Flavored by Authenticity: How Personal Experiences Amplify Narrative

Matthew Farber, Juliana Loh, Kimberly Unger, and I headlined the Georgia Game Developers Association CIMFest last year with this powerful panel exploring how personal experiences empower narrative writing. Especially enlightening was the conversation on how personal experiences do not necessarily equate trauma but can instead be more uplifting and positive.  

Keynote Panel: Flavored by Authenticity: How Personal Experiences Amplify Narrative 

Digital storytelling is a currently evolving medium and the push-and-pull nature of player interaction in video games provides an opportunity for the inclusion of personal touchstones in order to more deeply connect with and engage a broad audience. Over the past decade, there has been an increase in the examination of personal narrative elements as methods of engagement in teaching and community building, most notably by contributing a level of accessible authenticity. 

This keynote examines how personal narratives inform narrative and character design as a whole in a game or virtual setting, Join us for a look at moments in popular games informed by personal narrative, from the indie to the AAA level, and reflect on steps that might be taken in order to retain authenticity while avoiding the pitfalls that naturally come with the wholesale creation of fantastic and fictional spaces. 

 

Sande Chen

Profiled as one of the Game Industry's Top 100 Most Influential Women and a 2020 Women in Games Global Hall of Fame winner, Sande Chen is a writer and game designer with over 15 years of experience in the industry. Her writing credits include 1999 Independent Games Festival winner Terminus and the PC RPG of the Year, The Witcher, for which she was nominated for a 2007 Writers Guild Award in Videogame Writing. She is the co-author of Serious Games: Games That Educate, Train, and Inform and was a contributor to Secrets of the Game Business, Writing For Video Game Genres, and Professional Techniques for Videogame Writing. She has been a speaker at numerous game-related conferences, including the Game Developers Conference, NY Comic Con, PAX East, and SXSW. She has been invited to the White House and represented the USA at the World Conference on Science Literacy. She also has a Grammy nomination.

Matthew Farber

Matthew Farber, Ed.D. is an assistant professor at the University of Northern Colorado, where he founded the Gaming SEL Lab. He has been invited to the White House, authored several books and papers, and is a frequent collaborator with UNESCO and Games for Change. His latest book is Gaming SEL: Games as Transformational to Social and Emotional Learning (bit.ly/GamingSEL). For more, please visit MatthewFarber.com.

Juliana Loh

Juliana Loh is an independent Producer/Artist whose background includes branded entertainment, UX and art direction. In addition to developing educational/gaming experiences, she has honed her artistic skills as a concept and gallery-showing artist while pioneering, empowering and supporting grassroots tech meetups and communities. Currently working as an instructor and immersive artist, she is keenly aware of how emerging technology is changing the way we relate to each other. She is currently designing story-based Pro-Kindness Workshops using VR360 based on user-centered design thinking.

Kimberly Unger 

Kimberly made her first videogame back when the 80-column card was the new hot thing and after 20+ years as a pro in that industry, the magic still hasn’t faded. Now she sources leading-edge content for Oculus, lectures on the intersection of art and code for UCSC in Games and Playable Media, wrangles a monthly column on science-fiction in videogames over at Amazing Stories and writes science fiction about how all these app-driven superpowers are going to change the human race. Her debut sci-fi novel, NUCLEATION is available now on Amazon and her next novel The Extractionist will be available in November of 2021. You can find her on Twitter at @Ing3nu or on her blog at www.ungerink.com.

 

Designing Non-Toxic Game Communities

In this video from 2021 CIMFest, game designers and community managers discuss how to remove toxicity from game communities.

Originally scheduled for 2020 GDC, this roundtable on Designing Non-Toxic Game Communities was canceled due to the pandemic. We are so grateful to the Georgia Game Developers Association for allowing this roundtable to occur during Columbus Interactive Media Festival (CIMFest).

Participants:

• Sande Chen (moderator)
• Brad Merritt, director of game design for Cartoon Network
• Kat De Shields-Moon, PR manager for Schell Games
• Joshua Quinnett, senior community manager at Gallium Studios
• Judy Tyrer, founder of 3 Turn Productions 
• Jared Creasy, community manager at Tripwire Interactive
• Isiah Turner, lead community specialist at Hi-Rez Studios
• Kimberly Unger, Content Lead at Oculus

Upcoming: Women in Games Meet the Winners Series

Happy to be interviewed in the Women in Games Global Games Awards Meet the Winners Series, coming up tomorrow! July 1st at 1 PM EST. Find out when the stream is starting on the Women in Games Twitch channel at www.twitch.tv/wigj

Last week, I spoke at the Serious Play Conference on Design Principles for Early Education Apps.  In addition to new recommendations, I echoed what I've been saying in "What's Wrong with Pre-K Game Apps."

When asked for apps that I've been excited about, I praised Dragonbox Big Numbers and Bedtime Math.  

