GDC 2013 reveals Game Narrative Summit addition; Diablo III and education manifesto sessions

Organizers of March's Game Developers Conference 2013 have revealed additional summit talks on Diablo III translation, two Parsons The New School for Design professors' education manifesto, and Microsoft Game Studio's writing for moral games. These talks are part of the GDC Education, Localization, and new Game Narrative Summits held at GDC on Monday and Tuesday, March 25-26, 2013 at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, California. The Game Narrative Summit is new to the GDC after seven years at GDC Online and will cover interactive narrative on all types of titles, including AAA hits, indie games, and transmedia projects. The advisory committee includes Tom Abernathy of Microsoft Studios, Lev Chapelsky of Blindlight, Richard Dansky of Ubisoft/Red Storm, Mary DeMarle of Eidos Montreal, and independent writer Susan O'Connor. Part of GDC's first Game Narrative Summit is Microsoft Game Studios senior game designer and 'Game Design: Theory & Practice' author Richard Rouse III with 'Seven (Or So) Techniques for Writing a Moral Game.' Following up on Rouse's Seven Ways a Video Game Can Be Moral talk from GDC 2011, he will discuss techniques writers can use "to emphasize morality within their game world while working to the strengths of [the] medium," covering topics such as "morally diverse character creation, integrating moral themes into gameplay systems, the importance of moral quandaries, and moral choice design on a budget." In the Localization Summit, Blizzard Entertainment's Andrew Vestal will discuss translating and testing over 400,000 item and monster names and more in 'English is a Localized Language: Translating Diablo III.' Vestal will demonstrate Blizzard's internally developed localization tool, and attendees will learn "how proactive localization development practices can improve the quality of all languages, and how Blizzard's internal localization tool supports both translation and QA." Lastly, in the GDC Education Summit, Parsons The New School for Design's John Sharp and Colleen Macklin will propose broadening and maturing approaches to game education in 'Play, Make, Appreciate: A Games Education Manifesto.' The professors will "question game puritanism and the fetishizing of games at the expense of play," as they ponder how to increase enrollment, strengthen game educators' positions within academic institutions, and increase student diversity. All of these talks will be available to those with at least a GDC 2013 Summits, Tutorials & Bootcamps Pass, which is now available with an early registration discount. For more information on these lectures or others in the show's growing lineup, check out GDC 2013's official Schedule Builder, which has added new talks over the previous few days. For more information on GDC 2013, which will take place March 25-29 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, visit the show's official website, or subscribe to regular updates via Facebook, Twitter, or RSS.