Hello Everyone
I first wanted to say that I am very excited to start my term as president of the Round Table. I had the opportunity to talk with both board members and the general membership and there is a lot of excitement and enthusiasm moving forward.
Two big things that we will be working on is this coming year is consolidating the voice of the GameRT, providing a central outreach to membership and publishers that speaks to all of the ways that they can be involved. The second is increasing our outreach and communication with the membership, creating conversational spaces and resources where members and interests are. So look for GameRT communities to pop up in steam, BGG and more.
This year's annual was a great success. ALAPlay had 400+ people pass through to explore, learn and play. A huge thanks to all the members who helped put together and run the event.
- We had 10 local Orlando game designers come in to showcase their games in the Unpub area.
- Diane Robson and her team from UNT brought in an Oculus Rift along with other devices to share in the digital petting zoo.
- I ran two hybrid escape room games
- Paizo, Konami, Haba, Mayfair, Asmodee, Fantasy Flight and Word Winder were there demoing their games for attendees.
- PHD Games came in with a team of folk who ran demos of some of the most popular games as well.
The GameRT Booth on the exhibit floor did a great job of outreach, sharing the great work that we do with attendees. Another huge thanks to all of the volunteers who helped out in that space. Our booth hosted ourselves, along with HABA Games and Konami. We were able to generate a lot of excitement about the RT with new librarians and we got great feedback from members as well.
Connected with the booth was the Gaming Lounge, a 20x20 space on the exhibit floor that featured publisher demos, open gaming and a sharing session. The lounge continues to grow and was well utilized for most of the hours it was open.
The GameRT also had a number of associated sessions and events that were well received.
- Saturday morning a panel of librarians and industry experts spoke on the role of games in libraries to over 50 attendees on the Gaming and Graphic Novel Stage.
- Saturday morning also featured the International Games Day Committee meeting which generated a lot of interest and enthusiasm. We already have over 300 libraries signed up to participate.
- Saturday afternoon, NY and Chicago Public Libraries talked about initiatives to a standing room of close to 80 people at the GameRT's sponsored session.
- Sunday morning, a team from the University of North Texas shared tips and tricks for preserving and processing games for efficient circulation.
- Sunday afternoon featured a number of librarians who took part in a sharing session in the game lounge with topics that covered: Escape Rooms, Preservation and Processing, Genrification and Cataloging, Gaming Events, and the Duskers video game club.
It was a fantastic conference with a lot of positive energy and excitement. I am very much looking to working with the board to continue to grow the Round Table and move forward into new areas.