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Discussion A Wrap Up of Annual

by Brian Mayer on Tue, Jun 28, 2016 at 09:35 am

Hello Everyone

I first wanted to say that I am very excited to start my term as president of the Round Table. I had the opportunity to talk with both board members and the general membership and there is a lot of excitement and enthusiasm moving forward.

Hello Everyone

I first wanted to say that I am very excited to start my term as president of the Round Table. I had the opportunity to talk with both board members and the general membership and there is a lot of excitement and enthusiasm moving forward.

Two big things that we will be working on is this coming year is consolidating the voice of the GameRT, providing a central outreach to membership and publishers that speaks to all of the ways that they can be involved. The second is increasing our outreach and communication with the membership, creating conversational spaces and resources where members and interests are. So look for GameRT communities to pop up in steam, BGG and more.

This year's annual was a great success. ALAPlay had 400+ people pass through to explore, learn and play. A huge thanks to all the members who helped put together and run the event.

  • We had 10 local Orlando game designers come in to showcase their games in the Unpub area.
  • Diane Robson and her team from UNT brought in an Oculus Rift along with other devices to share in the digital petting zoo.
  • I ran two hybrid escape room games
  • Paizo, Konami, Haba, Mayfair, Asmodee, Fantasy Flight and Word Winder were there demoing their games for attendees.
  • PHD Games came in with a team of folk who ran demos of some of the most popular games as well.

The GameRT Booth on the exhibit floor did a great job of outreach, sharing the great work that we do with attendees. Another huge thanks to all of the volunteers who helped out in that space. Our booth hosted ourselves, along with HABA Games and Konami. We were able to generate a lot of excitement about the RT with new librarians and we got great feedback from members as well.

Connected with the booth was the Gaming Lounge, a 20x20 space on the exhibit floor that featured publisher demos, open gaming and a sharing session. The lounge continues to grow and was well utilized for most of the hours it was open.

The GameRT also had a number of associated sessions and events that were well received. 

  • Saturday morning a panel of librarians and industry experts spoke on the role of games in libraries to over 50 attendees on the Gaming and Graphic Novel Stage.
  • Saturday morning also featured the International Games Day Committee meeting which generated a lot of interest and enthusiasm. We already have over 300 libraries signed up to participate.
  • Saturday afternoon, NY and Chicago Public Libraries talked about initiatives to a standing room of close to 80 people at the GameRT's sponsored session.
  • Sunday morning, a team from the University of North Texas shared tips and tricks for preserving and processing games for efficient circulation.
  • Sunday afternoon featured a number of librarians who took part in a sharing session in the game lounge with topics that covered: Escape Rooms, Preservation and Processing, Genrification and Cataloging, Gaming Events, and the Duskers video game club.

It was a fantastic conference with a lot of positive energy and excitement. I am very much looking to working with the board to continue to grow the Round Table and move forward into new areas.

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Discussion GameRT Volunteer Opportunities

by Julie OBrien on Tue, May 3, 2016 at 10:25 am

Are you going to ALA this year? Take a break from the hustle and bustle of sessions and give some of your time to GameRT! There are three opportunities for volunteering. Want to be a game shepherd? We got that. Want to rub elbows with other gamer librarians? You can do that too. We got it all, but we sure could use a little bit of you.

Are you going to ALA this year? Take a break from the hustle and bustle of sessions and give some of your time to GameRT! There are three opportunities for volunteering. Want to be a game shepherd? We got that. Want to rub elbows with other gamer librarians? You can do that too. We got it all, but we sure could use a little bit of you.

ALAPlay Sign Up: http://bit.ly/1XYpk5u
GameRT Booth Sign Up: http://bit.ly/1XYpppN
Gaming Lounge Sign Up: http://bit.ly/1LUoExw

Wario

 

EDIT: Fixed links

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Discussion GameRT Sharing Session Sunday Afternoon Booth 527

by Brian Mayer on Mon, Jun 20, 2016 at 07:11 am

Come wander the Gaming Lounge (Booth 527) and learn about amazing gaming programs from libraries across the country in this one hour informal sharing session. 
Guest Speakers include: 

Come wander the Gaming Lounge (Booth 527) and learn about amazing gaming programs from libraries across the country in this one hour informal sharing session. 
Guest Speakers include: 

• Brian Mayer - Hybrid Educational Escape Room Experiences: Escape rooms provide unique and engaging play based experiences but can present challenges to setting up and implementing. Using a hybrid approach combining Minecraft and the physical environment, libraries can create easy to setup and circulate escape rooms to support programming and curriculum. 

• Kevin Yanowski - A Winning Game Plan: Using Genre Terms to Enhance Discovery of Tabletop Games: Learn how to enhance access to tabletop games by adding genre headings to catalog records. Kevin Yanowski will share a comprehensive list of genre headings for tabletop games that were developed and successfully implemented at the University of North Texas Libraries. 

• Jessica Phillips, Steven Guerrero, Diane Robson - Battling gamer grime: preservation for a circulating tabletop game collection: Come examine the results of a year-long research project that evaluated several preservation and processing techniques for extending the life of a circulating game collection.

