Chapman University to host First IEEE Intercollegiate Computer Game Showcase

ORANGE, Calif. – Chapman University will host the first ever Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Computer Society’s Intercollegiate Computer Game Showcase. The event will take place April 28 and is sponsored by IEEE’s (pronounced “Eye-triple-E”) Special Interest Group in Computer Games, also known as GameSIG. It will bring together computer games developed by teams of students from colleges and universities in and around Orange County. The official event website is http://www.gamesig.org/showcase. Attendance is free and open to the public.

 Student teams will compete for the “Student Game Cup” by submitting computer games they have developed to be judged by a panel of game industry leaders, including top executives from Blizzard, Quicksilver Software, SpaceX, Gaikai and Game Audio Network Guild. The “Cup” will reside for one year at the winning school until the next competition the following year. The showcase also will feature presentations and live game play demonstrations by the ten finalists in the competition, prior to the announcement of the competition winners. Participating universities include Chapman University, California State University, Fullerton, Cal Poly Pomona and the University of California, Irvine.

 The event will take place at Chapman’s Folino Theatre from 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. on Saturday, April 28, 2012. A reception will follow at Von Neumann Hall from 4 p.m. – 6 p.m. Folino Theatre is located at 238 N. Cypress St., Orange, CA 92866. Von Neumann Hall is located at 545 West Palm St., Orange, CA 92866. Parking for both venues is available next to the Folino Theatre on Cypress St.

 “Chapman University is honored to be the first host for this important event that showcases a new generation of students destined to work in and transform the game industry in the years ahead. We are especially pleased that multiple colleges and universities from the area are involved, and also by the support we have received form the game companies in Orange County,” said Michael A. Fahy, Ph.D., associate dean of the School of Computational Sciences in Chapman’s Schmid College of Science and Technology, which includes classes leading to a minor in game development. “Students graduating with this minor are prepared to compete for positions in the rapidly growing areas of interactive media and game development. In addition to the games created for entertainment and educational purposes, there is an emerging genre of serious games designed to help make decisions in public policy, corporate management and health care.”

 This inaugural GameSIG includes backing from several key industry players, including: event organizer Don V. Black, Ph.D., owner of Digital ChoreoGraphics and 30-year veteran of the Computer Software Industry; William Fisher, President of Quicksilver Software, Inc. and also a 30-year game industry veteran; Dan Frost, Ph.D., UCI professor of computer game science for more than 10 years; and Michael Shafae Ph.D., Cal State Fullerton professor of computer science and game development.

 Further information about the event, including information for student teams who want to submit their computer games to the competition, can be found on the IEEE GameSIG website at http://www.gamesig.org/showcase .

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 About Chapman University

Consistently ranked among the top universities in the West, Chapman University provides a uniquely personalized and interdisciplinary educational experience to highly qualified students. Our programs encourage innovation, creativity and collaboration, and focus on developing global citizen-leaders who are distinctively prepared to improve their community and their world. Visit us at www.chapman.edu.

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