Asmodee research group Game in Lab launches virtual summit for board game development and inclusivity

The Asmodee research group, Game in Lab, has teamed up with Analog Game Studies to host a new two-day virtual summit for board game research and inclusivity.

Called GENeration Analog, the event will feature over 30 panelists and three keynotes discussing how the evolution of societal attitudes around tabletop RPGs can have broad impacts that last for generations.

The free virtual conference will aim to bridge the theory and practice in the hobby games industry, with presentation topics spanning how race is depicted in board games, decolonising the tabletop genre, the legacy of Dungeons and Dragons, and more.

GENeration Analog will take place on Wednesday, August 4th from 9.30 am until 9pm Eastern Time, and Thursday, August 5th from 10am until 9pm Eastern Time.

Keynote speakers at the event will include game designer Elizabeth Hargrave, the mind behind the wildly popular Wingspan tabletop title as she tackles the topic ‘Things I Wish We Knew: Some Ludological Research Ideas’, and professor of game design and development at Wilfrid Laurier University, Scott Nicholson as he takes on the subject ‘Ask Why for the Tabletop: Using Design Concepts from Escape Rooms to Create More Immersive Board and Card Games.’

The keynote line-up will be rounded out by B. Dave Walters, writer of Dungeons & Dragons: A Darkened Wish and the topic of Diversity and Inclusion in the Content Creation Space.

The summit is jointly sponsored by Game in Lab and the editorial board of the Analog Game Studies journal.

Game in Lab is a board games research supporting programme co-created by Asmodee Research and the Innovation Factory. Asmodee Research, part of Asmodee Group, is an international programme dedicated to studying the science behind board games.