Friday, November 14, 2025

Ball State University
L. A. Pittenger Student Center

Call for Participation

Deadlines

Full papers: September 5

Emerging Ideas and Perspectives abstracts, Workshop proposals, and Games Showcase entries: October 3

Full Papers

We welcome scholarly articles on any topic related to games: design, development, production, impact, education, marketing—all are welcome! Papers will be reviewed via a double-anonymous process. Accepted papers will be presented at the symposium and published in our proceedings. Presentations are expected to be approximately 15 minutes long, and the proceedings will be published through Play Story Press, which is a Diamond Open Access academic publisher.

The deadline for papers is September 5. We expect to give notification of provisional acceptance by September 17, final papers due October 3, and final notification on October 17.

Papers may be up to six pages long and must use this LaTeX template.  When you are ready, submit your full papers here.

Emerging Ideas and Perspectives

Do you have have a new idea, a fresh perspective, or a keen insight to share at the symposium? Submit an abstract to this special session! Abstracts will be reviewed via a double-anonymous process. Accepted abstracts will be presented at the symposium and published in our proceedings.

If you are a game developer who has something you’ve always wanted to talk about related to the design, analysis, or making of games, please consider applying to this track. It is designed to be a place for you to talk about your design philosophy, best approaches to sprite art, marketing tips, or any other relevant gaming topic.

Abstracts must be no more than 500 words, and the deadline for abstracts is October 3. We expect to notify accepted presenters on October 17.

Submit your proposals to this track here.

Workshops

Do you have a skill to share? Give a workshop!

Workshops provide an opportunity for participants to learn practical skills of game design and development. They are offered in a one- or two-hour block on the morning of the conference.  This year, we are particularly interested in workshops that can help symposium attendees succeed in game jams. 

Submit your workshop proposal here.  A description of at most 300 words is required.

The submission deadline for workshops is October 3. We expect to give notification of acceptance on October 17.

Games Showcase

Do you have a finished game to show off or a work-in-progress that is looking for testers? Submit your game to the Games Showcase! The showcase will run during the afternoon session of the symposium. 

Submit your game showcase proposal here. It requires a description of no more than 300 words. 

The deadline for games showcase submissions is October 3. We expect to notify accepted presenters on October 17.

Note that no commercial transactions are allowed during the Games Showcase.

Anticipated Schedule

9:00 AM to 11:30 AM: Workshops — Learn new skills and techniques that you can apply in your jams and game-related projects

11:30 AM to 1:00 PM: Lunch break — On your own 

1:00 PM to 2:00 PM — Formal welcome and keynote address (TBA)

2::00 PM to 5:00 PM — Paper presentations, Emerging Ideas presentations, and Game demos

Contact

Do you have questions about the symposium? Feel free to contact the conference chair.