Instead of a bedtime story, why not a bedtime math problem? What do you think?

Upcoming CIMFest Keynote: Flavored by Authenticity

Hi!  If you missed our SXSW panel, you can catch it here on the SXSW 2021 YouTube channel.  It's completely different from the LudoNarraCon one even though the topic is the same.  There was just so much more to talk about emotional touchstones in emergent narrative!

If you want to know more about touchstones (Touchstones! Touchstones! Touchstones!), this Saturday June 12, 2021, we are headlining the Georgia Game Developers Association CIMFest and I also will be moderating IGDA GDSIG's skipped (due to the cancellation of GDC last year) roundtable, Creating Non-Toxic Gamer Communities.

Watch it for free on www.youtube.com/GeorgiaGameDevs 

Here's the deets!

Roundtable: Creating Non-Toxic Gamer Communities (1 PM Eastern)

What game design principles can be used to promote friendlier and harassment-free communities? Join us for a discussion on what strategies game designers can use to create safe virtual spaces that are enjoyable for all players. In particular, we focus on game mechanics that encourage community-oriented behaviors, the pros and cons of automated reporting, and how to minimize griefing.

 

Keynote Panel: Flavored by Authenticity: How Personal Experiences Amplify Narrative (3 PM Eastern)

Digital storytelling is a currently evolving medium and the push-and-pull nature of player interaction in video games provides an opportunity for the inclusion of personal touchstones in order to more deeply connect with and engage a broad audience. Over the past decade, there has been an increase in the examination of personal narrative elements as methods of engagement in teaching and community building, most notably by contributing a level of accessible authenticity. 

This keynote examines how personal narratives inform narrative and character design as a whole in a game or virtual setting, Join us for a look at moments in popular games informed by personal narrative, from the indie to the AAA level, and reflect on steps that might be taken in order to retain authenticity while avoiding the pitfalls that naturally come with the wholesale creation of fantastic and fictional spaces. 

Sande Chen

Profiled as one of the Game Industry's Top 100 Most Influential Women and a 2020 Women in Games Global Hall of Fame winner, Sande Chen is a writer and game designer with over 15 years of experience in the industry. Her writing credits include 1999 Independent Games Festival winner Terminus and the PC RPG of the Year, The Witcher, for which she was nominated for a 2007 Writers Guild Award in Videogame Writing. She is the co-author of Serious Games: Games That Educate, Train, and Inform and was a contributor to Secrets of the Game Business, Writing For Video Game Genres, and Professional Techniques for Videogame Writing. She has been a speaker at numerous game-related conferences, including the Game Developers Conference, NY Comic Con, PAX East, and SXSW. She has been invited to the White House and represented the USA at the World Conference on Science Literacy. She also has a Grammy nomination.

Matthew Farber

Matthew Farber, Ed.D. is an assistant professor at the University of Northern Colorado, where he founded the Gaming SEL Lab. He has been invited to the White House, authored several books and papers, and is a frequent collaborator with UNESCO and Games for Change. His latest book is Gaming SEL: Games as Transformational to Social and Emotional Learning (bit.ly/GamingSEL). For more, please visit MatthewFarber.com.

Juliana Loh

Juliana Loh is an independent Producer/Artist whose background includes branded entertainment, UX and art direction. In addition to developing educational/gaming experiences, she has honed her artistic skills as a concept and gallery-showing artist while pioneering, empowering and supporting grassroots tech meetups and communities. Currently working as an instructor and immersive artist, she is keenly aware of how emerging technology is changing the way we relate to each other. She is currently designing story-based Pro-Kindness Workshops using VR360 based on user-centered design thinking.

Kimberly Unger 

Kimberly made her first videogame back when the 80-column card was the new hot thing and after 20+ years as a pro in that industry, the magic still hasn’t faded. Now she sources leading-edge content for Oculus, lectures on the intersection of art and code for UCSC in Games and Playable Media, wrangles a monthly column on science-fiction in videogames over at Amazing Stories and writes science fiction about how all these app-driven superpowers are going to change the human race. Her debut sci-fi novel, NUCLEATION is available now on Amazon and her next novel The Extractionist will be available in November of 2021. You can find her on Twitter at @Ing3nu or on her blog at www.ungerink.com.

Upcoming Panel at SCAD Gaming Fest

Hi!  If you missed it, the SXSW Online 2021 panel, Creating Touchstones in Emergent Narrative, is still up on-demand for pass holders. 

I'll be speaking on a panel, Screenwriting for Games: The Challenge of Choice-Based Narratives, next week at SCAD Gaming Fest along with Patric Verrone and Marianne Krawczyk. This high-powered event was organized in collaboration with the Writers Guild Foundation. SCAD stands for Savannah College of Art and Design.

