“[Twitch is] where gamers are,” Brown said. “That’s where we really wanted to do some outreach.” She discussed the pros and cons of using Twitch, ideas for library programs that can be livestreamed, and how the popular platform enables libraries to reach new audiences at “Low Stress, High Mayhem: Using Twitch for Professional Development and … Continue reading Playing to the Crowd
Acts of imagination include both play and creative endeavors. While play may appear to be merely a pleasurable activity, it serves an important role in human development. Creative endeavors, such as projects or everyday forms of problem-solving, give purpose and meaning to human existence. While libraries can be places for quiet contemplation and intense concentration, … Continue reading Cultivating Creativity
While game jams—or accelerated game creation events—started as a way to develop video games, they’re also useful for creating tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs). The best-known TTRPG systems, like Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and Call of Cthulhu, include rulebooks that can run to hundreds of pages and have steep price tags, but there are a host … Continue reading Jam Forever
At “Critical Hit! Table Top Gaming in the Library,” a January 28 session at the American Library Association’s 2023 LibLearnX conference in New Orleans, Virello shared how to run a Dungeons & Dragons session for new players, including basic game terminology and what library workers should consider if they want to start their own program. A … Continue reading Roll for Initiative
Game collections as ‘library of agencies’ Core Forum kicked off October 14 with “Games and Agency,” a keynote presentation from C. Thi Nguyen, associate professor of philosophy at University of Utah in Salt Lake City. The game enthusiast and former food writer spoke about the ways that our social structures and technologies shape how we … Continue reading Building Agency and Creating Value
Experia USA Interactive Game Floor User: Deborah Long, assistant director, Louisville (Ohio) Public Library What is the Experia USA interactive game floor? The game floor uses a computer with a motion sensor and a projector to display educational and sensory games on a foam mat. The motion sensor allows the software to react to the … Continue reading Good Vibrations
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a collaborative, cozy, social simulation video game for the Nintendo Switch where players create their own characters and design their own island. In addition to the upkeep of owning an island, players can visit each other’s islands, trade in-game items, and help one another complete tasks. The video game was … Continue reading An Island of Community
In 2001 it was the Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone film, which culminates with its heroes playing a giant, magical game of high-stakes chess, says HPL Librarian Alison Creech. In 2020, during the first year of the coronavirus pandemic and stay-at-home orders, the Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit put the spotlight back on the … Continue reading A Winning Move
On January 26, Talsma earned a spot in Jeopardy! history when he unseated fellow contestant Amy Schneider, who had racked up a 40-game winning streak, the second highest on the iconic game show. Talsma, multimedia librarian at Chicago Ridge (Ill.) Public Library, was the most recent in an impressive line of successful library contestants that … Continue reading Newsmaker: Rhone Talsma
The livestreaming platform Twitch is primarily used by gamers who broadcast themselves playing videogames. Anyone can watch from anywhere for free. The platform entered the mainstream in 2020, when the number of active streamers on the platform more than doubled over the year, from just under 4 million to more than 9 million. Twitch is most … Continue reading The Twitching Hour
Braunstein, digital humanities librarian at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, and co-lead of Digital by Dartmouth Library, wants to help both crossword puzzles and libraries shed their reputations for stuffy elitism and exclusion. Braunstein started doing crosswords as a child with her grandfather, who emigrated from Moldova; the games were his way of learning … Continue reading Bookend: Clues You Can Use
Strang was joined by Erica Ruscio, young adult librarian at Ventress Memorial Library in Marshfield, Massachusetts; Dan Major, adult services library at Orion Township (Mich.) Public Library (OTPL); and Jeff Pinsker, CEO of Amigo Games, for “Virtual Gaming Programs: Resources for Fighting Social Isolation with Gaming,” a session sponsored by the Games and Gaming Round … Continue reading Let’s Play Online
