Center for Game Research

Center for Game Research

The central hub for disseminating game research from Utrecht University

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  • Most recent

    • STRATEGIES summer school ‘Planetary Futures’ in Cologne wraps up
    • Publication: Belongingness and Resistance in Platformed Play: Feminist Agency among Female Gamers in China
    • New minor “Games and Play in a Changing Society” open for registration
    • ASS POWER: Gaming at the Theatre
    • Games-related treasures from De Schatkamer
  • Most viewed

    • Dutch DiGRA Symposium 2025: Futures for Game and Play Research.
    • PhD Position in Player-Centric Video Game AI
    • Funded PhD position: Playing the Hidden Curriculum
    • Publication: Belongingness and Resistance in Platformed Play: Feminist Agency among Female Gamers in China
    • New minor “Games and Play in a Changing Society” open for registration

STRATEGIES summer school ‘Planetary Futures’ in Cologne wraps up

From 31 August to 2 September 2026, the Horizon Europe project STRATEGIES (led by Prof. Joost Raessens, UU) conducted its 2nd annual summer school on games, the climate crisis and sustainable futures, this time organized by Prof. Sonia Fizek and Dr. Ruth Eggels of the Cologne Game Lab/TH Köln. For more information on the STRATEGIES

19-09-2026 // Events // Game Design, Games and Sustainability, Games Beyond Entertainment

Publication: Belongingness and Resistance in Platformed Play: Feminist Agency among Female Gamers in China

A new special issue of the Gamevironments journal on ‘Beyond Play’ was recently published and in it we find a contribution by UU PhD candidate Weijie Huang together with Payal Arora and Maya Yerkes.

Editorial Team
11-09-2026 // Publications // Social Games and Play

New minor “Games and Play in a Changing Society” open for registration

The new curriculum, which replaces the previous minor “Game Studies’, is a transdisciplinary collaboration between the Department of Media & Cultures studies (MCW), the Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development and the Department of Information and Computing Sciences and enables students to analyze games and play in contemporary culture and to creatively apply them to address societal challenges.

08-06-2026 // Education // Criticism and Analysis, Game Design, Games Beyond Entertainment, Play Research, Social Games and Play

Research Projects

>> All Research Projects

STRATEGIES

STRATEGIES summer school ‘Planetary Futures’ in Cologne wraps up

From 31 August to 2 September 2026, the Horizon Europe project STRATEGIES (led by Prof. Joost Raessens, UU) conducted its 2nd annual summer school on games, the climate crisis and sustainable futures, this time organized by Prof. Sonia Fizek and Dr. Ruth Eggels of the Cologne Game Lab/TH Köln. For more information on the STRATEGIES

19-09-2026 // Events // Game Design, Games and Sustainability, Games Beyond Entertainment
  • Education, Events:

    Hybrid Franchise Hacking Workshop (Gamelab x Man Met)

  • Education, Events:

    Franchise Hacking Workshop (Gamelab x WUR Games Hub)

Comenius - Fostering an Open Mind

Making Game Studies’ Research Practical with Discursive Game Design

Co-creation of games, participatory design, open dialogue, and social perspective-taking currently lie at the centre of game research at Utrecht University. All these practices are characteristic of Discursive Game Design (DGD), a method that highlights the processes underlying practice-based game research, rather than a final "fixed" product.

Marijn Benschop
02-03-2026 // Insights // Criticism and Analysis, Game Design, Games Beyond Entertainment
  • Education, News:

    Open Mind game challenges to look further

  • Events, Insights, News:

    Taking Perspectives with Game Design: Teachers wanted for pilot!

ANTICIPLAY

Take a course, build a video game, change the world

Heads up UU students! Ever wondered what it would be like to build a video game to change the world? We have a few late registration spots left in our BSc course ‘The Sustainability Game’! This course is open to all 2nd and 3rd year Utrecht University students who have some previous interest and background

dr. Joost Vervoort
14-01-2026 // Education, News // Games and Sustainability
  • Insights, Longread:

    “Change makers don’t understand games; game makers don’t understand change”

  • Events:

    Week of the Game @ Utrecht University

Shape2Gether - Erasmus+

Shape2gether: Sharing our knowledge about discursive game design

Last November Aengus, Isabel and Mick visited two conferences to share some of the outcomes of the Erasmus+ hape2gether project with a broader audience.