Here's the panel description:

Title: Screenwriting for Games: The Challenge of Choice-Based Narratives

When: Friday, April 9, 2021

Time: 2 PM Eastern Time

From huge triple-A games to interactive online novels, engaging storytelling requires the right mix of imaginative prose and strategic writing. Join successful game writers as they talk about pitching and writing choice-based narratives, how the writers' room in a game company differs from television series or films, and the various ways writers are utilized in the game development process.

SCAD Gaming Fest will feature Q&A's, presentations, and panels, featuring industry professionals from Blizzard, EA, Google, Magic Leap, Microsoft, Ubisoft, 42 Entertainment, Skillshot, and more. This year, it's virtual and open to all, not just SCAD students and SCAD card holders.

Join me and other industry leaders this April 9–10, and get exclusive content on game design and development, animation, visual effects, and more. See you there!

Upcoming Panel at SXSW Online 2021

Hi!  Excited to announce that our panel Creating Touchstones in Emergent Narratives will be part of SXSW Online 2021 under the track Transforming the Entertainment Landscape.  

We had so much to talk about during our LudoNarraCon session that we felt like we could go on for another hour. The SXSW session will delve into new areas as we discuss recapture techniques, why touchstones are important, and more! Join us at SXSW Online March 16-20, 2021.

Here's the panel description:

Title: Creating Touchstones in Emergent Narratives

When: Tuesday, March 16, 2021

Time: 11:15 - 12:10 Eastern Time

Games have a unique ability to establish empathy between a player and a world and characters, but game players don’t always follow the path the narrative lays out for them. This panel discusses how designers and storytellers can build in empathic elements that can be found and engaged with even when the larger narrative gets delivered out of order.

 

Meet the panelists:

Sande Chen is a writer and game designer with over 15 years of experience in the game industry. Her writing credits include 1999 Independent Games Festival winner Terminus, MMO Hall of Fame inductee Wizard101, and the 2007 PC RPG of the Year, The Witcher, for which she was nominated for a Writers Guild of America Award in Videogame Writing. She is the co-author of the book, Serious Games: Games That Educate, Train, and Inform, and was a contributor to Secrets of the Game Business, Writing For Video Game Genres, and Professional Techniques for Videogame Writing.

Kimberly Unger made her first videogame back when the 80-column card was the new hot thing and after 20+ years as a pro in that industry, the magic still hasn’t faded. Now she builds strategy for and sources leading-edge content for Oculus, lectures on the intersection of art and code for UCSC in Games and Playable Media, wrangles a monthly column on science-fiction in videogames over at Amazing Stories and writes about how all these app-driven superpowers are going to change the human race. She is the author of the award-winning Game Development Essentials: Mobile Game Development and the Official GameSalad Guide to Game Development. Her debut sci-fi novel, NUCLEATION is available now on Amazon and her next novel, The Extractionist will be available in November of 2021. 

Juliana Loh is an independent Producer/Artist whose background includes branded entertainment, UX, and art direction and health (mental health awareness). In addition to developing educational/gaming experiences, she has honed her artistic skills as a concept and gallery-showing artist while pioneering, empowering and supporting grassroots tech meetups and communities. Currently working as an instructor and immersive artist, she is keenly aware of how emerging technology is changing the way we relate to each other. She is currently evolving stories through world building and designing narrative and cinematic concepts in tiltbrush. Juliana is regarded as a pioneer in the world of spatial art/design. 

Matthew Farber, Ed.D. is an Assistant Professor of Technology, Innovation, and Pedagogy at the University of Northern Colorado, where he directs the Gaming SEL Lab. He has been invited to the White House, authored several books and papers, and has collaborated with UNESCO MGIEP and Games for Change. His latest book, Gaming SEL: Games as Transformational to Social and Emotional Learning, will be published in 2021.

Vote for 2021 SXSW and SXSW EDU PanelPicker Ideas!

Hi, I apologize for not updating the blog. I have not been feeling well these past months. I did in fact win a 2020 Women in Games Hall of Fame Award. I was completely flabbergasted and very grateful. Thank you so much to the people who voted. I need your help again because the SXSW and SXSW EDU Community Voting period is ending November 20, 11:59 PM, Pacific Time. That's this Friday! Check out our panel offerings.

Both SXSW and SXSW EDU will be online next year.  Anybody with an Internet connection who makes a PanelPicker account can vote during Community Voting.

For SXSW, we have panels about emergent narrative, immersive story worlds, and designing games for social change.

Creating Touchstones in Emergent Narratives

Games have a unique ability to establish empathy between a player and a world and characters, but game players don’t always follow the path the narrative lays out for them. This panel discusses how designers and storytellers can build in empathic elements that can be found and engaged with even when the larger narrative gets delivered out of order.

Vote here for this panel: http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/vote/110179

Playable Story Worlds in Immersive Storytelling

Do you need interaction for immersion? How do you feel about the use and manipulation of VR/AR/MR in the rise of immersive storytelling? Do you think you can tell the difference between art, words, or music in the manipulation of audience interaction? In storytelling, we are seeing the potential of VR/AR/MR to aid storytellers, designers, and artists to enhance audience experiences. How will this enable us to tell more interactive and personalized stories in ways we have yet to imagine? Join Timothy Braun, Sande Chen, and Kimberly Ungeras they discuss the concepts of playable stories, interactive audience design, and the future of immersive worlds building.

Vote here for this panel: https://panelpicker.sxsw.com/vote/108757

How Not to F**k Up Games For Social Change

Can life really be gamified for the better? Or is that just a gimmick to interest a more tech-savvy generation? Learn how video games and technologies like VR can be used to create truly transformative experiences that promote social change. In this panel, four game design and community professionals discuss the overhaul of design systems to be more diverse, equitable, empathetic, and inclusive - without making them worse.

Vote here for this panel: https://panelpicker.sxsw.com/vote/110000

For SXSW EDU, our panel focuses on using game-based learning in the classroom.

Using Games For Inclusion in the Classroom 

Students of all ages can benefit from games and game creation in the classroom, especially as a way to promote inclusion, equity, justice, and compassion. In this talk, hear from educators and game developers on how to design your own creative and inclusive activities for the classroom. We will share the latest innovations in using games for good--whether your classroom is in-person, remote, or hybrid. We will help you to create the classroom of the future!

Vote here for this panel: https://panelpicker.sxsw.com/vote/111484

SXSW EDU will be held on March 9-11, 2021 and SXSW EDU will be on March 16-20, 2021.

Creating Emotional Touchstones in Emergent Narrative

In this panel, Matthew Farber, Sande Chen, Kimberly Unger, and Juliana Loh discuss the importance of emotional touchstones in emergent narrative and how it's done in different types of games.

Many thanks to Fellow Traveller Games for organizing a great program of panels on narrative games! The panels are on YouTube, including ours on emergent narrative.

LudoNarraCon 2020
Panel: Creating Emotional Touchstones in Emergent Narrative

Games have a unique ability to establish empathy between a player and a world and characters, but game players don’t always follow the path the narrative lays out for them. This panel discusses how designers and storytellers can build in empathic elements that can be found and engaged with even when the larger narrative gets delivered out of order.

This panel originally aired during LudoNarraCon 2020, digital festival celebrating narrative games, hosted on Steam and organized by Fellow Traveller Games.

Matthew Farber, Ed.D. is an Assistant Professor of Technology, Innovation and Pedagogy at the University of Northern Colorado. His research is at the intersection of game-based learning and social and emotional learning (SEL). Dr. Farber has been invited to the White House, to keynote for UNESCO, and he has been interviewed about games and learning by NPR, Fox News Radio, EdSurge, The Denver Post, USA TODAY and The Wall Street Journal. Farber's book, Gamify Your Classroom: A Field Guide to Game-Based Learning -- Revised Edition (2017) features a foreword from Greg Toppo. His latest book, Game-Based Learning in Action: How an Expert Affinity Group Teaches with Games (2018), has a foreword from James Paul Gee. To learn more, visit: MatthewFarber.com 

Sande Chen is the co-author of Serious Games: Games That Educate, Train, and Inform. As a serious games consultant, she helps companies harness the power of video games for non-entertainment purposes. Her career as a writer, producer, and game designer has spanned over 15 years. Her game credits include 1999 Independent Games Festival winner Terminus and the 2007 PC RPG of the Year, The Witcher, for which she was nominated for a Writers Guild of America Award in Videogame Writing. She has spoken at conferences around the globe, including the Game Developers Conference, Serious Play Conference, and Games For Change. 

Kimberly Unger made her first videogame back when the 80-column card was the new hot thing and after 20+ years as a pro in that industry, the magic still hasn’t faded. Now she sources leading-edge content for Oculus, lectures on the intersection of art and code for UCSC’s Baskin School of Engineering, wrangles a monthly column on science-fiction in videogames over at Amazing Stories and writes science fiction about how all these app-driven superpowers are going to change the human race. Her debut novel, NUCLEATION will be out in November of 2020. You can find her on Twitter at @Ing3nu or on her blog at www.ungerink.com. 

Juliana Loh is an independent Producer/Artist whose background includes branded entertainment, UX and art direction. In addition to developing educational/gaming experiences, she has honed her artistic skills as a concept and gallery-showing artist while pioneering, empowering and supporting grassroots tech meetups and communities. Currently working as an instructor and immersive artist, she is keenly aware of how emerging technology is changing the way we relate to each other. She is currently working on a Pro-Kindess Immersive project that is based on user-centered thinking.

GamerJibe How to Break Into the Gaming Industry Panel

In this panel, Hitmarker Managing Director Richard Huggan, Games Provision Manager Bradley Austin, and game designer Sande Chen dispense advice for aspiring eSports athletes and game developers interested in entry level positions and remote opportunities in the gaming industry.

