Center for Game Research

Center for Game Research

The central hub for disseminating game research from Utrecht University

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  • Most recent

    • All Will Rise – crowdfunding campaign now live!
    • Jamming for Climate Justice!
    • Take a course, build a video game, change the world
    • Shape2gether: Sharing our knowledge about discursive game design
    • CFP: “VR as Empathy Machine: Media, Migration and the Humanitarian Predicament”
  • 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
    • Take a course, build a video game, change the world
    • CFP: “VR as Empathy Machine: Media, Migration and the Humanitarian Predicament”

Ludomusicology – Approaches to Video Game Music

The last half-decade has seen the rapid and expansive development of video game music studies. As with any new area of study, this significant sub-discipline is still tackling fundamental questions concerning how video game music should be approached. In this volume, experts in game music provide their responses to these issues. This book suggests a variety of new approaches to the study of game music.

Editorial Team
01-07-2016 // Books, News // Criticism and Analysis
Cover of the book playful identities: ludification of digital media cultures

Playful Identities – The Ludification of Digital Media Cultures

The edited volume Playful Identities Digital deals with media technologies that increasingly shape how people relate to the world, to other people and to themselves. This prompts questions about present-day mediations of identity.

Editorial Team
26-01-2015 // Books // Criticism and Analysis, Games Beyond Entertainment
The main image from the original Center for Game Research website.

History of Game Research at Utrecht University

An overview of key moments in the history of game research at Utrecht University.

Marijn Benschop, Editorial Team
01-09-2000 // Education, Events, Publications // Multi theme

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
  • 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

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)
  • Events:

    Week of the Game @ Utrecht University

  • Education, Events, Publications:

    History of Game Research at Utrecht University

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
  • Education, Events:

    Hybrid Franchise Hacking Workshop (Gamelab x Man Met)

  • Education, Events:

    Franchise Hacking Workshop (Gamelab x WUR Games Hub)

Themes

>> All Themes

Game Design

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, Events:

    Hybrid Franchise Hacking Workshop (Gamelab x Man Met)

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
  • Education, Events:

    Shape2gether: Sharing our knowledge about discursive game design

  • Insights:

    Ecogame Playtesting Series 2025/26

Criticism and Analysis

Jamming for Climate Justice!

How do you simulate a climate crisis? How can you convey an ecocritical message that invites reflection and, perhaps, action? Participants of the Mzansi Game Jam (MGJ) developed games that addressed these questions from various angles.

Marijn Benschop
18-02-2026 // Education, Events, Interview // Criticism and Analysis, Games Beyond Entertainment
  • Books, News, Publications:

    New book on Historiographies of Game Studies

  • Education, Events:

    Hybrid Franchise Hacking Workshop (Gamelab x Man Met)

Games Beyond Entertainment

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
  • Books, News, Publications:

    New book on Historiographies of Game Studies

  • Education, News:

    Open Mind game challenges to look further

Disciplines

>> All Disciplines

Anthropology

Jamming for Climate Justice!

How do you simulate a climate crisis? How can you convey an ecocritical message that invites reflection and, perhaps, action? Participants of the Mzansi Game Jam (MGJ) developed games that addressed these questions from various angles.

Marijn Benschop
18-02-2026 // Education, Events, Interview // Criticism and Analysis, Games Beyond Entertainment
  • Events, Insights, News:

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

  • Books:

    Book: Toys and Communication

History and Art History

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
  • News:

    New digital escape room MedievalMe brings the Middle Ages to life

  • Education, Events, Publications:

    History of Game Research at Utrecht University

Media and Culture Studies

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
  • Books:

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

  • Books, News, Publications:

    New book on Historiographies of Game Studies

Geosciences

Shape2Gether: Experiencing the Bochum Summer School

This is a reflection of the third and final “summer” school of the Shape2Gether Erasmus+ project that took place a month ago in Bochum, Germany.

12-05-2025 // Education, Events // Games and Sustainability, Games Beyond Entertainment
  • Events:

    Shape2Gether – Time for Workshops

  • Education, Events:

    Shape2Gether: Experiencing the Malta summer school

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.

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Drift 10, 3512 BS Utrecht

The Netherlands

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