Lord Puttnam, Charlie Higson, Ekow Eshun and Others To Ask: “what’s The Point Of Videogames?”

GameCityPrize 2012 kicks off with stunning BFI London debate, 16th May

Posted by Staff
9th May 2012: It’s a question that has been often asked - but later this month a panel will finally and conclusively decide “What’s the point of videogames?”

“What’s the point of videogames?” is an industry-facing event taking place at 6:30pm (for a 7:00pm start) at the BFI Southbank, London, on Wednesday 16th May 2012

Chaired by Lord David Puttnam, the panel will comprise comedian and author Charlie Higson, industry luminary Ian Livingstone OBE, Financial Times columnist Lucy Kellaway, broadcaster and former director of the Institute of Contemporary Arts Ekow Eshun, and Helen Lewis-Hasteley of the New Statesman.

Following the debate, Nottingham GameCity festival director Iain Simons will unveil the jury for GameCityPrize 2012 – as the deliberations about this prestigious and unique award gets underway for a second year.

The GameCity Prize is an award of international importance; one that’s contemporary, esteemed and provocative - creating an annual benchmark for one of the most significant cultural forms of our age and providing a mainstream entry point into videogame culture. It’s the Turner / Booker / Mercury Prize of the videogame world that sparks conversations about which game should have won, and ignites a broader, ongoing conversation about the role that gaming plays in 21st century culture.

There is no videogame award like it, and on 16th May 2012, attendees to the event will glimpse the start of this year’s extraordinary journey.

“What’s the point of videogames is about exploring why – if? - it's valuable for videogames to take part in the broader cultural conversation, and what they have to add to it,” says Iain Simons, Festival director of GameCity at Nottingham Trent University.

“There has never been a panel discussing videogames quite like it – which is the point. The debate will underline the point of the GameCityPrize, which is about pushing games into more mature mainstream cultural acceptance.”

Tickets are free to press and industry. If you are interested in attending please email simon.byron@premierpr.com in the first instance.
Companies: