TRANSFORMATIVE PLAY AND DIGITAL GAMES RESEARCH JOSHUA TANENBAUM

TRANSFORMATIVE PLAY AND DIGITAL GAMES RESEARCH JOSHUA TANENBAUM PH. D. ASSISTANT PROFESSOR TRANSFORMATIVE PLAY LAB DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATICS DONALD BREN SCHOOL OF INFORMATION AND COMPUTER SCIENCE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE HTTP: //TRANSFORMATIVEPLAY. ICS. UCI. EDU

GETTING TO KNOW YOU… • I’m a “nerd-of-all-trades” • I loves me some Sci-Fi and Fantasy • I was into Steampunk before it was cool • I’ve been collecting comics for years, and have been going to Comic. Con since 1990 • I got an MA and a Ph. D in Video Games

GETTING TO KNOW YOU… • I also have a background in theater and music • I was a professional singer with an Elizabethan Madrigal group • I have a degree in music composition, and have composed music for videogames, concerts, and theater shows • I’ve mixed sound in small nightclub venues for Metal bands, in professional theaters, and in large corporate meetings

GETTING TO KNOW YOU… • I like to make things (and study people making things) • I make steampunk props and costumes (which have won many awards) • I brew my own beer (which will never win any awards) • I’ve made short films for flash film contests, created board games, and developed interactive storytelling systems

MOSTLY, THOUGH, I AM A RESEARCHER • I study games and digital narrative in general • In particular I look at identity, empathy, agency, and transformation in games • I teach game design and game studies (these are two different things) • I use theories of method acting and performing arts for much of this work • I also study maker & DIY sub-cultures in the context of HCI • HCI = Human Computer Interaction • I’ve done a lot of work on Steampunk making as a form of Design Fiction • Design Fiction uses films, games, and other modes of storytelling to help people understand the possible impact of a new technology.

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Marie Tsaasan: STEM Education, Identity & Representation

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Marcel Pufal: Digital Survivalism, Fallout 4 (!)

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Jamie Brown: Games to teach writing

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Charu Chaudhari: Tangible Memory Objects and Magical Interfaces

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Dan Gardner: Virtual Worlds and Governance, Identity, Cultural Ownership, and Fluency

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Nicole Crenshaw – Naming Practices and Identity in MMORPGS, Impact of Design on Social Affordances in WOW

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Thomas Debeauvais: Impact of challenge on retention in mobile games

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Juliet Norton: Technological interventions for permaculture communities

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Kate Ringland: Communication in Minecraft communities for autistic youth

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Heather Faucett: Design for disability and rehabilitation

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Anmary Leal: Design of digital systems for crafting, textiles, and costuming

I WORK WITH A GREAT GROUP OF STUDENTS Marissa Gonzales: Games user research and localization

OUR LAB SPACE: THE LUCI STUDIO

OUR LAB SPACE: THE TRANSFORMATIVE PLAY LAB

THREE BIG IDEAS • Big Idea #1: The way we look, feel, act, move, and speak can all change how we think, and how we experience the world. • By changing these things (through the use of props, or costumes, or systems of rules, or scripts) we can change the way people think. • EXAMPLE: Costumes and Masks as game controllers

THREE BIG IDEAS • Big Idea #2: New technologies require a narrative in order to survive in the world. • Combining a new DESIGN with a work of FICTION can help a broad public audience better understand embrace that technology • EXAMPLE: The replicator in Star Trek and 3 D printers

THREE BIG IDEAS • Big Idea #3: The Internet of Things is stupid, and boring: no one really thinks that sacrificing their digital privacy is worth it if all they get it a fridge that knows when to order milk. • The interesting possibilities for the internet of things lie with creating new opportunities for digital meaning making and memory preservation by integrating the physical and the digital worlds. • EXAMPLE: The Reading Glove, and the Pensieve Box

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING! Possible Discussion Topics: Acting Theory and Games Costumes and Wearables as Game Controllers Design Fiction and Storytelling Steampunk and HCI Tangible Technology and the Internet of Things JOSHUA TANENBAUM ASSISTANT PROFESSOR DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATICS DONALD BREN SCHOOL OF INFORMATION AND COMPUTER SCIENCE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE