAA 2015 will be ‘Inclusivity in Australian Games and Game Studies’.
Games, games culture and games studies is often exclusive. Movements, communities, norms and individuals at various scales and levels of impact continue to attempt to define who plays, where they play, how they play, and what they should like about it. Games are increasingly becoming a pervasive everyday practice, engaged with across all demographics, with wider, more nuanced and varied experiences and meanings drawn from their experience. The purpose of this years DiGRA Australia is to provide an opportunity for games scholars to be inclusive in our approach, in our understanding, and in the knowledge that our research generates.
We therefore invite submissions that describe research projects completed or still under way, that prompt discussion, or report findings or arguments. We call for papers and contributions on the theme of inclusion. This is the inclusion of different people: in terms of the different backgrounds and identities of the players and characters represented in gaming and games culture. This is also the inclusion directed towards games scholars and the different perspectives that enrich our scholarship beyond the nexus of the white straight male. Finally, this is also the inclusion of methodologies and approaches: in terms of the wealth of means by which we might understand games and play.
Attendance at the event is also an opportunity to shape and be involved in the future direction of this regional DiGRA chapter.
We organise such an event acknowledging that ‘game studies’ is not an exclusively academic endeavour – exciting and ground-breaking work is occurring in a wide variety of commercial, professional and amateur contexts. Consequently, we encourage non-academic game researchers, critics, designers, developers and artists to attend and contribute to the event. Submitted abstracts will not be evaluated harshly for not engaging with academic literature, as we see this as an opportunity for these disparate communities to engage and share knowledge.
Important Dates
- Deadline extended 8th May
- Notification of Acceptance – 18th May.
- Symposium Date -29th – 30th of June.
Details
Following on from the success of last year’s conference, we fully expect that DiGRA Australia 2015 will remain a single track conference.
The conference will run from 13:00 – 17:00 on the 29th June, and from 9:00 – 17:00 on the 30th June at The University of New South Wales. An evening social event will occur on the 29th nearby. A morning doctoral colloquium will run from 9:00 – 12:00 on the 29th, which all conference attendees are welcome to attend.
Please also note that the Global Digital Humanities conference, which may be of some interest to attendees, occurs in Sydney immediately after DiGRA Australia.
The DiGRA Australia Annual General Meeting will be held during the conference.
Submission Format
We invite interested authors to submit 400-800 word abstracts (not including references), anonymous for peer review. Submissions from academics are typically expected to have references to reflect the author’s engagement with existing scholarship, but this is not a requirement for inclusion in the conference.
We advise potential authors to review the abstracts accepted for publication in last years DiGRA Australia conference as a guide to the expected tone and quality. We welcome submissions that explore both in-progress and complete works, but must represent novel (unpublished) scholarship. If the abstract resembles previously published work, we recommend the author explicitly identify the additional contribution of their DiGRAA submission. We recommend that papers articulate the issue or research question to be discussed, the methodological or critical framework used, and indicate the findings or conclusions to be presented and/or the relevance to the wider game studies discipline. Papers can present any kind of research, analysis or commentary, but should be written so that the importance of the work can be understood by reviewers working in different disciplines or using different approaches.
Submissions are required to use the DiGRA conference publication format. Accepted abstracts will be uploaded to the DiGRA Digital Library.
Submission Process
Submissions will be made online, via easy chair.
Please enter your 400-800 word abstract in the abstract box in easy chair, as well as uploading it as a formatted attachment.
Conference Chair
Tom Apperley – University of New South Wales
