Industry luminaries and renowned artists conceptualize the future of videogames; exhibit opens June 10.
Naomi White piece - Seth Killian quote: "Games are magical because they are both a vital rebuke to existing realities and an increasingly crucial perspective to understand them. Complex and dynamic systems dominate our existence, from the food we eat, to our jobs, to geopolitical conflict. Games are a brilliant path to becoming a native speaker in the language of these systems, where you function within them but are also invited to stand outside of them, consider their nature, and better predict their effects. Beyond understanding the world, they also serve as an important way to learn about yourself. To understand another, to inhabit the choices they face, and to experience the world from a perspective other than your own."
The Future of Gaming, the latest show from Echo Park-based iam8bit, opens to the public on Tuesday June 10th from 7:00-11:00 p.m. and will be ongoing until June 22nd. For The Future of Gaming, industry luminaries and renowned artists conceptualize the future of Videogames. The show is free and for all ages!
The exhibit features theories from; David Smith (Co-Founder of Media Molecule), Keiji Inafune (Creator of Mega Man), Kim Swift (Co-Creator of Portal), Jesse Schell (acclaimed author and professor), Kellee Santiago (Co-Founder of That Game Company), Lorne Lanning (creator of the Oddworld series), Meggan Scavio (General Manager of Game Developers Conference), Nolan Bushnell (Founder of Atari), Seamus Blackley (co-designer of the Xbox), Seth Killian (Co-Founder of the EVO Championship Series), Ted Price (co-founder of Insomniac Games), Tim Schafer (Founder of Double Fine Productions) and Warren Spector (Award-Winning Designer and Producer).
Art is created by: Boneface, Eden Soto, Henrik Johansson, Jude Buffum, Kelice Penney, Ken Garduno, Kevin Stanton, Mitch Ansara, Naomi White, Nicole Gustafsson, Teresa Huarte, Timothy J. Reynolds and Travis Chen.
Nicole Gustaffson piece - Kim Swift quote: "The future of gaming is going to always be with us on mobile devices that are a part of our daily lives, and will infect and project onto the world around us. We're on the advent of some truly impressive mobile devices-- input systems that detect the acoustic variances on where you tap your palm, tiny microprojectors on glasses, cameras that detect where you're looking, virtual and augmented reality, not to mention increased processing speeds. Imagine games that can project onto any surface, anywhere to create an instant display and use voice, eye direction and touch controls for inputs. Then picture the game taking into account the environment it’s being projected on to determine things like level layouts, and those projections interacting with other people’s game projections. I imagine that games will be everywhere around us.”
iam8bit co-founder Jon Gibson stated, “The quotes present stunning future possibilities and the artwork brings these possibilities to effervescent life. We are excited to see the theoretical and practical sides of art creation collide. It’s an exciting peek into the future whether you love art, videogames or both.”
- Founder of Atari Nolan Bushnell’s theorized that, “micro-mesh networks will provide a new way of gaming”.
- Co-Creator of Portal, Kim Swift, stated, “Picture the game taking into account the environment it’s being projected on to determine things like level layouts, and those projections interacting with other people’s game projections. I imagine that games will be everywhere around us."
- Creator of Mega Man, Keiji Inafune: “Games won’t be limited to the digital aspect, they will blend with our lifestyles to the point that you won’t think of them as games. Washing your face and brushing your teeth could be a part of a bigger, grander game world.”
- Tim Schafer, Co-Founder of Double Fine Productions: "In the future, we will play games while floating naked in a tank of warm, sensory-depriving gelatin. Games will be distributed chemically, into the gelatin, and absorbed into the player's skin. The gelatin will be Lingonberry-flavored, and the games will encourage good citizenship."
The Future of Gaming opens on Tuesday June 10th from 7-11 pm and runs until June 22nd at the iam8bit Gallery located in Echo Park at 2147 W. Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026.
Kevin Stanton piece - Seamus Blackley quote: "The future of games is ubiquity. Every device and interface will need to entertain or be ignored. From supermarket checkout to your tax filing, we are training people already to ignore the boring. So. Games on everything all the time. As tech pervades, games follow. Do we control everything with smartphones? Then the games go everywhere from the phones. Do we have network computers in every object in the home? Then the games will follow. Just as games flowed into televisions and then computers and then mobile, they will be central to it all."
Source: iam8bit
Formerly Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network, Jennifer Wolfe has worked in the Media & Entertainment industry as a writer and PR professional since 2003.