Mick Raamsteeboers, Isabel Rump, Aengus Schulte
10-01-2026 // Education, Events // Games and Sustainability, Games Beyond Entertainment
  • Education, Events:

    Shape2Gether: Experiencing the Bochum Summer School

  • Events:

    Shape2Gether – Time for Workshops

Themes

>> All Themes

Games Beyond Entertainment

STRATEGIES summer school ‘Planetary Futures’ in Cologne wraps up

From 31 August to 2 September 2026, the Horizon Europe project STRATEGIES (led by Prof. Joost Raessens, UU) conducted its 2nd annual summer school on games, the climate crisis and sustainable futures, this time organized by Prof. Sonia Fizek and Dr. Ruth Eggels of the Cologne Game Lab/TH Köln. For more information on the STRATEGIES

19-09-2026 // Events // Game Design, Games and Sustainability, Games Beyond Entertainment
  • Education:

    New minor “Games and Play in a Changing Society” open for registration

  • Insights:

    ASS POWER: Gaming at the Theatre

Games and Sustainability

All Will Rise – crowdfunding campaign now live!

The Kickstarter campaign for All Will Rise: a narrative courtroom deck-builder has gone live. This game, developed by the team of Speculative Agency, has our own Joost Vervoort as science and impact director. He leads the academic side of the project and focus on the societal impact of the game.

Editorial Team
19-02-2026 // In the media, News // Game Design, Games and Sustainability
  • Education, News:

    Take a course, build a video game, change the world

  • Education, Events:

    Shape2gether: Sharing our knowledge about discursive game design

Game Design

New minor “Games and Play in a Changing Society” open for registration

The new curriculum, which replaces the previous minor “Game Studies’, is a transdisciplinary collaboration between the Department of Media & Cultures studies (MCW), the Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development and the Department of Information and Computing Sciences and enables students to analyze games and play in contemporary culture and to creatively apply them to address societal challenges.

08-06-2026 // Education // Criticism and Analysis, Game Design, Games Beyond Entertainment, Play Research, Social Games and Play
  • Insights:

    ASS POWER: Gaming at the Theatre

  • Insights:

    Making Game Studies’ Research Practical with Discursive Game Design

Social Games and Play

Publication: Belongingness and Resistance in Platformed Play: Feminist Agency among Female Gamers in China

A new special issue of the Gamevironments journal on 'Beyond Play' was recently published and in it we find a contribution by UU PhD candidate Weijie Huang together with Payal Arora and Maya Yerkes.

Editorial Team
11-09-2026 // Publications // Social Games and Play
  • Education, News:

    Open Mind game challenges to look further

  • Events, News:

    Game Research @ CHI 2025

Disciplines

>> All Disciplines

Educational Sciences

STRATEGIES summer school ‘Planetary Futures’ in Cologne wraps up

From 31 August to 2 September 2026, the Horizon Europe project STRATEGIES (led by Prof. Joost Raessens, UU) conducted its 2nd annual summer school on games, the climate crisis and sustainable futures, this time organized by Prof. Sonia Fizek and Dr. Ruth Eggels of the Cologne Game Lab/TH Köln. For more information on the STRATEGIES

19-09-2026 // Events // Game Design, Games and Sustainability, Games Beyond Entertainment
  • Events, Insights, News:

    Dutch DiGRA Symposium 2025: Futures for Game and Play Research.

  • Education, Events:

    Hybrid Franchise Hacking Workshop (Gamelab x Man Met)

Media and Culture Studies

Publication: Belongingness and Resistance in Platformed Play: Feminist Agency among Female Gamers in China

A new special issue of the Gamevironments journal on 'Beyond Play' was recently published and in it we find a contribution by UU PhD candidate Weijie Huang together with Payal Arora and Maya Yerkes.

Editorial Team
11-09-2026 // Publications // Social Games and Play
  • Education:

    New minor “Games and Play in a Changing Society” open for registration

  • Insights:

    ASS POWER: Gaming at the Theatre

Sociology

Book: Toys and Communication

A new edited volume has been published by Palgrave Macmillen titled Toys and Communication and edited by Luísa Magalhães and Jeffrey Goldstein.

Editorial Team
14-10-2018 // Books // Play Research, Player Research and Psychology, Social Games and Play

Computer Sciences

New minor “Games and Play in a Changing Society” open for registration

The new curriculum, which replaces the previous minor “Game Studies’, is a transdisciplinary collaboration between the Department of Media & Cultures studies (MCW), the Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development and the Department of Information and Computing Sciences and enables students to analyze games and play in contemporary culture and to creatively apply them to address societal challenges.

08-06-2026 // Education // Criticism and Analysis, Game Design, Games Beyond Entertainment, Play Research, Social Games and Play
  • Education, News:

    Open Mind game challenges to look further

  • Events, Insights, News:

    Dutch DiGRA Symposium 2025: Futures for Game and Play Research.

Center for Game Research

Central hub for disseminating high-quality game research from Utrecht University to a diverse audience that includes academics, students, game developers, and journalists.

Contact

Drift 10, 3512 BS Utrecht

The Netherlands

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