Ken Eklund (born May 17, 1957) is an American game and experience designer known as Writerguy. He is perhaps most famous for World Without Oil, an early "serious game" in the alternate reality game genre[1] he created and ran in 2007.[2] His recent projects "explore the positive social effects of collaborative experiences and open-ended, creative play.[3] "
Ken Eklund | |
|---|---|
 Ken Eklund in 2009 | |
| Born | May 17, 1957 San Francisco, California, United States |
| Pen name | Writerguy |
| Occupation | Game designer, game experience designer |
| Alma mater | Santa Clara University |
| Website | |
| www | |
Philosophy
editEklund creates immersive games that intend to have a socially relevant, transformative effect[4] and to be informal learning experiences[5] and crowdsourcing for good.[6] Much of his recent transmedia[7] work explores how contributing to 'authentic fictions' (real-seeming yet fictional stories) engages people directly in real-world issues by allowing them to have fun collaborating on storymaking, positive solutions and action.[8] By creating "barely fictional" gameful situations he creates a new kind of space for negotiating reality, where the candor afforded by interacting with fictional characters presenting the reality of social issues is seemingly more impactful than the realities themselves.[9]
As an artist, Eklund's emphasis on response plus respect for diversity "charges notions of the 'vox pop' with an appealing edge as a tool for transformation 'from the inside'.[10] He speaks on how to use alternate reality experiences and other playful "what if?" spaces in pursuit of serious goals[11] and the potential for gamelike activities to help solve global problems.[12]
Works
edit- FutureCoast (2014-2016, director)
- Rogue Squirrelbot (2015, director/producer)
- Ruination: City of Dust (2014, designer)
- Hiss Pop (2012, co-creator)
- Ed Zed Omega (2012, director/lead producer)[13][14]
- Giskin Anomaly (2010, creator/writer)
- Urgent Evoke (2010, community lead)
- Zorop (2010, co-creator)
- Ruby's Bequest (2009, creator)
- World Without Oil (2007, creator)
- Driver: Vegas (mobile) (2006, writer)
- Marc Eckō's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure (mobile) (2006, writer)
- In Her Shoes (mobile) (2006, writer)
- Move It! (2005, designer/writer)
- Mr. & Mrs. Smith (mobile) (2005, writer)
- Strange Dead Bird (2004, creator)
- Tigo (2003, writer)
- Two Forks, Idaho (2002, creator)
- Mystery of the Poison Dart Frog (2002, creator)
- Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor (2001, writer/designer)
- Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Harbinger (1995, writer/designer)
- World of Aden: Entomorph - Plague of the Darkfall (1995, writer)
- Al-Qadim: The Genie's Curse (1994, writer)
- Dark Sun: Wake of the Ravager (1994, writer)
- Eagle Eye Mysteries in London (1994, writer/game, character designer)
- Eagle Eye Mysteries (1993, writer/game, character designer)
- Buck Rogers: Matrix Cubed (1992 writer)
- The Dark Queen of Krynn (1992, writer)
- Death Knights of Krynn (1991, writer)
- Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday (1990, writer)
Awards and honors
edit| Date | Award |
|---|---|
| 2022 | Peabody Award for World Without Oil project[15][16] |
| 2014 | The Webby Awards finalist
Category: Net Art for FutureCoast [17] |
| 2011 | 22nd Annual MUSE Awards
Category: Games and Augmented Reality Award: Silver for Giskin Anomaly[18] |
| 2008 | South by Southwest Interactive - Award for Activism for World Without Oil[19] |
| 2008 | The Webby Awards, finalist, Games category, for World Without Oil[20] |
| 2008 | Zero1.org, Honorable Mention, for World Without Oil |
| 2008 | Stockholm Challenge, Honorable Mention, for World Without Oil[21] |
References
edit- ^ "ITVS Press Release for "World Without Oil"". Independent Television Service (ITVS).
- ^ McGonigal, Jane (2011). Reality Is Broken. The Penguin Press. pp. 304, 305, 310. ISBN 978-1-59420-285-8.
- ^ "LunchtimeTalk: Ken Eklund on Transmedia For Change". Watershed. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
- ^ Weiler, Lance (March 3, 2009). "Culture Hacker: An Interview with Ken Eklund". Workbook Project. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
- ^ "ARGs in the Service of Education - interview with Ken Eklund". THINKtransmedia. 29 November 2010. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
- ^ Möller, Patrick (15 July 2009). "15 Questions to Ken Eklund". ARG-Reporter.de. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
- ^ Rees, Diane (February 3, 2012). "Transmedia: A new instructional literacy". Instructional Design Fusions. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
- ^ British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) (May 2, 2013). "Ken Eklund presents "Play It Live It Shape It: Exploring Authentic Fiction"". Retrieved 4 September 2013.
- ^ Atkinson, Sarah (2014). Beyond the screen: Emerging cinema and engaging audiences. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. pp. 163, 164. ISBN 978-1-62356-637-1.
- ^ Alston, Adam (October 6, 2015). "Listening Post: Alternate reality games, ecology and the popular voice". Contemporary Theatre Review. Interventions. Retrieved July 13, 2016.
- ^ Games For Learning Institute at NYU (June 2011). "8th Annual Games for Change Festival". gamesforchange.org. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
- ^ Butterworth, Alex (May 2013). "State of Play". BBC Radio. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
- ^ Michael Andersen "Reinventing Education For The Disaffected With Ed Zed Omega" Wired Aug 21, 2012 [1]
- ^ Mike Janssen, "With young actors, Localore’s interactive Ed Zed Omega critiques education system" Current.org, November 2, 2012 [2]
- ^ "Corvallis man's game simulation of a global oil crisis wins a Peabody". opb. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
- ^ MEDIA, MID-VALLEY (2022-06-23). "Corvallis man wins Peabody Award". Corvallis Gazette-Times. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
- ^ "Yearly Archives: 2014 | The Webby Awards". www.webbyawards.com. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
- ^ "2011 MUSE Award Winners". American Alliance of Museums. 2018-05-03. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
- ^ "ITVS Interactive's World Without Oil, an Alternate Reality Game Wins "Activism" Award at SXSW Web Awards | ITVS". itvs.org. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
- ^ "NEW Webby Gallery + Index". NEW Webby Gallery + Index. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
- ^ "World Without Oil | Stockholm Challenge Event 2008". 2010-05-08. Archived from the original on 2010-05-08. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
External links
edit- Ken Eklund's official website
- Ken Eklund at MobyGames
- Eklund interviewed about his practice by Fan Sissoko for Innovation Unit
- Molly Ebner interviews Ken Eklund for the Do Art Foundation
- Eklund featured in "State of Play," BBC Radio 4
- Eklund interviewed at GamesForChange
- Eklund interviewed by StoryForward
- After one year: Giskin Anomaly in Balboa Park
- Ruby's Bequest at the Institute For The Future
- It's The End Of The World (As We Know It) on TTBOOK
- World Without Oil featured in CURRENT
- Cisco summary document of World Without Oil (PDF)