 
• Christopher Harris - Reading and Playing: When books are designed around games, players are motivated to move from the game world into reading. Christopher Harris from Play Play Learn will share work on a collaboration between HABA and Rosen Publishing about books based on popular children's games. 

• Teresa Slobuski - Game Making, Playing, and Streaming at your Library on a Budget: This session will present information on managing several different types of gaming events that have been successfully run with little to no budget at a large urban university library. Events include: participation in ALA’s International Games Day @ Your Library; International TableTop Day; Extra Life Charity Streaming Event; Speakers related to Gaming Topics; and Weekly Student Club Meetings. Each of these events present different challenges for successful execution, but all also provide unique opportunities for community building. By leveraging the gaming community in the library, on campus, and in the larger community, rewarding and well attended gaming events are easy to accomplish and sure to bring joy to students and librarians alike. 

• Thomas Knowlton - NYPLarcade presents Duskers: NYPLarcade is an opportunity to play, watch, and discuss independent, experimental, and thought-provoking games in a library setting. Think of it as a book club, but for video games. At this session, participants can play Duskers: a 2016 release by Misfits Attic in which players assume the role of a drone operator, exploring derelict spacecraft throughout a procedurally-generated universe by typing command line orders. 

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Discussion Gaming Event in Orlando to Support the victims of the Pulse nightclub tragedy

by Brian Mayer on Fri, Jun 17, 2016 at 10:27 am

If you are going to be attending Annual in Orlando, Coolstuffinc is hosting a charity gaming event at their Maitland store to raise funds to contribute to the Pulse Victims Fund on GoFundMeThey will be match 100% of ALL proceeds generated up to $10,000. This includes all tournament entry fees, raffle tickets, and any in-store donations.

If you are going to be attending Annual in Orlando, Coolstuffinc is hosting a charity gaming event at their Maitland store to raise funds to contribute to the Pulse Victims Fund on GoFundMeThey will be match 100% of ALL proceeds generated up to $10,000. This includes all tournament entry fees, raffle tickets, and any in-store donations.

You can learn more here: http://www.coolstuffgames.com/orlandounited/

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Discussion Calling Game Designers, Come Join Unpub at ALAPlay!

by Brian Mayer on Mon, May 23, 2016 at 02:37 pm

ALAPlay is an evening of open gaming and exploration for attendees of the American Library Association’s annual library conference. This year the event will take place, June 24th from 7:30 until 10:0m at the Hyatt Regency in Ballroom S.

ALAPlay is an evening of open gaming and exploration for attendees of the American Library Association’s annual library conference. This year the event will take place, June 24th from 7:30 until 10:0m at the Hyatt Regency in Ballroom S.

The purpose of the event is to provide a fun way to explore game experiences and implementations so you can take the ideas back to support game programs in your communities. During the evening we will have guest game publishers, open gaming, a digital petting zoo, and an escape room experience too.

Based on the success of last year, this year's ALAPlay will again feature an Unpub space where game designers can bring in a design to share with attendees to get playtest opportunities and feedback to further help their design. If you have a design that you would like to bring and share, please reach out to me at bmayer@gvboces.org. Tables are limited, so signup soon.

Thanks!

Brian Mayer

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Discussion Are you a librarian who uses games, design and play in your library? Participate in GameRT's Sharing Session at ALA!

by Julie OBrien on Wed, Apr 13, 2016 at 10:32 pm

If you are a librarian who uses games, design and play in your library, now is your chance to share that knowledge at the American Library Association Annual Conference.

The GameRT Sharing Session will take place in the Gaming Lounge at on Sunday, June 26 at 2p-3p. There are ten tables available.

The GameRT Sharing Session is an hour long session for you to not only share your ideas with your peers but help educate and excite librarians new to games and gaming in libraries. Now is your chance to shine!

If you are a librarian who uses games, design and play in your library, now is your chance to share that knowledge at the American Library Association Annual Conference.

The GameRT Sharing Session will take place in the Gaming Lounge at on Sunday, June 26 at 2p-3p. There are ten tables available.

The GameRT Sharing Session is an hour long session for you to not only share your ideas with your peers but help educate and excite librarians new to games and gaming in libraries. Now is your chance to shine!

Submit your Sharing Session Proposal Today!

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Discussion PLA game meetup?

by Joshua Carlson on Mon, Mar 28, 2016 at 02:33 pm

Who's going to PLA next week?  Anyone want to meetup in the evening to play some games?  I'm always down for Magic: the Gathering (Commander, or otherwise), and I'll bring a couple of small games that I have yet to try out.

Discussion ALAPlay 2026 Petting Zoo

by Brian Mayer on Thu, Feb 18, 2016 at 11:34 am

Happy New Year Everyone!

While it seems odd to think of summer when it is so cold outside, putting together ALAPlay takes a good amount of work and planning. One area we would like to expand is digital gaming representation at the event. Bringing in digital in can be expensive, so we are looking for a creative start by hosting a petting zoo of devices for exploration at ALAPlay this year in Orlando. 

