Main Events
The Year of Games will incorporate a wide range of programming, from relaxed play sessions to athletic contests and creative collaboration; from live performances, film series, and exhibits to multi-day symposia. There’s so much happening, in fact, that we’ve created this website so that you can look ahead, see how you’d like to be involved, and add events to your calendar!
Highlighted Tentpole events
Charting Imaginary Worlds: Why Fantasy and Games are Inseparable
Joseph Regenstein Library
From Dungeons & Dragons to The Witcher, fantasy has long been a popular theme for games. But the relationship between fantasy and games is longer and deeper than may first meet the eye. Both establish other worlds with unique actors, objects, and modes of interaction that don’t exist in “the real world.” They invite fans and players to participate and build on these other realities in structured and unstructured ways. This exhibit traces a multitude of examples showing how games and the fantasy genre have mutually shaped and reflected one another across more than a century, drawing in a wide range of displayed objects: books, manuals, maps, and other print materials; toys, physical game pieces, props, and costumes; fan art, screenshots, moving image clips, and even an arcade of playable games.
Year of Games Symposium
Come join us October 17-19 at the Logan Center for the Arts for the Opening Symposium of the Year of Games: three days of game makers, writers, and educators in conversation about games, their past, present, and future, their place on campus, and—most importantly—what we love about them.
Events will kick off with a Videogame Music Carillon Concert presented by Rockefeller Memorial Chapel. Friday and Saturday keynotes will take the form of live tapings of journalist Simon Parkin’s My Perfect Console podcast with guests Alex Seropian and Evan Narcisse (the latter session co-presented by the University of Chicago Humanities Day and the Chicago Humanities Festival). We hope you will join us for this exciting event whether you are already a fan of games or have always wondered what the fuss is all about!
Critical Hits: Exploring Games & Play in Film
Games, play, and the moving image have long been inextricably linked. Filmmakers have employed playful strategies and techniques in their approach to the form, interpolating games with their artistic practice. The characterization of a film’s players and their relationships are often colored by the logic and theory of games. More recently, digital gaming and virtual realities have become technologically, aesthetically, commercially, and thematically intertwined with the cinematic medium. Clearly, the relationship between cinema and play is vast and robust; with this series of six screenings spread across the 2025-26 academic year, the Film Studies Center highlights a small selection of these innumerable intersections. Keep an eye on our website, filmstudiescenter.uchicago.edu, for updates regarding programming throughout the Year of Games.
2026 UChicago Game Jam
This year’s third annual UGD x Careers Game Jam will take place during MLK weekend January 16-19! A partnership between the UChicago Game Design RSO and the Careers in Gaming program with Career Advancement, the Game Jam gives participating students an opportunity to create their own original digital games, compete for cash prizes, and network with industry professionals.
Spring Carnival
Save the date for Saturday May 16 and come help turn “campus” into “carnival” with an afternoon of games, performances, arts and crafts, and fairground snacks. Set up on three campus quads, including Crerar and Bartlett, the Spring Carnival will celebrate the “fun” in “fun and games.” Has it been too long since you’ve played Duck, Duck, Goose, had your face painted, watched a juggler, or had a funnel cake? Wake up your inner child, bring the whole family, and join us as we send the Year of Games off with a bang