This one-hour long panel titled, "How to Break Into the Gaming Industry," was streamed during GamerJibe's May 2020 Career Fest for Students and Gamers and covered a variety of topics including social media presence, networking, portfolios, development bootcamps, and university degrees. Learn what sectors are growing and how to get involved in the game industry.

Do you have to be a gamer to be in the game industry?

GameACon 2016: Breaking Into Game Writing

In this podcast, game writers Sande Chen, Jennifer Estaris, David Kuelz, Matthue Roth, and Ant Tessitore, along with moderator Patrick Coursey, give inspiring and encouraging advice on how to break into the game industry as a writer.

I am really thankful to Michael Beeghley for salvaging this audio recording.  He has really worked wonders with the material, revealing previously inaudible portions.  You'll still hear water glasses clinking or other sound quality issues, but I found that after turning up the volume and listening to the panel, I was not bothered by the crowd noise.  

It was a very well-attended session.  Thank you to everyone who came to the panel! 


Breaking Into Game Writing

GameACon 2016
October 30, 2016

There are as many ways to break into game writing as there are writers, so taking your first steps can be daunting. Join our panel of award-winning writers and designers as they share their successes and struggles with getting a foot in the door of the industry. Whether you dream of writing the next big AAA game or an indie interactive novel, we’ve got the info to set you on the right path.

Moderator: Patrick Coursey
Panelists:  Sande Chen, Jennifer Estaris, David Kuelz, Matthue Roth, Ant Tessitore


 
You can find other download options here.

Patrick Coursey is a writer and narrative designer based out of Baltimore, Maryland. In 2015, he teamed up with Blindflug Studios as writer on the mobile roguelike, Cloud Chasers. The game received four awards including Grand Prize at European Indie Game Days and was an official selection of the Indie Arena at Gamescom. Before that he worked at Fourth Wall Studios in Los Angeles as a transmedia experience designer. He once again joined Blindflug Studios as a writer for their new game, Airheart. He infrequently tweets at @pjcoursey, but would like it if you followed him anyway.  

A writer and game designer, Sande Chen has over 15 years experience in the industry. Her first game writing credit was on the epic space-combat RPG Terminus which won 2 awards at the 1999 Independent Games Festival. She was later nominated for a 2007 Writers Guild of America award in Videogame Writing for the dark fantasy RPG The Witcher. She is SIG leader of the IGDA Game Design SIG. Find her on Twitter @sandechen. 

Jennifer Estaris is a writer, game designer, and mother to a spinning 3 year old. She has worked on games for Nickelodeon, Disney, Tiltfactor, and Dreamworks, and is currently developing indie art games at her studio Astra Rise. Jennifer received her M.F.A. in fiction at Columbia University and why hasn’t my daughter stopped spinning?

David Kuelz is the founder of Awkward Pegasus Studios, a writing and story consultancy for game developers. Since starting Awkward Pegasus in 2012, he has written and consulted for game developers nationwide and has led workshops on video game writing and narrative design all across the Northeast, including for the Gotham Writers' Workshop and Playcrafting. He’s currently designing the narrative for an unannounced RPG at Juncture Media. 

Matthue Roth is a game designer and writer on 30+ acclaimed and award-winning games for iOS and Android. From 2012-2015 he was lead game designer at Amplify, an educational games company that won awards from the iTunes Store, BAFTA, and Games for Change. Most recently his games swept the 2015 Serious Play Conference, earning 3 out of 4 gold medals awarded that year. He’s also the author of six novels, and the New Yorker called his writing “eerie and imaginative.” 

Ant Tessitore is currently working as creative lead on a to be announced TCG and freelancing as a names and flavor text writer for Magic: The Gathering, Ant Tessitore is an avid gamer, writer and narrative designer. Ant most recently worked on Oath of the Gatewatch, and has cards to be released in both Conspiracy: Take the Crown and this year’s Commander product. Ant has also written for Artist Noah Bradley’s The Sin of Man Project, weekly articles at Gathering Magic, and supplement products for Dungeons and Dragons.

Diverse Character Design and Representation GDoC Expo

In this video from Game Devs of Color Expo, panelists Amaryah Shaye Armstrong, Sande Chen, Yussef Cole, Tanya DePass, and Dina Abou Karam provide an in-depth look into the issue of diverse character design and representation.

Did you miss the Game Devs of Color panel, Diverse Character Design and Representation in Games?

We had a lively conversation about the portrayal of minorities in games, the lack of minority characters especially in fantasy settings, and how assuming the default character is white affects game development processes.  As a call to action, the panelists urged audience members to support minority game projects through Kickstarter or Patreon, to consider hiring a diversity consultant, and to look more closely at company hiring practices.

Diverse Character Design and Representation in Games 
Game Devs of Color Expo, June 24, 2017

Five games industry professionals will further the case for diversity in character design during this panel. Topics to be discussed will include the portrayal of dark skin in games, representation of Arabs in video games, queer people of color in games, whitewashing, and cultural appropriation.

