Kerr, Aphra (National University of Ireland Maynooth, NUIM)

Thema: "Considering Cultural diversity in Games Development"

Aphra Kerr is a lecturer in the Department of Sociology at the National University of Ireland Maynooth (NUIM) where she teaches courses in media and technology in society and internet cultures.

Her research focuses on digital media and in particular the regulation, production and consumption of digital games.

Her publications include ‘The Business and Culture of Digital Games’ (Sage 2006) and she has chapters in ‘Understanding Digital Games’ (Sage, 2006) and ‘A Strategy Guide for Studying the Grand Theft Auto Series’ (McFarland Press, 2007). She has authored a number of articles related to digital media, innovation, cultural diversity and gender.

Aphra was a founding member of the International Digital Games Research Association (DIGRA) and is a committee member of Women in Games (Europe). She established and helps to run the community website www.gamedevelopers.ie. She is co-chair of the Entertainment and Mobility theme of the International Symposium on Electronic Art (2009) being hosted by the University of Ulster in Northern Ireland.

Summary of presentation
Cultural Diversity has long been an issue for researchers and policy makers in relation to the media. More recently it has emerged in relation to games with some European and national policy documents introducing cultural criteria in game development funding programmes to help counter the supposed dominance of American and Japanese companies.

This presentation explores existing evidence on cultural diversity and games in a global context and offers advice on the pros and cons of considering cultural diversity for European game developers.

Aphra Kerr
sociology.nuim.ie/AphraKerr.shtml