An Inclusive Call: CFP SCMS 2014 // Debugging Game History: Forgotten Histories

Call for Papers // SCMS 2014 Panel
Debugging Game History: Forgotten Histories

I'm seeding this call for the Debugging Game History panel, proposed for SCMS 2014. The panel is co-organized and co-chaired by Raiford Guins and Henry Lowood. 

Their panel last year was a real delight. This year, the organizers are looking to continue with rigorous scholarship, while expanding the range and diversity of both topics and participants. I strongly encourage those who might identify with or work on "marginal," de-centered areas within game history to apply. The call is dramatically explicit in seeking: "a greater sense of inclusiveness in game studies by focusing on neglected or forgotten historical actors, designs, developers, companies, scenes, players, forms of documentation, etc."

You should feel welcome to email the organizers with any questions. 

Panel Call: Debugging Game History
The panel theme is: Debugging Game History: Forgotten Histories. Each speaker on this panel will present on a key concept, player community, game developer, or topic. As with last year’s "Debugging” panels and the upcoming Debugging Game History volume, we would like each paper to be given a short title that focuses directly on the historical topic covered. 

The goal is to underline participation in a coherent project with two aspects: (1) developing critical terminology in game studies; and (2) fostering a greater sense of inclusiveness in game studies by focusing on neglected or forgotten historical actors, designs, developers, companies, scenes, players, forms of documentation, etc.  Some examples: "Arcade Art” "Clan PMS,” "Purple Moon,” "Jerry Lawson,” "Game Fanzines,” "Multiplayer Gaming before DOOM.”  These examples are just intended to give a sense of breadth and the goals of the panel; we hope to get exciting proposals on any related topic. The panel might work best if the concepts are at least somewhat related; our suggestion to achieve this would be to focus on people (players, developers) or settings, but a more diverse set of contributions is fine, too.

Bottom line: The panel's goal is to open up terminological discussion in critical-historical game studies and to break a path that opens up game studies to previously neglected histories.

Please submit proposals for panel papers to Henry Lowood (lowood@stanford.edu)  and Raiford Guins (rgun81@gmail.com) by 10 August.