Game Design Community Meetup

Game2Work and the Iowa State University team creating the new Game Design Major will host a meetup to strengthen the connections that have developed between the regional game design community and ISU and to shape the game design major to best meet the needs of the industry for the future.

When: Tuesday, April 16

Where: Des Moines

Who: Game designers 

More information: Email us at game2work@iastate.edu

Game2Work Lab - Friday December 8

Grant proposal feedback for team members preparing to submit proposals

Game2Work Lab - Friday, November 10

Projects Mix & Mingle in the School of Education’s Makerspace

Game2Work Lab - Friday, October 27

For this Lab, Game2Work will host guest speaker Dr. Cait Hayward, Director of Research and Analytics for the Center for Academic Innovation at the University of Michigan. Cait’s research focuses on the development and application of learning analytics tools and gameful pedagogy. She will join us for a moderated discussion on her research, potential avenues for gameful pedagogy, and the role of games in academic innovation in higher education.

The second annual Game2Work Day took place Wednesday, September 27, 2023 at The Shop in Des Moines. This one-day, interactive event was an opportunity for people interested in the creation and use of serious games and gameful elements for education, workforce development, and community development to come together to learn from one another and collaborate.

Game2Work Team Retreat

Game2Work Presents: A Game Jam for Social Impact

During the weekend of January 27-29, the ISU Student Innovation Center was home to 26 undergraduate students participating in the 2023 Game2Work Game Jam. These students, some of whom had no prior game design or coding knowledge, took the leap, formed seven design teams, and spent the weekend working to develop new game prototypes. The challenge to Game Jam Participants: Develop a prototype game designed for social impact. Event organizers taught the basics of game design, provided space and equipment, and kept participants fed.

Game2Work Day 2022

On Thursday, October 27, Iowa State University (ISU) will host the first state-wide gathering of people whose work includes the use of serious games and gameful elements for STEM education and workforce development purposes. Researchers, entrepreneurs, industry partners, gamers, game designers, and more will gather at the ISU Alumni Center in Ames to learn about work going on throughout this ecosystem, make new connections, and provide direction for the future of Game2Work, a multidisciplinary initiative of ISU.

Game2Work Summer Jam

Date: August 1st, 2nd, and 4th from 9:00am - 3:00pm 

This Game2Work Summer Jam seeks to empower youth to make the changes they want to see in their communities using games as transformative tools. In this program, participants will be encouraged to make choices to contribute to the development of a game and learn design principles for games and learning in a space that will emphasize social connections and creativity. 

Ed Tech Networking Lunch

Industry professionals located in the cross-sections of gamification and educational technology are cordially invited to join us in person in Ames or via Zoom for a 90-minute hybrid lunch on Tuesday, July 19th as Game2Work explores potential connections with programs and events in the industry across the state.