Call for Abstracts
Different futures for the study of games and play are brewing in the present. Through participation and research we, as scholars, are actively shaping the future of the field within The Netherlands and beyond. At this symposium we explore possible directions for game and play research as an interdisciplinary field. In line with the focus of the international DiGRA conference this year, this means taking a step back and identifying (and/or questioning) important and sustainable thematic foci and approaches, as well as blind spots in the research, teaching, and practice within game research communities in the low countries.3 In doing so we may also contend with a bigger question, discussed at length in a special issue of Eludamos: given the grim socio-political and environmental developments of the last decade, (how) can games and play, or the ludification of culture more generally help “facilitate mobilization for better futures”?
This symposium especially encourages contributions from early career researchers (advanced master students, PhD fellows, post-docs, and independent scholars). We welcome your submissions even if game studies is not your primary field of research. The symposium offers a platform not just for sharing knowledge, but also for sharing pedagogical experience, artistic research, with plenty of time to forge connections to peers and potential collaborators.
- Host: Utrecht University
- Venue: the ‘Playground,’ Vening Meineszgebouw C, Princetonlaan 6, Utrecht
- Website: https://gameresearch.nl/2025/05/dutch-digra-symposium-2025-futures-for-game-research/
- Conference Date: 18 November 2025
- Deadline for submissions (abstracts, panel proposals, and projects):
1 August 2025
Presentation formats (abstracts, panel proposals, and projects)
The symposium changes the traditional format slightly by creating more space for open conversation and potential collaboration. The morning slots will be filled with ‘brief burst’ presentations of 10 minutes, in which scholars are encouraged to immediately get to the heart of the matter.
In your presentation, please make sure that you:
- focus on one phenomenon, topic, or case study (if applicable)
- make a bold, argumentative claim
- return to the title, reflecting on how your research shapes and is shaped by futures of game research.
We encourage both work in progress, as well as talks based on recently published material. Since you will not have to submit a full paper to present at this symposium, no submissions will be archived or published, and your research remains your own.
In the afternoon we accept panel conversations (3-6 panelists), and we will also use a ludic fishbowl format to generate interesting, open-ended conversation. The first are organized ahead of time; so send us your topic and the speakers involved. The second will be organized spontaneously over lunch.
Finally, do you have a project that you want to showcase at the symposium? Get in touch. Whether you have developed playful prototypes, manifestos, zines, or research tools, we want to give you a spotlight at this symposium.
Topics for research
We welcome submissions from various disciplines and approaches. If you’re looking for a playful way to gain inspiration you can roll the dice in our official tabletop RPP: “Research Papers, Please!” (graphic design by Keerthi Sridharan Vaidehi). For a more traditional list of possible topics, see the CfP.
Submission Guidelines:
Submitting abstracts, panels, and projects can be done via this form. The submission guidelines can be found in the form.
For any questions, please contact the symposium organizers at l.h.opdebeke@uu.nl and m.c.benschop@uu.nl
We look forward to your contributions,
The Dutch DiGRA 2025 organising committee
Laura op de Beke, Marijn Benschop, René Glas, Laurence Herfs, Dennis Jansen, Aengus Schulte, Sarah Trottier, Keerthi Sridharan Vaidehi, Jasper van Vught, Stefan Werning.