The SVI conference is dedicated to the theme Video Games as a Challenge to Academia – 50 Years of the Gaming Industry. Focusing on the domains of science and game production, the conference explores various aspects and levels of the connection between science and the industry. It is conceived as an opportunity to reexamine and develop conclusions that crystallized during the previous SVI conference in 2021, where video game studies were promoted as a new scientific field in Serbia for the first time.

There were submissions from 54 researchers from Serbia, Israel, the USA, Italy, China, Sweden, Thailand, the UK, Turkey, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, France, Croatia, and Austria. The conference delved into numerous questions, including: What meanings can we discover in textual analysis of games? What are the relationships between video games and art? What is the potential of serious games in education and therapy? What is the dynamic of creating gaming communities? What is the future of game critique development? Where are the intersections between the industry and social-humanistic sciences?

As part of the conference, SGA, through the Creative Tech Serbia supercluster program, is organizing a closed roundtable discussion titled Perspectives and Challenges in Gaming Education in Serbia. The idea is to gather representatives from all relevant academic and informal education institutions that have subjects, entire courses, or study programs dedicated to professional development in the field of game development and related disciplines, or programs covering topics and areas complementary to the work in this industry.

The goal is to assess current capacities and ongoing programs, as well as to exchange information about future plans and challenges faced by educational system actors in this regard. SGA’s aim is to collaboratively develop educational and academic initiatives dedicated to gaming, contribute to their improvement, and connect them with the real needs of the industry. This roundtable will be closed and is intended for representatives of educational institutions and companies within the domestic game development ecosystem.

In addition to the Academy of Arts (University of Novi Sad), this year’s event is organized in collaboration with the Faculty of Philology (University of Belgrade) and the Serbian Games Association (SGA). SGA supports the conference through the Creative Tech Serbia supercluster program. The pilot supercluster is supported by the Serbia Innovates project implemented by ICT Hub from Belgrade, with the support of USAID.