[ecrea] CfP - II Conference on Historical Game Studies (Madrid, Universidad Complutense)

*CfP - II Conference on Historical Game Studies*
*(Madrid, Universidad Complutense)*

**

*Introduction:*

**

The Cultural Theory and History Seminar (Department of Modern and 
Contemporary History, Universidad Complutense de Madrid) proudly 
announces the 2^nd edition of its Conference on Historical Game Studies. 
Following the footsteps of the first edition, we want the Conference to 
become a space for the criticism and reflection on computer games with 
historical themes. The first Conference, whose excellent reception has 
motivated the continuation of the project, was recorded in video and can 
be watched on Youtube (channel: Seminario Historia y Teoría Cultura ShyTC)

*Historical game studies as a new discipline:*

Although relatively young, video games constitute a powerful mass 
communication and consuption medium that has generated ways of 
representing the past which challenge traditional forms of making and 
consuming history. However, their content and politics of representation 
are still under the influence of different historiographical schools, 
popular history and collective memory. Furthermore, the interactive 
nature of games allows the exploration of historical events and 
processes in unprecedent ways. On the other hand, design, production and 
distribution pressures that characterize the industrial logics of the 
medium inevitably shape the historical content of the products and 
generate tensions between their ludic goals and authentic depictions of 
the past. This goes in adition to the strong ideological background of 
the video game as a cultural artefact. Finally, the multiple ways of 
consumption that emanate from different types of players and expressed 
in related media contribute to diversify and democratize our shared 
pasts. Each and one of these topics are worth the attention of 
researchers, who have been gathering for the last half decade under the 
/historical game studies /label. Coming from disparate areas such as 
History, Philosophy, and Media Studies (to cite a few examples), their 
different approaches have made /historical game studies /a truly 
multidisciplinar field.

*Call for Papers: *

The Second Conference on Historical Game Studies will preserve the same 
objectives as its predecessor. Its main goal is to provide a space for 
the discussion, dissemination and generation of collective knowledge 
about digital remediations of the past in entertainment software.

However, this time we are launching an open Call for Papers to every 
researcher and developer who is willing to share his work and experience 
dealing with historical videogames. We understand the medium as a 
cultural artefact whose ludonarrative content is subject to logics of 
both production and reception.

***

We propose the following lines of inquiry, although we are open to more 
perspectives:

Sociological and antrhopological perspectives:

-Consuming practices (online communities, user generated content, 
modding, streaming…)

-Historical videogames and identities (gender, sexuality, ethnicity, class…)

Historiographical and /media studies/ perspectives:

-Historical ludonarrative analysis: hegemony and subversion in the 
digital historical discourse.

-Historical games related to popular and public representations of the past.

Design and production perspectives:

-Design patterns in the videogame industry related to the ludic 
remediation of the past.

-Alternative playful remediations of the past – the /indie/ panorama.

*Deadlines:*

-Reception of proposals: Title, abstract (200 words tops). January 28, 2018.

-Announcement of accepted proposals. February 11, 2018.

-Conference holding. April 13, 2018. Faculty of Geography and History, 
Universidad Complutense de Madrid (c/ Profesor Aranguren s/n, Ciudad 
Universitaria, 28040, Madrid, Spain)

Those interested in actively participating in the Conference will send 
an email with their names, institution and the proposal to 
(seminariohytcultura /at/ gmail.com) <mailto:(seminariohytcultura /at/ gmail.com)>.



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