Join us on Nov 29th for the launch of “The Role of Play” – a new book by Ben Schouten and Menno Deen

Join us on November 29th at Pakhuis de Zwijger, for the launch of ‘𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙍𝙤𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙋𝙡𝙖𝙮: 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝙂𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙨, 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙨. 𝘼 𝙁𝙪𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙋𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙍𝙤𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙋𝙡𝙖𝙮 𝙞𝙣 𝙎𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙩𝙮 – a book written by Ben Schouten and Menno van Pelt-Deen

‘𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙍𝙤𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙋𝙡𝙖𝙮’ offers a refreshing take on modern game design and play. It underlines the significance of digital play for contemporary culture. It also addresses the latest trends in serious games and playification, for purposes other than pure entertainment. In their free-play form, these playful interactions increasingly contain reflections on social issues such as climate change or inclusiveness. As change is a sign of our time, the authors show how to play with the rules that underpin society and its positive outcomes. More details here.

During the book launch, one or more award-winning games by Dutch designers will be played together with the audience. This illustrates the rich gaming culture in the Netherlands that focuses on creativity as an alternative to (compulsively) following the rules. One of the many questions that will be discussed is what new forms of games will emerge in the future. Do we need more or no rules at all, or do other rules apply? Who determines which rules we play by? Play is always under construction.

Speakers: 
– Ben Schouten (author)
– Menno Deen (author) 
– Eleonoor Jap Sam (publisher)
– Renate Boere (designer)
– JP van Seventer (Dutch Game Garden) 
– Adriaan de Jongh (game designer)