Game Innovation Lab
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Playthink

Game salon

Playthink is a USC-based salon about games, interactivity, art and culture. Since 2013, we have held a semi-regular series of discussions at the USC Game Innovation Lab that are dedicated to drawing out provocative ideas around play, games, art and interactivity. Since 2018, we have added a podcast component to our salon. Now you can listen to Playthink episodes on this page, below, or by subscribing to our feed on iTunes, Amazon, or YouTube podcasts.

Note: We’ve been a bit swamped the past several years, but we’re back now with more Playthink, so subscribe and keep your eye out for announcements!

Upcoming and past salons

Tracy Fullerton at Playthink: 4/16/25

On this episode of Playthink, we welcome game designer and scholar Tracy Fullerton as we explore her book, The Well-Read Game: On Playing Thoughtfully — co-authored with Dr. Matthew Farber. Game designer and USC Games alumnus Maynard Hearns hosts this conversation about the themes of the book, which invite us to examine the ephemeral, emotional, and deeply personal experiences of play, the stories that we tell ourselves while playing, the feelings that linger, and the subjective meanings we create.

Tracy FullertonUSC Game Innovation Lab