Since the foundation of Game Workers Unite, working conditions and unionisation were a key topic of debate. In the wake of this talking about the labour practices at some of the most prestigious game developers, whether it be the culture of crunch at Rockstar or sexism at Riot Games, has become the norm. Game Workers Unite UK, the first union for video game workers in the UK, intends to answer any questions you might have about the budding effort to build a unionized game industry.

The roundtable will start off with a super short introduction to unionization and collectively answer some common questions.

Where do workers have power in their workplace? 

What kinds of unions are there? 

How do they operate? 

After that, we'll kick off a discussion that asks you to share your experiences, questions, and concerns.

This will be a group discussion about what it would mean to unionize in games, how that fixes some things, what can't be fixed by unionization alone, etc. 

What are the core issues that game workers face?

• As the leader, you set the tone: How do you know you're doing it right? 
• The bigger picture: Everything you lay down now affects the future
• How do you plan for success? 

A gentle discussion led by Ian Masters (Plant Pot) and Mata Haggis-Burridge (Breda University of Applied Sciences/Copper Stone Sea) about sexuality and gender issues in the content, creation, and culture of video games. This will be a chance to discuss in a welcoming group topics such as coming out and staying out (or not) in studios and at industry events, issues with online communication, our feelings about LGBTQ content in games, being LGBTQ in games education (for students and teachers), actions we could take to improve conditions for minority sexuality and identity groups, and more. Join us to share your stories of woes and triumphs in our amazing industry!

Being a manager or lead with responsibility for a project, team and individual careers comes with many challenges. Not always do they evolve around time, quality or budget as sometimes we can face emotionally stressful situations. Do we have to be a rock for the team or is it ok to struggle at times? Let’s sit together and see how people cope in stressful situations and why failure sometimes means winning. 

Takeaway: 

• Share individual experiences with the group
• Discuss learnings that emerged from difficult situations
• Look into helpful practices to gain perspective

In this highly technical and mobile based world games and the games industry have the opportunity to lead the way in new, innovative methods of aiding those suffering from mental ill health for those both inside the industry and those using technology as escapism but is enough being done? If not what could we be doing differently and is the industry obligated to do more? 

Cinzia will host a roundtable discussion on the experience of being a woman in games. Join us to talk about the impact of hiring more women, how to support women in their current work environment, and how to raise awareness in the workplace. We’ll be discussing the journey so far for women in the games industry, and there will be some key takeaways for anyone tackling the challenges of diversity in their workplace. This roundtable is open to everyone!

• The positives of hiring women, and what they bring to the table
• Empowerement of women currently working in the industry
• Motivate more women to get into the games industry