February 2024 – DiGRA Australia

April Tyack’s Distinguished Scholars

Posted on February 21, 2024 by Mahli-Ann Butt Posted in Awards, DiGRAA2024 .

Since DiGRAA’s founding in 2014, we are proud to be internationally recognised as “the local DiGRA chapter to model” and to be known as the “friendliest conference” and “most welcoming and supportive research community.” We believe we have only earned this reputation due to the contributions of core community members like Dr April Tyack. Dr April Tyack served as DiGRAA’s Vice President from 2018 to 2021 and epitomised the type of dedication to academic discourse and community-building efforts focused on improving diversity and inclusivity in games studies, which we strive to uphold as a group. Though Dr April Tyack’s bright academic career was far too short, her impact will be felt for many years to come.

The April Tyack’s DiGRAA Distinguished Scholars are named in honour of DiGRAA’s former Vice President Dr April Tyack, who made our community better.

These accolades serve to celebrate Dr April Tyack’s life and her lasting contributions to Antipodean game studies, as well as formally recognise the indispensable but often invisible advocacy and mentorship that defines DiGRAA—what makes, sustains, and grows our community. To be eligible for selection, the academic must be a DiGRA Australia member whose ongoing support has helped cultivate our local game studies talent.

Awarded Distinguished Scholars are presented with an engraved plaque. On the plaques, a duck image was chosen to represent Dr Tyack’s beloved signature duck backpack.

Award Committee 2024

Each year, the Distinguished Scholars will be judged by the four executive members of the DiGRAA board. Academics already recognised with this honour will also be invited to participate in the selection committee for future years.

The inaugural 2024 Distinguished Scholars have been decided by DiGRAA President Mahli-Ann Butt, Vice President Erin Maclean, Secretary Stephanie Harkin, and Treasurer Madeleine Antonellos.

Future Iterations

For future iterations of the April Tyack’s Distinguished Scholar award, we will invite DiGRAA members to nominate their peers and mentors who they believe have contributed to our DiGRAA game studies community in this way and should be recognised by this award. These nominations will help inform our decisions to ensure that deserving recognitions are not overlooked.

Complaint Procedures

Ultimately, the Distinguished Scholars are named in the spirit of Dr April Tyack; those who we believe do not embody this spirit—or Dr April Tyack would not wish to recognise—are not eligible for the award, even if their contributions are significant.

If you believe an awarded or nominated Distinguished Scholar does not represent Dr April Tyack’s legacy, you can submit your concern to the current president for review:

Brendan Keogh (brendan.keogh@qut.edu.au)

~ About Dr April Tyack ~

Please see Dan Golding’s thoughtful obituary ‘In Memory of April Tyack’ to learn more about Dr April Tyack’s legacy.

DiGRAA 2024 Online via Zoom

Posted on February 11, 2024 by Mahli-Ann Butt Posted in DiGRAA2024 .

To attend online via Zoom: https://unimelb.zoom.us/j/85152486682?pwd=aXZZOTJ2MFI4Z1kyS3RrZTJNeG93Zz09

Zoom Password: 561926

Attendance is free, and no registration is required!

The full programme schedule uses Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT/ UTC+11) and is available here: https://digraa.org/post/digraa-2024-conference-programme/

Tram works!

Posted on February 7, 2024 by Mahli-Ann Butt Posted in DiGRAA2024 .

No service/service changes on Swanston Street, University of Melbourne trams! https://yarratrams.com.au/service-changes/swanston-street-melbourne-university-renewal-works

There are tram works on Swanston Street next week!

If you are coming to UniMelb from the city, you can still get the 19 tram.

The 19 will take you up Royal Parade.

Get off at “Stop 12: Morrah Street.”

Then enter via Gate 14.

Map directions from Stop 12/Gate 14 to Glen Davis Building (Melbourne School of Design): https://link.mazemap.com/6v8I0BbN

DiGRAA 2024 Conference Programme

Posted on February 2, 2024 by Mahli-Ann Butt Posted in DiGRAA2024, Uncategorized .

DiGRAA 2024 will take place in the Glyn Davis (Melbourne School of Design), Building 133, University of Melbourne, Parkville (3010):

The registration desk will be next to the lifts on Level G (ground floor). Look for student volunteers wearing blue UniMelb T-shirts!
All talks will be in The Malaysian Theatre, Level B (basement).
All catering will be in the Basement Foyer, Level B (basement).

