Game development is often considered to be a community-based industry, where social networks and flow of information are vital to both individual and company development. The International Game Developers Association (IGDA) works to promote and support individual game developers by hosting local monthly gatherings worldwide. This study investigates the effects of the IGDA Finland hubs in Tampere and Kajaani. By interviewing the attendees to the IGDA events in the respective areas we aim to understand how an IGDA hub affects the local game development scene, and how the attendees perceive the uses of the events. The results show that IGDA Finland events can attract a diverse group of people with variety of motivations. Aggregating different insights and accelerating the flow of information seems important for people in very different positions. At the same time, the felt benefits for individuals seem to vary significantly based on the career phase and the expert role. Overall, IGDA gatherings are importantly connected to modes of learning in communities of practice, as they can initiate different communal processes that then continue outside the immediate meetings. This is the accepted manuscript of the article, which has been published in Turunen, M. (ed.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.