Join Steph Farnsworth, Adam Jerrett, and Velvet Spors for a deepdive into their research on narrative within games studies, and how narrative and video games shape each other. Where is the line between a video game and other mediums? How do video games stretch the limits of narrative? And how can we use the concept of narrative in video games to imagine possible futures in our world? Audiences will be able to contribute thoughts and questions.

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Steph Farnsworth is a PhD candidate at the University of Sunderland. Her research focuses on examining mutants in science fiction (looking specifically at the video game series Mass Effect) by creating fictive theory about futuristic biotechnology and audience relationships to it. She is a founder of the academic network MultiPlay. 

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Adam Jerrett is a game developer who wants to make the world a better place. He’s currently undertaking a PhD at the University of Portsmouth that explores how values manifest in games. Understanding values allows developers to make more meaningful games and players to understand themselves better through play. 
 

Velvet Spors is a communication designer, creative technologist, and postdoctoral researcher, based in the Gamification Group at Tampere University in Tampere, Finland. Velvet is currently researching how technology can support meaningful moments and connections with nature—particularly by drawing inspiration from how people use games as self-care tools.