Games Now! is an open lecture series on the dominant topics and emerging trends in games. In Games Now! we dig deeper to what is current at the game scene – and what will happen in the near future. The topics and speaker invitations are curated in collaboration with Finland’s game industry leaders and companies. Our guest speakers are industry leaders and inspiring individuals providing their insights and advise for students and practitioners.
The lecture series is run by Aalto University’s Media Lab and is open for public.
The lecture series has been developed as part of the Aalto University’s Aalto Online Learning program.
Online Lecture: Building Sustainable Gaming Cultures
Mikko Meriläinen, Postdoctoral researcher (Tampere University)
Mon 15th February
15-17 (EET, UTC/GMT+2)
@ https://www.twitch.tv/gamesnowaaltofi
Gaming cultures don’t simply pop into existence, but are created in the interplay of different actors: the people who create, play, regulate and discuss games. Phenomena such as toxic behaviour, problematic gaming or unethical game design are not inevitable, but can be challenged through both design and other action. In this talk, several key gaming culture problems and steps to mitigate them are discussed.
Mikko Meriläinen is a postdoctoral researcher at Tampere University Game Research Lab. In his research work Meriläinen focuses on questions of youth gaming cultures, gaming-related parenting, problematic gaming and game jam learning – with a side order of miniature gaming. Meriläinen received the Game Educator of the Year award in 2019 for his work in building sustainable gaming cultures and highlighting equality and well-being issues.