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Submissions Open For 2015 Serious Games Showcase & Challenge


Game submissions for the 2015 Serious Games Showcase & Challenge open tomorrow, August 3 through September 20. Finalists will be notified on October 15 and shall be prepared to attend the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC).

The 2015 I/ITSEC will be held from November 30 through December 3 in Orlando, Florida, at the Orange County Convention Center. 


Finalists will be prominently displayed at the Serious Games Showcase &Challenge area located in the STEM Pavilion. All finalists will be expected to attend the conference to showcase their games to the conference attendees. During this time the attendees will also vote on the People’s Choice Award winner. Winners for all awards will be announced during the award ceremony on December 3 at 1:00 PM (location TBD.)

Before entering make sure you read the rules and understand what categories your game qualifies for. Prepare your paper work, taking care in all of your answers. Paperwork does play a role in the judging process. Submit your forms early.

There are 7 awards to be reaped, as you may find below.

Development Categories

There are three development categories for entry into the Challenge with Awards given in each category: Students, Government and Business.

Additional Award Categories

In addition to the Student, Business, and Government categories, there are four additional categories for which awards are given. Awards given in these categories are in addition to those given in the development categories. Qualification for each additional category is dependent on the game entry. Details of each are described below.

Mobile

In addition to the development category for which the game was submitted, all mobile games will be eligible for the Mobile Award. Mobile games will also be evaluated on how well the game objectives translate to and utilize a mobile or handheld platform.

Special Emphasis

Each year the SGS&C focuses on a special game design topic for further emphasis. This year’s Special Emphasis focus is: Social Media Crowdsourcing for Peer Learning. In addition to the development category for which a game was submitted, games that use social media and/or crowdsourcing as a multi-player opportunity for peer learning and distributed problem-solving will be eligible for the Special Emphasis Award.

Games might use social media to create learner engagement, reflection, and action. The idea is to use social media to scale gameplay to include large groups of people (possibly even thousands), all contributing to individual and collective learning experiences. Entrants must indicate on the Submission form if they would like their game to be evaluated for this category, and describe how they meet the Special Emphasis criteria.

Students’ Choice

In an effort to expose students to game development and potential careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math, the SGS&C committee introduced a Students’ Choice category in 2013.

In addition to the development category for which the game was submitted, some games will be eligible for the Students’ Choice Award. Games that are judged by the SGS&C to be appropriate for middle/high school will be evaluated by students from select school systems around the United States using an evaluation rubric similar to the one used by SGS&C judges. Winners of the Students’ Choice category will be announced with the other winners during the I/ITSEC event.

People’s Choice Award

In addition to the development category for which the game was submitted, all games will be eligible for the People’s Choice Award. Finalist entries are showcased on the I/ITSEC conference exhibit floor. Games will be evaluated by the I/ITSEC audience to compete for People’s Choice award.

Key Dates

 Game Submission Open: August 3, 2015 – September 20, 2015
 Game Application Form Deadline: September 16, 2015, 1200 EDT
 Game Submission Deadline: September 20, 2015, 1200 EDT
 Notification of Finalists: October 15, 2015
 Booth and Game Setup and Configuration at OCCC: November 30, 2015
 Serious Games Showcase & Challenge at I/ITSEC: November 30 – December 3, 2015
 Challenge Award Ceremony (announcement of winners): December 3, 2015

About The Challenge

The Serious Games Showcase & Challenge (SGS&C) was born in 2005 from the desire to stimulate industry creativity and generate institutional interest towards the use of digital game technology and approaches for training and education. 

A partnership was formed with the organizers of Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC), the National Training Systems Association (NTSA), and the first SGS&C was held at I/ITSEC 2006. 

SGS&C has been a growing staple of the I/ITSEC event ever since. You may revisit the history and how the SGS&C came to be what it is today here