[Open] Press pass for Games For Change Festival in NYC

Interested in attending & covering this NYC gaming event on a press pass from GS? Drop us a comment below!

Please note: travel & expenses are not included, this is an offer to endorse you for media credentials to the event in exchange for coverage.

— from the company —

April 30, 2013 (New York, NY)— The 10^th Anniversary Games for Change Festival will take place from June 17-19^th at New World Stages in New York City. Hosted and created by Games for Change, a non-profit that catalyzes social impact through digital games, the Games for Change Festival is the largest gaming event in New York City and the leading international event uniting game creators with others interested in accessing and furthering the positive social impact of games. Over the years, the festival has played host to speakers ranging from VP Al Gore to the Honorable Sandra Day O’Connor.

This year’s festival welcomes a range of new programing partners, including: Zynga.org, Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop, Carnegie Mellon’s Entertainment Technology Center, and Tribeca Film Institute. These partners have collaborated with Games for Change to curate the festival’s three-day program. Commemorating a special 10^th Anniversary spotlight are guest curators Babycastles, Hide&Seek, and the Global Game Jam and a series of keynote presentations by thought-leaders from the gaming world, including award-winning game designers Brenda Romero and Jesse Schell, and editor and journalist Leigh Alexander, amongst others. Other program highlights include: the presentation of finalists for the organization’s first large-scale game design competition; the Annual Games for Change Awards; and a special spotlight with Zynga.org highlighting the lessons learned and impact made through Games for Change’s executive-produced Facebook game Half the Sky Movement: The Game.

“The story of the Games for Change Festival is the story of how digital games have evolved, growing from an audience of 40 in 2004 to more than 10,000 attendees on-site and online,” said Michelle Byrd and Asi Burak, Co-Presidents of Games for Change. “For the 10^th Anniversary we are partnering with leading names from the commercial gaming industry, academia, research and media to present a wholesome vision of how games can serve as critical tools in humanitarian and educational efforts.”