To attend online via Zoom: https://unimelb.zoom.us/j/85152486682?pwd=aXZZOTJ2MFI4Z1kyS3RrZTJNeG93Zz09

Zoom Password: 561926

The programme schedule uses Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT/ UTC+11).

Day 0: Sunday 11 February

5:00pm – 9:00pm

Boardgames @ Pause Menu ヾ(о-ω･)ﾉ⌒★
74 Rose Street, Fitzroy (map | directions)

Day 1: Monday 12 February

9:00am	Registration (^-^*)/ Level G, Foyer
	Welcome Breakfast ♨(⋆‿⋆)♨ Level B, Basement Foyer
9:50am	Welcome ٩(`･ω･´)و ☀️ Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Mahli-Ann Butt & Lucy Sparrow
10:00am	✨Keynote✨	Chair: Mahli-Ann Butt
	The power of multiplayer game design: Or why players are not necessarily The Worst	✨Dr Lucy Sparrow✨
	Q&A (15 min)
11:00am	Morning Tea ☕ Level B, Basement Foyer
11:30am	Session 1 – The Games Industry Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Melissa Rogerson
	Modding Video Game Brand Authenticity	Jacqueline Burgess & Jessica Whyman
	The Dream Job Just Doesn’t Exist: Analysing the Current Games Journalism Landscape	Ryan Stanton
	The Lands Before-During-After Times: Reimagining Game Industry Events ‘Post’-COVID-19	Taylor Hardwick & Mahli-Ann Butt
	Precarity and professionalism of Indonesian mobile game e-sports	Haryo Pambuko Jiwandono
	Q&A (20 mins)
12:30pm	Lunch ♨(⋆‿⋆)♨ Level B, Basement Foyer
1:30pm	Session 2 – New Perspectives on Design Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Nellie Seale
	Ambiguities of Game Design and the Challenge of the Walking Simulator	Alexander Muscat
	Hour of the Wolf – An Investigation into Puzzle Design for Live Theatre	David Harris
	Speaking of Time: Time-centric Language in Video Game Marketing and User Reviews on Steam	Thomas Byers
	Cross-platform storytelling in Dungeons & Dragons: How players use technology to explore and create stories in D&D	Ruby Edwards, Martin Gibbs, Lucy Sparrow & Tamara Kohn
	Q&A (20 min)
2:30pm	Session 3 – Game Histories Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Taylor Hardwick
	Preserving and Emulating Australian Made Videogames of the 1990s	Cynde Moya, Helen Stuckey, Melanie Swalwell & Denise de Vries
	Archival Challenges for Inclusive Games History	Stephanie Harkin
	From Mountain Ranges to Markets: Historicising Virtual Worlds	Finn Dawson
	Q&A (15 min)
3:15pm	Afternoon Tea ☕ Level B, Basement Foyer
3:45pm	Session 4 – Design Influences Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: James Manning
	The Legacy of Tabletop Role-Playing Games: Shaping Contemporary Game Design	Marc Wainwright & Adam Ho
	Myth and Misattribution: Comparing Common Conceptions of the Hero’s Journey against Joseph Campbell	Jacqueline Moran
	Workshopping the Play Community: Reflections on the role of pre-LARP workshops in Dance of Ribbons LARP	Josiah Lulham & David Harris
	Exploring the Influence of Game Designers’ Values and Thought-Processes in Practice	Mifrah Ahmad
	Q&A (20 min)
4:45pm	Close	Lucy Sparrow & Mahli-Ann Butt
5:00pm	Student Pizza Social ♡(◕ᗜ◕✿) Danda-Gat-Ith, Level 5, Melbourne Connect, 700 Swanston Street.	Nellie Seale
6:30pm	Drinks @ The Clydeヾ(о-ω･)ﾉ⌒★ (map) 385 Cardigan St, Carlton 3053