Happy New Year Everyone!

While it seems odd to think of summer when it is so cold outside, putting together ALAPlay takes a good amount of work and planning. One area we would like to expand is digital gaming representation at the event. Bringing in digital in can be expensive, so we are looking for a creative start by hosting a petting zoo of devices for exploration at ALAPlay this year in Orlando. 

We are looking for for volunteers who will be attending annual, and ALAPlay, who could bring and share devices the evening of the event. We were looking at featuring 2&3DS's and some tablets (iOS or Android). We would also like to explore phone related game experiences that can be played on mobile devices.

If you plan on coming and can bring a device to share in the petting zoo, or if you have other ideas for an event at ALAPlay, please get in touch with me at: brianmayer00@gmail.com

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Discussion Call for Members for ALAPlay and the Lounge Committes

by Brian Mayer on Thu, Feb 18, 2016 at 11:34 am

Hello Everyone!

It is that time to start thinking ahead and planning for annual and some of GameRT's initiatives that happen there.

I am chair of two committees: The ALAPlay Committee and the Conference Gaming Lounge Committee.

We are seeking members interested in helping out in one or both of those spaces at Annual this coming year in Orlando.

 

ALAPlay

Hello Everyone!

It is that time to start thinking ahead and planning for annual and some of GameRT's initiatives that happen there.

I am chair of two committees: The ALAPlay Committee and the Conference Gaming Lounge Committee.

We are seeking members interested in helping out in one or both of those spaces at Annual this coming year in Orlando.

 

ALAPlay


ALAPlay is our annual evening gaming event. This year it will take place on Friday, June 24th from 7:30 until 10:00pm. This year's event will feature open gaming, publisher demos from Paizo, Mayfair, HABA, Konami and more. We will have an unpub area where local game designers will showcase their games for attendees to play. We will also have a digital petting zoo that explores gaming on devices which will feature an Oculus Rift. We will also have an escape room experience too!

Help Needed for ALAPlay:

  • Social Media PR
  • Game Teachers
  • Floor Staff: Petting Zoo, Unpub, Open Gaming
  • Greeting and Tickets

 

Gaming Lounge


The Gaming Lounge is an open area for playing games, publisher demos and more that takes place on the exhibit floor all conference long. The Lounge is an extension of the GameRT booth that will be across the aisle. It is an opportunity for attendees on the exhibit floor to stop, explore game resources in the GameRT library and from publishers attending the event. We also hope to have an informational sharing session scheduled during the conference where gaming programs and initiatives can be shared, similar to a poster session.

Help needed for the Gaming Lounge/Booth:

  • Coordinating Volunteers to staff the booth and Lounge
  • Social Media PR for the spaces
  • Organizing a 1-hour sharing session

If you are interested and would like to be on a committee and help out in some capacity, please reach out to me at brianmayer00@gmail.com. I will have you added to the appropriate committee. Thanks for the consideration and help. I hope to see you at annual!

 

 

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Discussion 2016 ALA Annual GameRT Pre-Conference - More than a collection: encouraging creation using games

by Matthew Murray on Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 01:29 pm

        Friday, June 24th, 2016, 9am to 4pm 

Hosted by Brian Mayer, Diane Robson, and Teresa Slobuski

 The Games and Gaming Round Table would like to invite you to join us for an exciting pre-conference workshop about game design.

        Friday, June 24th, 2016, 9am to 4pm 

Hosted by Brian Mayer, Diane Robson, and Teresa Slobuski

 The Games and Gaming Round Table would like to invite you to join us for an exciting pre-conference workshop about game design.

During this full-day session participants will be guided through the game design process, exploring analog game design and its applications to digital design as well. The goal with an analog design approach is to focus on the concepts and skills, leaving the design to arts and crafts. Analog game design allows programs to focus on a number of areas including: inquiry, problem solving, aesthetics, audience, design, computational thinking, and the integration of curricular content and skills; all without the barriers of learning a tool. Once the fundamentals of good design approach have been practiced, they can then be applied in a more technical setting, introducing tools and programs.

Participants will be introduced to basic game design concepts, human-centered design, prototyping, and effective playtesting. This GameRT preconference can jump start your move from content users to content creators at your library.

See http://2016.alaannual.org/ticketed-events for details.

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Pages

The mission of the Games and Gaming Round Table is to provide the following:

  • A forum for the exchange of ideas and concerns surrounding games in libraries;
  • Resources to the library community to support the building and maintaining of library game collections;
  • A force for initiating and supporting game programming in libraries;
  • Create an awareness of, and need for, the support of the value of gaming and play in libraries, schools, and related learning communities.
  • Create an awareness of the value of games and gaming in library outreach and community engagement plans.
  • A professional and social forum for networking among librarians and non-librarians interested in games and gaming.

Send an email to the GameRT Connect group by sending it to inbox+gamert@connect.ala.org.

Subscribe to GameRT (Games and Gaming Round Table)
http://connect.ala.org/gamert
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