PANELISTS:
Amaryah Shaye Armstrong 
Sande Chen [Writer and Designer]
Yussef Cole [Writer and Visual Artist]
Tanya DePass [Director, I Need Diverse Games]
Dina Abou Karam [Artist/Game Designer]

Check out the video below:

Upcoming Panel at Game Devs of Color Expo

I'm pleased to announce that I will be moderating a panel about diverse character design and representation in games at the 2017 Game Devs of Color Expo on Saturday, June 24, 2017, which will be held at New York City's historic Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.  Panelists are graduate student Amaryah Shaye Armstrong, Tanya DePass of I Need Diverse Games, writer Yussef Cole, and game designer Dina Abou Karam.  In addition, there will be panels on music, sound, and choreography in game design, polishing and launching your game, and surviving the game industry.

Tickets are still available, including a low-cost student option!

Come see games from around the world at the arcade and listen to microtalks about breaking-in, crowdfunding, indie games, and VR game development.

I last talked about this topic at the Different Games Conference in 2015 and I am eager to explore more of these diversity issues on this upcoming panel.

The details!

Game Devs of Color Expo
Saturday, June 24, 2017, 2:55 PM 
Diverse Character Design and Representation in Games 

Five games industry professionals will further the case for diversity in character design during this panel. Topics to be discussed will include the portrayal of dark skin in games, representation of Arabs in video games, queer people of color in games, whitewashing, and cultural appropriation.

Panel Tonight and Next Monday Game Writing

So many things happening this week!  As part of PlayCrafting NYC's celebration of Women's History Month, I will be on the Women in Games panel tonight at Microsoft NY.  Free admission and pizza.  Come see and play demos from local female developers.  We will be talking about inclusivity for women in the game industry.

Next week, of course, I will be part of the free information session and mini-expo next Thursday, March 30 on PlayCrafting's longer courses, including the new 4-week Game Writing Primer.

But let's not forget about Game Writing Portfolio Workout happening Monday, March 27! If you want to see what the life of a free-lance game writer is like, come to this workshop for a deep dive into typical game writing tasks.  These sessions were considered the most valuable of this series.  You'll be writing continually, so be sure to bring a laptop or notepad.

Here's what a former student has said about Game Writing Portfolio Workout:

"This is so far best one of the Playcrafting workshops. The teacher was funny, incredibly knowledgeable and shared the best insider's secrets!"

Come and write!

Game Writing Portfolio Workout with Sande Chen

Date:  Monday, March 27

Time: 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM 

As always, Playcrafting NYC, which offers classes and events related to game development, has Early Bird tickets, but if they sell out (and they have in the past), you'll have to pay full price.

About Me

My background is a mixture of theatre, film, journalism, economics, and writing.  I received a S.B. in Writing and Humanistic Studies (now the major of Comparative Media Studies) at MIT and then I specialized in Screenwriting at USC's School of Cinematic Arts.  My first published game as a writer was on the epic space combat RPG, Terminus, which won 2 awards at the 1999 Independent Games Festival.  Afterwards, I worked on the episodic fantasy series Siege of Avalon, MMO Wizard101, and the dark fantasy RPG, The Witcher, for which I was nominated for a Writers Guild of America Award in Videogame Writing.

Upcoming Panel on Game Writing at GameACon AC

Halloween Greetings from Sleepy Hollow Country!  As you can imagine, there's lots of Halloween activities going on, including the Great Jack O'Lantern Blaze where I got to view literary icons carved out of pumpkins and illuminated by pumpkin light against the night sky.  Too bad it wasn't one of the supermoon nights or a blood red moon, but still, there was plenty of spooky ambience around.

If you're in the vicinity of Atlantic City Halloween weekend, I'll be at GameACon Atlantic City, held at the Tropicana Casino Resort. I've organized a reprise of our game writing panel from last year.  Same time, same topic. Come find out about breaking into the game industry as a game writer.

There's also cosplay, tournaments, industry panels, LARPing, anime, bands, and an expo.  Lots of things to see, to play, and to have fun.

Weekend and day passes are available.

Breaking Into Game Writing
Sunday, October 30, 2016
11:00 AM - noon
Pageant Room

There are as many ways to break into game writing as there are writers, so taking your first steps can be daunting. Join our panel of award-winning writers and designers as they share their successes and struggles with getting a foot in the door of the industry. Whether you dream of writing the next big AAA game or an indie interactive novel, we’ve got the info to set you on the right path.

Upcoming! Breaking Out Panel and Game Writing Intro

Whoa!  September 2016 is turning out to be a busy month.  Next week, I will be moderating a panel for IGDA NYC called Breaking Out of the Industry, focusing on the freelance life and those starting a new game business.  I've assembled a panel of top-notch professionals who have worked at well-known companies and then forged ahead to start their own businesses.