Day 2: Tuesday 13 Feb

9:20am	Announcements ٩(`･ω･´)و ☀️ Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Lucy Sparrow & Mahli-Ann Butt
9:30am	Session 5 – Mechanics and Narrative Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Cass Barkman
	The Connection Between Mechanics and Narrative: How Are Fantasy Card Games Reflecting Their Stories	Chase Profaca
	Strategic Dialogue within Narrative Games as a Mechanic – Moving from branching Narratives to Branching Perspectives	Oneeb Bin Nauman
	In Defence of Alignment Systems	Antranig Sarian
	Monsters and Marauders: RPGs, Race, and the Sovereign Player	Sebastian Morrison
	Q&A (20 min)
10:30am	Morning Tea ☕ Level B, Basement Foyer
11:00am	Session 6 – Nature and Built Environments Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Andrea Andiloro
	Capitalocene Horizons: Producing, Exploiting and Mourning Nature in Animal Crossing: New Horizons	Lawrence May and Ben Hall
	Easing into Play: Creating invitations for urban play and games	Uyên Nguyen & Matthew Riley
	Architecture in Play: Architectonics of Atmosphere	Dorsa Kafili
	The Playable Campus: Game Design & Creative Placemaking for the “New Campus Urbanism”	Aramiha Harwood, Troy Innocent, Dale Leorke & Danielle Wyatt
	Q&A (20 min)
12:00pm	Session 7 – Children and Play Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Dan Golding
	Surveying Childrens Gameplay during the Pandemic: Australian and Chinese approaches	Hugh Davies
	Levelling Up or Cashing In? Privacy Implications for the Data Profiling of Children in Video Games	Caiti Galwey
	Game-centred school learning: It’s (not) in the game	Alexander Bacalja
	Q&A (15 min)
12:45pm	Lunch ♨(⋆‿⋆)♨ & Researcher AMA Level B, Basement Foyer
1:45pm	Session 8 – Narrative and Storytelling Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Timothy Williams
	The Gamelike Nature of Narrative Complexity	Cass Barkman
	“Storytelling […] is […] not merely a simulacrum of iterative colonial categorization”: engaging Indigenous futurism for queer Indigenous futures in video games	Leandro Wallace
	The Ludo-Narrative distinction in the Immersive Multimedia Environments of the Postwar Predigital era	Jonathan Lovell
	Character Creation and Digital Storytelling using Generative AI	Matthew Stephenson, Lauren Woolbright, & Nicol Cabe
	Q&A (20 min)
2:45pm	Session 9 – Games and Health Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Kate Clarke
	Mental Jam: Co-Creating Video Games with Participants About Their Lived Experiences of Depression and Anxiety	Hsiao Wei Chen
	Game on With Motor Neurone Disease (MND): Challenges and Opportunities	Ben O’Mara, Matthew Harrison, Kirsten Harley, & Natasha Dwyer
	Encouraging Empathy of Neurodivergence: Towards a framework for design of persuasive and discursive games	Nadine Garland
	Q&A (15 min)
3:30pm	Afternoon Tea ☕ Level B, Basement Foyer
4:00pm	Session 10 – Close Readings Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Brendan Keogh
	Playing Bastion as a solastalgic game: a case study of Supergiant Games’ avant-garde era	Heather Blakey
	Playing the Ecocentric Apocalypse	Matthew Allan
	I Love My Undead Family: Prosthetic Limbs and Homecoming in Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (2017)	Max Coombes
	Immortality and The Parasite	Tania Marlowe
	Q&A (20 min)
5:00pm	April Tyack’s Distinguished Scholar Awards ╭( ･ㅂ･)و Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Mahli-Ann Butt, Stephanie Harkin & Madeleine Antonellos
5:15pm	Close	Mahli-Ann Butt & Lucy Sparrow

