Center for Game Research

The central hub for disseminating game research from Utrecht University
 

CFP: “VR as Empathy Machine: Media, Migration and the Humanitarian Predicament”

 Book Title: Beyond the Empathy Machine: Critical Perspectives on Virtual Reality  Editors: Professor Sandra Ponzanesi (s.ponzanesi@uu.nl), Dr. Jenny Andrine Madsen Evang (j.a.m.evang@uu.nl), Dr. Wouter Oomen (w.a.oomen@uu.nl), Laurence Herfs (l.l.herfs@uu.nl), and Lisa Burghardt (l.burghardt@uu.nl)  Over the last decade or so, Virtual Reality (VR) has been honed as a new frontier in social tech. From Chris Milk and Gabo

Editorial Team
07-01-2026 // Books // Extended Realities (AR/VR/XR)

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

Ecogame Playtesting Series 2025/26

After a successful run last fall, Flora Roberts, Laura op de Beke, and Stefan Werning, representing the Network for Environmental Humanities (NEH) and the Utrecht Game Lab, are back with another series of ecogame play(testing) sessions. 

dr. Laura op de Beke
20-08-2025 // Insights // Games and Sustainability

Research Projects

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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

Virtual Reality as Empathy Machine

CFP: “VR as Empathy Machine: Media, Migration and the Humanitarian Predicament”

 Book Title: Beyond the Empathy Machine: Critical Perspectives on Virtual Reality  Editors: Professor Sandra Ponzanesi (s.ponzanesi@uu.nl), Dr. Jenny Andrine Madsen Evang (j.a.m.evang@uu.nl), Dr. Wouter Oomen (w.a.oomen@uu.nl), Laurence Herfs (l.l.herfs@uu.nl), and Lisa Burghardt (l.burghardt@uu.nl)  Over the last decade or so, Virtual Reality (VR) has been honed as a new frontier in social tech. From Chris Milk and Gabo

Editorial Team
07-01-2026 // Books // Extended Realities (AR/VR/XR)

Crisis to Resilience

Ecogame Playtesting Series 2025/26

After a successful run last fall, Flora Roberts, Laura op de Beke, and Stefan Werning, representing the Network for Environmental Humanities (NEH) and the Utrecht Game Lab, are back with another series of ecogame play(testing) sessions. 

dr. Laura op de Beke
20-08-2025 // Insights // Games and Sustainability

Comenius - Fostering an Open Mind

Open Mind game challenges to look further

From now on, the Open Mind game, a creative educational game in the style of “whodunit”, is available in the Apple App and Google Play store. Students play the game on their own smartphones and receive mysterious messages from an unknown sender. By talking to various characters about their traits, values and beliefs, they have

14-07-2025 // Education, News // Games Beyond Entertainment, Social Games and Play

Themes

>> All Themes

Games and Sustainability

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

Extended Realities (AR/VR/XR)

CFP: “VR as Empathy Machine: Media, Migration and the Humanitarian Predicament”

 Book Title: Beyond the Empathy Machine: Critical Perspectives on Virtual Reality  Editors: Professor Sandra Ponzanesi (s.ponzanesi@uu.nl), Dr. Jenny Andrine Madsen Evang (j.a.m.evang@uu.nl), Dr. Wouter Oomen (w.a.oomen@uu.nl), Laurence Herfs (l.l.herfs@uu.nl), and Lisa Burghardt (l.burghardt@uu.nl)  Over the last decade or so, Virtual Reality (VR) has been honed as a new frontier in social tech. From Chris Milk and Gabo

Editorial Team
07-01-2026 // Books // Extended Realities (AR/VR/XR)

Criticism and Analysis

New book on Historiographies of Game Studies

We would like to point you in the direction of a recently released edited volume titled Historiographies of Game Studies: What It Has Been, What It Could Be. The chapters in the book, two of which were authored by UU scholars, critically reflect on both the past and potential futures of game studies as a field.

Editorial Team
14-08-2025 // Books, News, Publications // Criticism and Analysis, Games Beyond Entertainment

Games Beyond Entertainment

Open Mind game challenges to look further

From now on, the Open Mind game, a creative educational game in the style of “whodunit”, is available in the Apple App and Google Play store. Students play the game on their own smartphones and receive mysterious messages from an unknown sender. By talking to various characters about their traits, values and beliefs, they have

14-07-2025 // Education, News // Games Beyond Entertainment, Social Games and Play

Disciplines

>> All Disciplines

Media and Culture Studies

CFP: “VR as Empathy Machine: Media, Migration and the Humanitarian Predicament”

 Book Title: Beyond the Empathy Machine: Critical Perspectives on Virtual Reality  Editors: Professor Sandra Ponzanesi (s.ponzanesi@uu.nl), Dr. Jenny Andrine Madsen Evang (j.a.m.evang@uu.nl), Dr. Wouter Oomen (w.a.oomen@uu.nl), Laurence Herfs (l.l.herfs@uu.nl), and Lisa Burghardt (l.burghardt@uu.nl)  Over the last decade or so, Virtual Reality (VR) has been honed as a new frontier in social tech. From Chris Milk and Gabo

Editorial Team
07-01-2026 // Books // Extended Realities (AR/VR/XR)

Computer Sciences

Open Mind game challenges to look further

From now on, the Open Mind game, a creative educational game in the style of “whodunit”, is available in the Apple App and Google Play store. Students play the game on their own smartphones and receive mysterious messages from an unknown sender. By talking to various characters about their traits, values and beliefs, they have

14-07-2025 // Education, News // Games Beyond Entertainment, Social Games and Play

Geosciences

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

Programme, sign-up sheet, and abstracts now available! This year the Dutch DiGRA is hosted by Utrecht University. The programme is filled with research about the future of game studies, gamification and play in contemporary society, and much more! All are welcome, so sign up using the Google Form in this post!

Marijn Benschop, dr. Laura op de Beke
21-05-2025 // Events, Insights, News // Multi theme

History and Art History

New digital escape room MedievalMe brings the Middle Ages to life

How do you spark excitement for medieval history in secondary school students? Sanne Frequin, art historian and Assistant Professor at Utrecht University, has the answer: MedievalMe. This innovative Dutch serious game immerses students in the medieval worldview.

Utrecht University news site
14-01-2025 // News // Games Beyond Entertainment