Please note that space is limited!  If you RSVP'ed and you can't make it, please cancel through EventBrite so that a person on the Waiting List may be notified.

Breaking Out of the Industry Panel
Thursday, September 15, 2016
6:00 - 8:00 PM
Adorama 
42 W 18th Street, NY, NY

Ever wanted to run your own game company or work for yourself? You can! Representing programmers, producers, designers, and writers, our panel of accomplished game developers have gone from working for established companies to becoming founders, consultants, entrepreneurs, and/or freelancers. Listen to advice on business and legal matters and learn what it takes to launch a business in game development.

The following Sunday, I've been invited by StoryForward NYC, a group dedicated to promoting the future of storytelling and entertainment, to give an introduction to the field of game writing.

Introduction to Game Writing with Sande Chen
Sunday, September 18, 2016 
11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Adorama 
42 W 18th Street, NY, NY

How is story expressed in a video game? Due to the importance of mechanics or gameplay, player choice, and non-linear play patterns, writing for video games presents unique challenges unseen in film and other media. How do you write for a player who wants his or her own personal story in the game?

Join us for an informative talk about game writing with Sande Chen, who was nominated for a WGA Award in Videogame Writing for 2007's PC RPG of the Year, The Witcher.


Sande Chen is a writer and game designer with over 15 years of experience in the game industry. Her writing credits include 1999 Independent Games Festival winner Terminus, MMO Hall of Fame inductee Wizard101, and the 2007 PC RPG of the Year, The Witcher, for which she was nominated for a Writers Guild of America Award in Videogame Writing. She has spoken at conferences around the globe, including the Game Developers Conference, SXSW Interactive, New York Comic Con, PAX East, and Screenwriters World Conference West.

SXSW Panel Picker: Beyond Turtles: Using Games to Teach Real Code

Hi!  It's that time of the year again for the SXSW 2017 Panel Picker.  Please vote for our panel on game-based computer science education.  We'll explain why game-based learning is good for computer science education and spotlight learning games used in classrooms now.

Register to vote and cast your vote here:
http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/vote/66615

Beyond Turtles: Using Games to Teach Real Code

Session Description:

It’s 2017! Your students need to learn computer science. How do you teach them in a way that gets them excited about coding? How do you reach geeks and non-geeks, girls and boys, computer experts and total novices? How do you do this without a CS degree, comprehensive curriculum resources and standards, and a magic wand of learnination?

A diverse panel of learning experts will dive into how game-based learning can create growth mindsets and overwhelming coding obsessions in every student. We’ll discuss what to look for in learning games, common pitfalls in teaching CS and bringing games into the classroom, and how to be the content expert without having studied CS before.

Panelists:

• Jonathan Schor, CodeMonkey Studios
• Robin Yang, CodeCombat
• Sande Chen, Independent
• Allysin Levy, Brainpop

And here's an interview I did with Microsoft New York on the importance of computer science education during Computer Science Education Week last year.

Adventures in Game Writing PAX East Panel

In this video, game writer/designers Leah Miller, Cohen Edenfield, James Pianka, Sande Chen, John Ryan, and Nicole Kline share stories from the frontlines of game development.

Did you miss the PAX East panel, Adventures in Game Writing?

Adventures in Game Writing Panelists

Adventures in Game Writing
PAX East, April 22, 2016

Ever wonder what it’s like to write for games? Join us for a conversation about the methods and philosophies of writing and narrative design. Our eclectic group of panelists have worked on giant AAA titles like Destiny, The Witcher, and the indiest of tabletop games, in roles that include everything from Lead Writer to Customer Service Representative. We’ll talk about the realities of the industry today and speculate wildly about the future of storytelling.

PANELISTS:
Leah Miller [Writer and Designer, Independent]
Cohen Edenfield [Lead Writer, What Pumpkin?]
James Pianka [Narrative Designer, Firefly Games]
Sande Chen [Writer and Designer, Independent]
John Ryan [Writer and Narrative Designer, Independent]
Nicole Kline [Game Designer, Cardboard Fortress Games]

I found this recording from Blackman 'N Robin and if you know of other podcasts or recordings of the panel, let me know! This video had some technical issues and got cut off, and I think maybe my microphone wasn't working. Oh no!

Want to Write for Video Games? Gameacon 2015 Panel

In this podcast, game writers Sande Chen, Francisco Gonzalez, and Matthue Roth, along with moderator Alexander Bevier, discuss how to break into the game industry as a writer.

Want to Write for Video Games? 
Gameacon November 19-22, 2015

Moderated by video game scholar Alexander Bevier, panelists Sande Chen, Francisco Gonzalez, and Matthue Roth shed light on what writers do in the industry, how newcomers can get their start, and why writers are desperately needed in the video game industry. Learn about the growing field of narrative design and how games are affected by creative narrative design. The panel gives a fascinating look at an often overlooked part of the video game development process.

