[ecrea] CfP "Digital Entertainment for Special Needs, Special Needs for Digital Entertainment" - G/A/M/E: The Italian Journal of Game Studies

Objective: G/A/M/E: CfP "Digital Entertainment for Special Needs, 
Special Needs for Digital Entertainment"

G/A/M/E: The Italian Journal of Game Studies

Special Issue: /"//Digital Entertainment for Special Needs, Special 
Needs for Digital Entertainment"/

//

//

//

/Guest Editors/:

Dr. Enrico Gandolfi (Kent State University) (egandol1 /at/ kent.edu) 
<mailto:(Egandol1 /at/ kent.edu)>; Dr. Richard E. Ferdig (Kent State 
University) (rferdig /at/ gmail.com) <mailto:(rferdig /at/ gmail.com)>; Dr. Kaybeth 
Calabria (Franciscan University of Steubenville) (dockbc /at/ icloud.com) 
<mailto:(dockbc /at/ icloud.com)>

It is well known that videogames represent the driving sector of the 
current entertainment with an excepted business of 90 billion dollars in 
2016 (NewZoo 2015). Furthermore, the supporting technology is often at 
the cutting edge (e.g., Oculus Rift, Microsoft Hololens, PlayStation VR) 
and constantly in progress (e.g., social games, cloud gaming, 
holograms). Along with such a rising popularization, sectorial trends 
and orientations are getting more and more articulated going beyond the 
mere escapism: serious games, newsgames, and persuasive games (e.g., 
Bogost, 2011; Djaouti et al., 2011) are now well-established genres that 
are able to deal with a remarkable range of issues. The educational and 
pro-active implications of the medium are noteworthy as well and 
different fields and disciplines are increasingly applying them toward a 
multitude of audiences and issues (Ferdig, 2014; Gee, 2007). Moreover, 
phenomena like the reaction to Gamergate scandals are glaring signals 
that the game industry is embracing a turning point in terms of 
representation and equal opportunities. To summarize, it can be argued 
that the sector is now more different and diversified than in the past.

Nevertheless, /special needs/ still foster blurry reflections and 
engender discontinuous efforts in video game landscapes. With this broad 
term, the reference is to physical, cognitive and even socio-cultural 
conditions than require specific interventions in everyday life 
routines, learning activities, general accessibility (etc.). Eligible 
factors vary from mental retardation and sight/hearing impairments to 
racial background and age. A contiguous and more defined concept is 
/Special Education/, which means “specially designed instruction, at no 
cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a 
disability” (20 U.S.C. 1401(29)) (for more information about related 
media implementation see Fage et al., 2014; Kagohara et al., 2013). The 
implication of embracing special needs in digital entertainment points 
to usability, engagement and representation in design, production and 
final consumption. In addition, it might trigger an instrumental 
perspective in exploiting videogames to improve the state of individuals 
with disabilities/suffering biases (e.g., ludic experiences that enrich 
autonomy and social skills) and empowering their participation, which is 
a fundamental human right (UNICEF, 1990). Unsurprisingly, supportive and 
communicative efforts of foundations like AbleGamers Charity and Special 
Effect are increasing all around the world as well as the attention 
given by academy (e.g., EPINOIS R&D project, Games for Health 
conferences) and majors (e.g., Activision-Blizzard, Microsoft, Sony) to 
the assistive potential of the medium. Scholars and researchers are 
increasingly addressing the topic (Carr, 2014; Champlin, 2014; Ledder, 
2015) and exploring on how special needs can benefit from the medium 
(e.g., Anthony et al., 2012; Nardi & Lim, 2011; Powers et al., 
2015; Saridaki, Gouscos & Meimaris, 2009; Yuan, Folmer, & Harris, 
2011).Finally, development guidelines have been proposed (as the ones 
suggested by Universally Accessible Games, Serious Games Initiative, 
IGDA game accessibility interest group, and International Game 
Developers Association) and specific titles explicitly addressed the 
topic (e.g., Drospy, Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee, If…).

However, although these premises are encouraging and prove the potential 
of such an association, we are at a standstill in comprehending:

a) how game industry concretely frames and supports special needs in 
terms of interaction, representation and customization;

b) what policies and affordances should be applied to satisfy special 
needs through digital games;

c) conversely, what suggestions and insights special needs-related 
expertise, professionals and involved audiences can provide to game 
industry as sources of diversity, inclusion and accessibility.

In light of these questions, the special issue *_Digital Entertainment 
for Special Needs, Special Needs for Digital Entertainment_* aims to 
stimulate both theoretical and empirical outcomes aimed to enlighten the 
relation between special needs and video games. Contributions from Game 
Studies, Media Studies, Disability Studies, HCI field, Science and 
Technology Studies, Psychology and Sociology (and so on) are welcome 
along with pieces by educators, developers and stakeholders dealing with 
such a potential interplay. Accordingly, this thematic call also seeks 
risky and game-changer proposals in order to frame and even suggest 
future moves in multiple directions, from design stimuli to therapeutic 
applications. Therefore, implications aim to be significant for a wide 
range of audiences including scholars, researchers, practitioners and 
caregivers. The final objective is to outline a coherent and multi-angle 
overview of the topic and take a step forward for supporting a 
pro-active synergy between digital games and special needs.

