Synopsis for Should Game Writing Be Part of the Curriculum?

At last year’s Game Education Summit a panel of game industry and academic representatives told attendees that the videogame industry does not hire writers; that writers and designers are the same thing; and that game writing cannot be taught. These views were stated in almost the same breath it was agreed that game companies did look for “programmers and artists with communication skills”; and that they were disappointed that games could not seem to break out of the same clichés and stereotypes that have afflicted much of the industry for years. This year we have assembled a panel of actual game writers and teachers of game writing, who will challenge all of the earlier panel’s basic assumptions, and suggest ways to broaden the industry’s creative horizons.