Day 3: Wednesday 14 February

9:20am	Announcements ٩(`･ω･´)و ☀️ Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Lucy Sparrow & Mahli-Ann Butt
9:30am	Session 11 – Games for Museums and Cultural Heritage Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Xavier Ho
	Narrative-Based Games for learning in GLAMS: Overcoming professional hesitancies through an introductory guide	Sophia Booij
	LORE-Drop: Museum Game Design	Nellie Seale, Wally Smith, & Melissa Rogerson
	Augmented Reality Game Design for Cultural Heritage	Yifan Kong [Online]
	Bioshock Infinite and Indigenous Tales: The Potential of Game Media in Expressing Australian Aboriginal Culture	Neo Xia
	Q&A (20 min)
10:30am	Morning Tea ☕ Level B, Basement Foyer
11:00am	Session 12 – Making Sense of and in Games Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Larry May
	The Ghost in the Machine: Legend-Tripping, Hypermodern Ostension and Ontological Bleed in the Grand Theft Auto Series	Andrea Andiloro
	Action Paths: A Typology of Strategy Selection	Sidney Icarus [Online]
	Synthesising the Real: How Players Navigate the Representation of Reality in Video Games	Benn Van Den Ende, & Sian Tomkinson [Online]
	The analyst’s videogame: On psychoanalytic formalism	Benjamin Nicoll
	Q&A (20 min)
12:00pm	Session 13 – Politics and Identity Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Lee Cope
	‘A political statement, whether you understand that or not’: Inclusive Gender Expression in Avatar Customization	Yisong Han & Xavier Ho
	Beyond “Representation”: Shooter Videogames and Mediated Feminisms in New Discourse	Erin Maclean [Online]
	Alt-right in gaming spaces in Italy and in Australia. A comparative analysis	Giulio Pitroso [Online]
	Playing with Integrity: Videogame Involvement and Moral Identity	Thomas Coghlan
	Q&A (20 min)
1:00pm	Lunch ♨(⋆‿⋆)♨ Level B, Basement Foyer
2:00pm	Session 14 – Relating to Others Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Steph Harkin
	NPC Empathy: A Philosophical Paradox	Paul Scriven
	Parasocial Relations in the Gaming Landscape	Lee Cope
	Romance as the “real challenge”?: The implications of absent dialogue icons in Baldur’s Gate 3	Amy Brierley-Beare
	“Where there is trash talk, there is a story and excitement” – A symbolic convergence approach towards understanding trash talk, narratives and spectator perspectives in FPS esports	Sidney Irwin, Anjum Naweed & Michele Lastella
	Q&A (20 min)
3:00	Session 15 – Multiverse Research Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Chair: Lucy Sparrow
	Everything Ethnography All At Once: Reflecting on a Team Ethnography of SXSW Sydney	Fraser Allison, Mahli-Ann Butt, Marcus Carter, Kate Clark, Finn Dawson,Taylor Hardwick, Mark Johnson, Brendan Keogh, Mads Mackenzie, Ryan Stanton & Frank Meixiao Wang
	Q&A (15 min)
3:25pm	DiGRAA Best Paper Award °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖° Level B, The Malaysian Theater	Melissa Rogerson
3:30pm	Close	Mahli-Ann Butt & Lucy Sparrow
3:45pm	CAKE TIME (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧ヽ(⌐■_■)ノ♪♬ Level B, Basement Foyer

Inaugural Class (2024)
Marcus Carter	Dr Marcus Carter is an Australian Research Council Future Fellow and Associate Professor in Digital Cultures at The University of Sydney. He is also currently director of the Sydney Games and Play Lab. His research focuses on digital games and emerging mixed reality technologies, and he is the author of several books including Treacherous Play (2022) and Fantasies of Virtual Reality (2024). Marcus co-founded DiGRA Australia in 2014, and has served as Treasurer (2014-2015), President (2015-2018) and as a board member (2018-2021, 2023-Present).
Dan Golding	A/Prof Dan Golding (he/him) is Interim Chair of the Department of Media and Communication at Swinburne University, and the author of two books, including Game Changers with Leena van Deventer. He also created the soundtrack for the BAFTA, DICE, and GDCA winning Untitled Goose Game (2019), as well as Mars First Logistics (2023), and the Frog Detective series. Dan helped host DiGRA International when it came to Australia in 2017, and was co-chair of DiGRA Australia in 2016. Before that, Dan wrote games journalism and was director of the Freeplay Independent Games Festival (2014-2017).
Brendan Keogh	Dr Brendan Keogh (he/him) is a senior lecturer in the School of Communication and a chief investigator of the Digital Media Research Centre, Queensland University of Technology. He is the co-author of The Unity Game Engine and The Circuits of Cultural Software (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019; with Benjamin Nicoll), and is the author of The Videogame Industry Does Not Exist (MIT Press, 2023) A Play of Bodies: How We Perceive Videogames (MIT Press, 2018) and Killing is Harmless: A Critical Reading of Spec Ops The Line (Stolen Projects, 2012). He has written extensively about the cultures and development practices of videogames in journals such as Games and Culture, Creative Industries, and Convergence, and for outlets such as Overland, The Conversation, Polygon, Edge, and Vice. He served as President of DiGRA Australia from 2018 – 2022, and chaired DiGRA Australia’s 2020 National Conference.