Topics of interest may include but are not limited to:

·Current and alternative procedures in making the medium more accessible 
(from input devices to user interface) (e.g., the high customization of 
/Uncharted 4 /and/ Overwatch/).

·Creative and productive insights for staging a meaningful play for 
special needs.

·Case histories of video games especially effective or conversely 
ineffective in dealing with special needs.

·Liaisons between industry/stakeholders and special needs (e.g., 
low-cost prosthetics inspired by /Deus Ex/)

·Performing different abilities in gaming (e.g., AbleGamers’ 5-day 
streaming event on Twitch.tv)

·Empirical research on digital play’s effects on individuals with 
special needs.

·Perspectives and methods for implementing digital games in Special 
Education

·Application of special needs-related guidelines/criteria in gaming 
development and practices.

·Q/A of ludic experiences enrolling users/testers with special needs.

·Cultural/social/economic analysis of relations between digital 
entertainment and special needs

·Virtual worlds, online communities and sub-game cultures related to 
special needs/disabilities.

·UGCs and mod-scapes addressing special needs/disabilities/bias.

·How disability, impairments and bias are portrayed in digital 
entertainment from aesthetics (plot, characters, etc.) to mechanics 
(rules, resources, etc.).

·Potential of gamification toward special needs and Special Education.

·Participative game design dealing with disabilities and inequalities.

·Disabilities, special needs and minorities in Game Industry workforce.

·New/specific bias and difference factors related to digital gaming.

*Submission*

Please send your abstracts of 500 words (references not included) by 
January 20, 2018 to Enrico Gandolfi ((egandol1 /at/ kent.edu) 
<mailto:(egandol1 /at/ kent.edu)>). Notifications of acceptance/rejection will 
be sent out by February 5, 2018, and full manuscripts are going to be 
submitted within May 15, 2018. Contributions will be subjected to a 
double blind peer review process. The special issue is expected to be 
released in September 2018.

**

*References*

Anthony, l., Prasad, S., Hurst, A., & Kuber, R. (2012). A Participatory 
Design Workshop on Accessible Apps and Games with Students with Learning 
Differences. /ASSETS’12/, Boulder, CO.

Bogost, I. (2011). /How to do things with videogames/. Minneapolis, MN: 
University of Minnesota Press.

Carr, D. (2014). Ability, Disability and Dead Space. /GameStudies/, 
14(2). Retrieved from http://gamestudies.org/1402/articles/carr

Champlin, A. (2014) Playing with Feelings: Porn, Emotion, and Disability 
in /Katawa Shoujo/. /Well Played/, 3(2),

Djaouti, D., Alvarez, J., & Jessel, J.P. (2011). Classifying Serious 
Games: the G/P/S model. In P. Felicia (Ed.), /Handbook of Research on 
Improving Learning and Motivation through Educational Games: 
Multidisciplinary Approaches/. Hershey, PA: IGI global.

Fage, C., Pommereau, L., Consel, C., Balland, É., & Sauzéon, H. (2014). 
Tablet-Based Activity Schedule for Children with Autism in Mainstream 
Environment. /ASSETS’14/, Rochester, NY.

Ferdig, R. (2014). Education. In B. Perron & M. Wolf (Eds.), /The 
Routledge Companion to Video Games Studies/. New York, NY: Routledge.

Gee, J. P. (2007). /What video games have to teach us about learning and 
literacy/ (second edition). New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

Kagohara, D. M., van der Meer, L., Ramdoss, S., O’Reilly, M. F., 
Lancioni, G. E., Davis, T. N., Rispoli, M., Lang, R., Marschik, P. B., 
Sutherland, D., Green V. A., & Sigafoos, J. (2013). Using iPods1 and 
iPads1 in teaching programs for individuals with developmental 
disabilities: A systematic review. /Research in Developmental 
Disabilities/, 34(1), 147-156.

Ledder, S. (2015) “Evolve today!”: Human Enhancement Technologies in the 
/BioShock/ universe. In L. Cuddy (ed.) /BioShock and Philosophy/, 
Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell

Nardi, B., & Lim, T. (2011). A Study of Raiders with Disabilities in 
World of Warcraft. In /Proceedings of the 6th International Conference 
on Foundations of Digital Games/. New York, NY: ACM.

Powers, G.M., Nguyen, V., & Frieden, L.M. (2015). Video Game 
Accessibility: A Legal Approach. /Disability Studies Quarterly/, 35(1).

Saridaki, M. , Gouscos. D., &  Meimaris, M. G. (2009). Digital 
Games-Based Learning for Students with Intellectual Disability. In 
Thomas Connolly, Mark Stansfield, and Liz Boyle (Eds.) /Games-Based 
Learning Advancements for Multi-Sensory Human Computer Interfaces: 
Techniques and Effective Practices/ (pp. 304-325). Hershey, PA: IGI Global.

Yuan, B., Folmer, E., & Harris Jr., F.C. (2011). Game accessibility: a 
survey. /Universal Access in the Information Society/, 10(1), 81-100.

*CFP online*: 
https://www.gamejournal.it/n-72018-digital-entertainment-for-special-needs-special-needs-for-digital-entertainment/


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