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Cole Wehrle (Creative Director, Leder Games, Wehrlegig Games)
Location: Room 3016, West Hall
Date: Monday, March 20
Time: 9:30 am - 10:30 am
Pass Type: All Access Pass, Summits Pass
Topic: Design
Format: Lecture
Vault Recording: Video
Audience Level: All
Over the past decade, Cole Wehrle has designed a number of critically acclaimed political and historical games that have been translated into over a dozen languages. In this talk, Cole will discuss some of the reasons why board games have traditionally provided such poor treatments of the past and how we might find a way to more meaningfully interact with the settings of our games.
He will highlight a player-centered approach to immersion that uses both mechanical and aesthetic design principles, and will offer some tips for engaging thoughtfully with the historical record. He will also talk about how to make games on sensitive subjects, and why the difficult work they demand can help create unforgettable experiences that will help players better understand their own assumptions about the past.
Attendees will gain a set of tools that will help them better engage with the subject of designing historical games, as well as understand the importance of historical games—both as something to make and something to play.
This is for anyone working on games (tabletop or digital) that have historical settings, or players looking to learn more about how those games are made.