Meaningful Play conference attracts gamers, researchers

When Christopher Covington picked up an Atari controller for the first time 19 years ago, he realized he couldn’t set it down.

“It was one of those things I got hooked on,” said Covington, a graduate student in telecommunication, information studies and media. “I just got addicted, and from there I got involved with 3-D stuff.”

Covington and more than 200 other video game fans and researchers attended the International Academic Conference on Meaningful Play, held Thursday through Saturday at the Union.

The conference examined the use of games for educational and health-related purposes, and featured several panels and keynote speakers, including a presentation by Richard Hilleman, chief creative officer for Electronic Arts.

“Games are unique as electronic media — their structure makes them a perfect media tool,” said Ethan Watrall, conference co-chairman and assistant professor of telecommunication, information studies and media. “Games are a perfect vehicle of learning content, and our generation has been at home with them for many years.”

The conference’s focus was on research, game design and development, and panels allowed for discussion on everything from the game industry in Michigan to the intersection of games and social networking sites.

This weekend’s event marked the very first Meaningful Play Conference, but a similar conference was held in 2003.

Nearly 50 percent of the attendees were from outside of Michigan, including people from 10 different countries.

Presenter Jeff Largent made a two-hour trip from Hope College with three research partners and is working on a game that addresses society’s resource allocation problem.

Although games that help society are very important, students shouldn’t lose track of the entertainment aspect of video games, said Brian Winn, conference co-chairman and assistant professor of digital game design.

“You can’t downplay the value of entertainment, and games are a great way to relax and enjoy,” Winn said. “They’re more interactive than books or movies.”

Eric Pearson, a telecommunication, information studies and media graduate student, has 23 years of video game-playing under his belt and said he participated in the conference to network with employers and fellow job-seekers and to seek some outside perspectives on games.

“With video games, I like the fact that I can affect the outcome, or have an effect over the person or story,” Pearson said.

Published on Sunday, October 12, 2008