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Unscheduled Speaker Chat

Riffing on Narrative: https://mediaspace.illinois.edu/media/t/1_l8njl08e

Wednesday, November 2

Gardening at Night: Victory Garden and its Times

5:30pm – 7:00pm

See a recording of this talk: https://mediaspace.illinois.edu/edit/1_8mkv1wj7

Earlier this year I released a web-based version of my first hypertext fiction, Victory Garden, originally published in 1991, as a new work called Victory Garden 2022 (www.victory-garden2022.com). There have been changes both in the project and the world it occupies. In some ways the revision shucks off an earlier aesthetic of chaos, settling into suspiciously traditional form. Meanwhile, with diabolic irony, the social disruption the work channeled and to some extent foresaw — the incipient U.S. culture war – has shredded precedent, continuity, and truth. Life humiliates art. So much for order out of chaos; or perhaps, careful what you play with. This talk will briefly detail the re-shaping of Victory Garden and suggest some ways in which it may reflect course so far of digital fiction, as well as the cultural logic of decades past and years dead ahead.

  • Stuart Moulthrop (UWM, Milwaulkee)
  • Shawn Gilmore (English, UIUC)
  • Rainer Wren Dalton, (UWM Milwaukee)
  • Emilie Butt (GSD, UIUC)
  • Katryna Starks (GSD, UIUC)
  • William Gillespie [Moderator]
  • Judith [Host/MC]

Thursday, November 3

From brain science to boss battles: An experimental psychologist’s journey into games user experience research.

4:30pm – 6:00pm

See a recording of this talk: https://mediaspace.illinois.edu/edit/1_k9surian

Keynote talk by Eevin Jennings from Volition

Unity vs Unreal Face-off Panel

6:00pm – 7:30pm

See a recording of this talk: https://mediaspace.illinois.edu/media/t/1_r5et08rh

Users, proponents, and instructors utilizing two of the most popular game engines will go head to head discussing the merits and downsides to utilizing Unreal and Unity engines in projects, classes and research.


Friday, November 4

GSD 101 Community Playtest

12:00pm – 1:50pm

614 E. Daniel, 5th Floor

Lunch-and-play with us at the PBD IMAGINARIUM! Play the board games that will be turned into a Live-Action play event and give feedback to indie game developers, helping them to bring out their best! Then, share your creativity and put your ideas on the Design-A-Game walls. Refreshments provided. Fun for all!

  • Katryna Starks [MC/Host]
  • Students of GSD 101

Reception

12:00pm – 2:00pm

614 E. Daniel, 5th Floor

Join us for food and conversation

Arboretum Tour

2:15pm – 4:00pm

2001 S Lincoln Ave, Urbana, IL 61802

Bring your hot chocolate and tour the arboretum! See the space and visualize some live action games.


Saturday, November 4

1:00pm – 5:00pm

Broadway Food Hall 401 North Broadway Avenue Urbana, IL

The Playtest Convention is one of our biggest events of the competition. This is a day where we invite the community to come out and play the new game prototypes being developed by CUDO Plays teams. These teams need feedback from everyone they can to make their games great!

We strongly recommend that teams have at least a paper prototype of their game ready before the playtest convention, so that there is plenty of time to both test and make revisions, but don’t let that deter you from just attending and playing other teams’ games!

Please invite your friends, family, co-workers – everybody you know! The more playtesters there are, the more great feedback competitors will get! CUDO Plays has games for every taste and skill level. Come out and see what awesome things Champaign-Urbana can create. This year, the Playtest Convention will be in the Broadway Food Hall! Many food and drink options will be available for purchase.