Mythological Characters in Video Games - join us for this Centre for Creative Technologies and Game Lab keynote lecture by International Visiting Fellow Dr @alexvandewalle.bsky.social. Thursday 30 April 5pm (BST), University of Bristol (in person and online). forms.office.com/pages/respon...
🎮 Dr Harry Wilson (Theatre) introduces his AI Tools for Games and XR Storytelling project, which explores the possibilities & problems of collaborating with AI in the creation of narrative games & immersive experiences
Watch the full video 👉 brnw.ch/21x1gQz
@richardcole.bsky.social
Deeply proud of this film for the MA Games Design (Narrative) at the University of Bristol, featuring no less than eight members of the Bristol Digital Game Lab in debut acting roles! It captures the vision that @mikesamuel8.bsky.social and I have for the programme. www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6rO...
Thanks, Erik! Happy to answer any questions about it.
Interesting sounding paper! CultureQuest: Deploying AI-powered Characters in Museum Spaces to Reimagine Visitor Engagement, Richard Cole1, Chris Bevan1, Frances Pickworth1, Ben Ackland2, Thomas Keane2; 1University of Bristol; 2, Meaning Machine. www.conftool.org/fantastic-fu...
✍️ Prof Esther Eidinow (@clahbristol.bsky.social) & Dr Chris Bevan (Computer Science) introduce us to their AI in Antiquity project which uses new technologies to bring the ancient world to life
Read how their use of AI aims to enhance the teaching of ancient culture 👉 bit.ly/4qwgyjt
🎮 Video games are no longer just entertainment. They are tools for change.
The #BristolDigitalGameLab is pioneering this shift, asking not just what games are, but what they can do for society.
Watch the full video to learn more 👉 bit.ly/3KNNe7Q
@richardcole.bsky.social @mikesamuel8.bsky.social
You can catch the sound bite below where I talk about being involved in the design and development of simulations, how students respond to their use as pedagogical tools, and how they ask new questions in the process. bristoldigitalgamelab.blogs.bristol.ac.uk/2025/09/10/t...
I had a fantastic conversation with Dr Sarah Jones this summer for the University of Bristol Humanities Learning and Teaching Network podcast series about using VR and video games in the Classics and Ancient History classroom.
By taking a 360-degree look at immersivity in historical games and VR, from production to reception, the chapter demonstrates how ‘virtual antiquity’ is engaged in developing a historical literacy. www.bloomsburycollections.com/monograph-de...
Immersivity in ‘Virtual Antiquity’ - this chapter for
@emmacole.bsky.social's ground-breaking book Experiencing Immersion in Antiquity and Modernity was inspired on the one hand by my work on Assassin's Creed Odyssey, and the other by the research I conducted for the Virtual Reality Oracle project.
Our eight-week active play experiment revealed four play interests for historical games: ludic, prosthetic, narrative, and referential. Our findings help to temper claims about the role of history in historical games, which in this study was more directive than front and centre of the experience.
"‘As you write your Odyssey…’: An empirical study of Classics students’ play interests and ergodic characterization in historical video games" - this joint article with @alexvandewalle.bsky.social for the journal Convergence was an absolute pleasure to work on. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Double publication alert! Both the below focus on
@ubisoft.com's #Assassin'sCreedOdyssey as a case study, demonstrating not only how influential the game has been on my own (and others') thinking, but also on the development of games studies scholarship more broadly. #BrisotlDigitalGameLab
Immersivity in ‘Virtual Antiquity’ - this chapter for @emmacole.bsky.social's ground-breaking book Experiencing Immersion in Antiquity and Modernity was inspired on the one hand by my work on Assassin's Creed Odyssey, and the other by the research I conducted for the Virtual Reality Oracle project.
Our eight-week active play experiment revealed four play interests for historical games: ludic, prosthetic, narrative, and referential. Our findings help to temper claims about the role of history in historical games, which in this study was more directive than front and centre of the experience.
"‘As you write your Odyssey…’: An empirical study of Classics students’ play interests and ergodic characterization in historical video games" - this joint publication with @alexvandewalle.bsky.social for the journal Convergence was an absolute pleasure to work on. doi.org/10.1177/1354...
Double publication alert! Both the below focus on @ubisoft.com's #Assassin'sCreedOdyssey as a case study, demonstrating not only how influential the game has been on my own (and others') thinking, but also on the development of games studies scholarship more broadly. #BrisotlDigitalGameLab
All participants will receive a £20 Love2Shop voucher for completing the study, which will take no more than 1 hour. Participants must be able to attend the Museum in person on Monday 28 July.
Find out more and register your interest: forms.office.com/e/bxL5ihres2
You will be testing a prototype of an interactive, quest-based experience that involves conversing with a range of AI-powered characters inspired by ancient Egypt to explore the Egyptian Gallery.
A callout for last minute signups for a #BristolDigitalGameLab research study on Monday 28 July to test a new game, developed by Meaning Machine in partnership with the University of Bristol and Bristol Museum & Art Gallery.
Incredibly excited to share this collaborative article with @richardcole.bsky.social, out now in Convergence!
We hosted an active play experiment to explore how players make choices in historical games, and which role history plays (or doesn't) in this process: journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...
Four people sat on sofas around a table with one person writing on a piece of paper
People looking at laptops, sat at tables for the training session
Back of the audience for the Compass CDT careers event with the speakers at the front looking at the screen
Conor delivering the JGI presentation at the Game Jam
Day 5 of #BristolDataWeek wrapped up on Friday.
We had our Applied Data Analysis in Python: scikit-learn training session, Museums of Languages: A Concept Game Jam with Bristol Digital Game Lab, and the Careers in Data Science seminar with Compass CDT.
#BristolDataWeek2025 #BDW2025
Looking forward to rolling the dice for this tomorrow with @alexvandewalle.bsky.social!
Wishing you were choosing your next adventure from the Illithid? Join Dr. Richard Cole & Dr. Alexander Vandewalle at Hitpoints & History this weekend to discuss #Baldursgate3. Tickets 20% starting today!
Https://hitpointsandhistory2025.eventbrite.com
Congratulations to Dr @richardcole.bsky.social who is a University Enterprise Fellow for 25/26! 🥳
Richard will make use of the Fellowship to develop the Bristol Digital Game Lab's pioneering work around games for public service
Read more about the new cohort 👉 bit.ly/4cnHFqi
We're extremely lucky to be hosting the one and only Dr Glaire Anderson at the #BristolDigitalGameLab next month. On Wednesday 7 May 2025 @ 17:00, hear Glaire talk about “Lessons from ‘Leaving Arabistan’: New Possibilities for Academic & Games Industry Collaborations.” buytickets.at/bristoldigit...
It was inspiring to meet fellow contributors at this book launch and take part in the wider discussions prompted(!) by this volume.
Thanks so much, Alex! Here's to the next chapter in our collaborations!
Thanks, Nick! Much appreciated.
