Congratulations to GI faculty member, Dr. John Muñoz, on the start of his new company, the Body Interface Labs | Wearable Data and Virtual Reality Solutions! The company focuses on enhancing user experiences by integrating physiological measurements with digital spaces.
On April 16, GI alumni, and full-time game designer at Wiggles 3D, AC Atienza’s latest boardgame One-Hit Heroes quickly surpassed its Kickstarter goal of CA$30,000 within an amazing 30 minutes. By May 16th at the end of the campaign, Wiggles 3D’s Kickstarter for the game reached a final total of CA$296,467 with the support of 3465 backers.
CHI 2024 ran from May 11 - 16, and many GI members attend to present their papers, in-progress studies, and projects.
On April 4th, GI member and visiting PhD candidate Bruna Oliveira presented her ongoing PhD research into exploring how children use digital technologies and how it impacts their understanding of play and building friendships.
On March 16, Dr. Shana MacDonald (Communication Arts) spoke with Joe Scarpelli on Global News about the recent social media controversy surrounding Kate Middleton Princess of Wales.
Visiting scholar, Eléa Thuilier (University of Galway) presented her research to the Waterloo community at the Games Institute which focuses on designing and assessing virtual rehabilitation through Exergames for people with Osteoporosis.
Members of The First Three Years Project PhD candidate Kenzie Gordon (University of Alberta), Dr. Jennifer Whitson (Sociology & Legal Studies), Dr. Johanna Weststar (Western University), and Dr. Sean Gouglas (University of Alberta) published an op-ed in The Conversationto unpack why so many layoffs are currently happening in the games industry.
GI Faculty Member and Canada Research Chair (CRC) Dr. Lai-Tze Fan (Sociology and Legal Studies) recently appeared on a panel hosted by the TRuST Scholarly Network in collaboration with the Perimeter Institute and on the CTV news show The Mike Farwell Show to discuss her work on the ethics of artificial intelligence (AI).
In Spring 2023, the GI staff began the task of turning their office into a green-certified space.
On September 27th Dr. Nick Bowman, Associate Professor of Emerging Media at the S.I Newhouse School of Public Communications at the Syracuse University, gave a lecture at the Games Institute titled “The Psychology of Fun and Frustration: Understanding the Demands and Interactivity.” The lecture covered interactivity-as-demand model based on research into video games and virtual reality technologies, highlighting its implications for game design and player psychology.