These are the PAX Dev and PAX West panels I’m doing. Schedule and participants subject to change.
August 29, Grand 1 2:30 pm
Whether we’re talking about a nostalgic favorite game, or a beloved game series, online spaces have become hostile territory where devs have to tread lightly rather than being spaces for discussion & enjoyment of games. Devs are backed into corners, asked to justify their choices. Is that necessary? Where does the line exist between listening to one’s audience & “caving” to their demands? How does one participate in productive conversations with fans so both can learn & grow?
Panelists:
Tanya DePass
Link Hughes
Shana Bryant
F. Wesley Schneider
Katherine Cross
August 29, Grand 1 3:45 pm
Instead of another “diversity is good” type of talk, let us give you tools to make your games and workplace more inclusive. This panel focuses on giving people who are beyond a 101 level of understanding of inclusion concrete things to take back with them to their teams, projects, and studios. We will provide a checklist to work through character design, advice on using diversity consultants for the greater good of the project, and ways to respond to criticism if you have a diversity fail.
Panelists:
Tanya DePass
Chris Barney
Shana Bryant
Link Hughes
Mel Fox
Friday, 9/1 2:00 pm Hippogryph Theatre
You might know diversity and inclusion is pretty cool, but chances are someone you know doesn’t. So, we’re going to give you the 101, an easy to digest and pack up discussion on why diversity is awesome that you can take back to your friends and family who still need that extra push to get it. This will be an intro level panel, but we will be giving tips and tricks to start a conversation on this topic should you find yourself trapped in a well, actually situation.
Panelists include:
Friday, 9/1 4:00 pm Sphinx Theatre
The discussion continues! One hour and a room full of smart questions at PAX East weren’t enough to get to the bottom of the question: does the author’s intent matter? What happens to authorship once developers release their project into the public space? Do creators bear the responsibility of unforeseen consequences caused by their games? How have recent events changed our perspective? Join our updated panel as we discuss these questions from the respective viewpoints of critics and creators.
PANELISTS:
- Alex Zandra Van Chestein [Gamedev Everything Person, Independent]
- Katherine Cross [Gaming Critic, Gamasutra]
- Samantha Kalman [Designer, System Era]
- Vincent Caravella [Head of Video Production, Giant Bomb]
- Tanya DePass [Director, I Need Diverse Games]
Friday, 9/1 6:00 pm Sandworm Theatre
The casts of our favorite video games are getting more diverse with every release, but there’s still a lot of work to be done. While games like Overwatch, Assassin’s Creed, and Skyrim are pushing the envelope, you’re more likely to find the option to play an alien race than a slider bar that goes darker than light beige in many others. There’s also still the problem of entire franchises using the Brown=Bad trope, leaving entire demographics of gamers feeling lost. How can we fix that?
Panelists include:
- Hadeel al-Massari
- Alex Abou Karam
- Tanya DePass
- Sean Finnegan
- JC Lau
- Andrien Bingnie
Saturday, 9/2 11:00 am Sasquatch Theatre
Games have a huge impact on our culture, inspiring a generation of artists, academics, and devs to try to understand the medium’s inner workings. This exploration takes a variety of forms, from livestreamed off-the-cuff analysis to dissertations on emergent narrative. Our panel of devs, academics, and streamers will talk about all the interesting things they’ve discovered, from AI innovations to detailed breakdowns of why PUBG is so much fun.
- Cat Manning
- Leah Miller @CulturalGeek
- Tanya DePass @cypheroftyr
- Aaron Reed
- Cameron Lauder
Saturday 9/2, 6:30 pm Hippogryph Theatre
Broadcasting games, creative work, cosplay, tabletop games, and other hobbies can be fun, but it can also be perilous for some of us. This panel will bring you some tips and tricks such as using bots, human mods and other methods to make your experience as stress free as possible.
Panelists include:
- Tanya DePass @cypheroftyr
- Adam Koebel @SkinnyGhost
- Nikki-Colette Manzie @VictoryOfThePpl
- SimplyUndrea @SimplyUndrea
- Brandon Stennis @UGRGaming
- Khalief Adams @Kahjahkins
Sunday 9/3 6:30 PM
It’s easy to see people where you want to be, but we don’t talk about how they had to hustle, grind and work to get “there”, Lots of people are marked as ‘overnight successes’ when there is no such thing. Let’s have some real talk on what you don’t see beyond the name and fame; especially about what some people think success looks like versus what it is
Panelists include:
- Tanya DePass @cypheroftyr
- Shana Byrant @mushrooqueendom
- Kaitlyn Tremblay @kait_zilla
- Zoe Quinn @Unburntwitch
- Brandon Stennis @UGRGaming
- Kahlief Adams @Kahjahkins
Published by cypheroftyr
Tanya DePass is the founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago, which is dedicated to better diversification of all aspects of gaming. I Need Diverse Games serves the community by supporting marginalized developers, attendance at the Game Developer Conference by participating in the GDC Scholarship program, helps assist attendance at other industry events, and is seeking partnership with organizations and initiatives. Tanya is a lifelong Chicagoan who loves everything about gaming, #INeedDiverseGames spawn point, and wants to make the industry better and more inclusive for everyone. She’s part of the Rivals of Waterdeep actual play stream on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep, a partnered Twitch variety broadcaster; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics online, at conventions and as a public speaker..
She’s also contributed to publications at Green Ronin, Paizo and Monte Cook Games and is the co-developer for the Fifth Season RPG based on N.K. Jemisin’s three time Hugo award winning Broken Earth trilogy. She’s the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a Twitch supported RPG and Actual Play stream, airing weekly on her channel, twitch.tv/cypheroftyr. Additionally, she is a Senior Annenberg labs Civic Media Fellow at USC. She’s also the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a new sci fi afro-futurist RPG developed with a team of all POC and Black creators; live streamed on her twitch channel, /cypheroftyr.
She’s named as one of The Game Awards Future Class 2020, a diverse group of builders, thinkers and dreamers whose voices elevate and diversify our artform. It recognizes individuals around the world who represent the bright, bold and inclusive future for video games. She was also named as one of Gamers of the Year 2020 by Kotaku along with three of her contemporaries. She was also invited to the Xbox MVP program in February 2021.
Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021.
Tanya is the programming & diversity coordinator for OrcaCon and GaymerX. She also serves on the Board of Directors for OrcaCon and was named the Chair for Take This in January 2023. She often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. Her writing about games and games critique appears in Uncanny Magazine, Polygon, Wiscon Chronicles, Vice Gaming, Paste Games, Mic, and other publications. She’s the editor of Game Devs and Others: Tales from the Margins (2018, CRC Press) and contributed to The Advanced Game Narrative Toolbox. (2019, CRC Press)
Writer Bio for pubs: Tanya is the Founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago. She’s part of Rivals of Waterdeep, an actual play D&D show on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep; the programming coordinator for OrcaCon & GaymerX; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. She’s on the Board of Take This as well as a Stream Ambassador, and was part of the inaugural cohort of The Game Awards Future Class. Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021.
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