Games discussed:  Tetris, Half Life 2, The Witcher, Shadow of the Colossus, Gamestar Mechanic, World of Lexica, Terminus, I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream, Monkey Island 2, League of Legends, Assassin's Creed 2, Shardlight, Bioshock Infinite, Mass Effect, 80 Days

Thanks to everyone who came to our panel!

If you weren't able to come to Gameacon this year, check it out next year on October 27-30, 2016 at the Tropicana Casino Resort in Atlantic City, NJ. Here's footage from Gameacon 2015.

A writer and game designer, Sande Chen has over 15 years experience in the industry. Her first game writing credit was on the epic space-combat RPG, Terminus, which won 2 awards at the 1999 Independent Games Festival. She was later nominated for a 2007 Writers Guild of America award in Videogame Writing for the dark fantasy RPG, The Witcher. She runs the WGAE Videogame Writers Caucus and is SIG leader of the IGDA Game Design SIG.

Francisco Gonzalez has been writing and designing point and click adventure games since 2001. His favorite aspect of designing narrative based games is the writing process, and being able to create worlds and make characters come to life. He currently works at Wadjet Eye Games as a designer.

Matthue Roth is a game designer, producer, and writer. From 2012-2015 he was lead game designer at Amplify, an educational games company that won awards from the iTunes Store, BAFTA, and Games for Change. Most recently his games swept the 2015 Serious Play Conference, earning 3 out of 4 gold medals awarded that year. He’s also the author of six novels, and the New Yorker called his writing “eerie and imaginative.” He keeps a secret diary at matthue.com.

Alexander Bevier is a writer, game designer and scholar. He works in narrative design and is an IGDA Committee member for the Game Writing SIG. He is currently an MFA at NYU Game Center working on his thesis about 1970s game designers.

Upcoming Events: NY Comic Con and Immersive Edge

I'm finally making some virtual appearances, though you can catch me in person at New York Comic Con tomorrow, October 8! I will be there with colleagues Caitlin Burns, Steele Filipek, and Matthew Weise on a panel about Writing for Video Games.  It'll be broadcast live on NYCC Livestream.  Just go to Twitch and check out NYCC's Live Stage.

New York Comic Con
Writing for Video Games
Thursday, October 8, 2015, 11:30 AM

Secondly, I had a great time at the first installment of Game Writing Portfolio Workout on September 28.  We didn't have time to practice quest writing and interactive dialog, but definitely can during the second class on October 20.

Tickets are available here through PlayCrafting NYC and of course, there's still the early bird price if you sign up early.  The first workshop was sold out, so make plans to come soon!  No virtual appearances for this one because PlayCrafting believes hands-on attention and interaction is what makes its classes so valuable.

 

Finally, on November 8, I will have the unique pleasure of attending the launch of Immersive Edge, a collaborative Hypergrid story written, built, and produced by 25 persons.  My avatar will be there in the virtual world to do a short presentation about how technology affects storytelling.  Check out the trailer below to learn more about Immersive Edge.

Upcoming Panels on Diversity, Storytelling, and Game Writing!

Hi, in addition to the Game Writing Portfolio Workout on September 28 (Update!  New overflow class date October 20 added), I'll be speaking on a couple panels this month as well as at New York ComicCon (Yay!) in early October.

I'm excited to represent Women in Games International (WIGI) on a panel about diversity initiatives in law and technology.  I've spoken about the need for diversity in the game industry at GDC, Austin Game Conference, and most recently, at the 2015 Different Games Conference.  I was recently profiled in "6 Inspiring Women Who Have Succeeded in Male-Dominated Industries" and I'm really interested in hearing what other industries have done to help women succeed.

The panel is open to the public.  To attend, RSVP to innovation@nyls.edu by Sept 14.

Tech Talk: Diversity in Law & Technology
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
5:30 - 7:00 PM  (Networking at 5:30, Panel at 6:00)
New York Law School, Room W300
 

The following week, coinciding with IFP Independent Film Week, I will be on a NY Film Loft panel about women influencers from film, TV, digital media and gaming. A limited amount of tickets for this event will be available. Otherwise, it's invite-only and event attendees will be from top media companies, press and content creators.

Register here to learn about storytelling in various entertainment forms. General admission includes event, beverages/snacks and digital download.

Storytime: Women in Media & Entertainment
Tuesday, September 22, 2015 
6:30 - 9:00 PM (Networking included)
COWORK|RS
115 E 23rd St, 3rd Floor, NY, NY 

Update: Due to unforeseen logistical issues, this event has been postponed until October.


Sande Chen is a writer and game designer whose work has spanned 10 years in the industry. Her credits include 1999 IGF winner Terminus, 2007 PC RPG of the Year The Witcher, and Wizard 101. She is one of the founding members of the IGDA Game Design SIG.