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Session Name:

Theme is Not Meaning

Overview:

A game's theme does not determine its meaning. Instead, meaning emerges from a game's rules - the set of decisions and consequences unique to each one. What does a game ask of the player? What does it punish, and what does it reward? What strategies and styles does the game encourage? Further, when theme and rules are in dissonance, the designer cheats the player while also compromising his or her original vision. This can often lead to significant failures in the serious games space. In this opening Serious Games Summit Keynote, game designer Soren Johnson explores the critical question of how to produce meaningful experiences that are uniquely tied to gameplay vs. the content wrapped around that play?

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  • GDC 2010
  • Soren Johnson
  • EA2D
  • free content
  • Serious Games Summit
  • Serious Games