RIOT GAMES CEO BRANDON BECK ANNOUNCED AS KEYNOTE SPEAKER FOR THE 2015 D.I.C.E. SUMMIT
Additional Fourteen Speakers Round Out Full Speaker List
The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences confirmed Riot Games CEO Brandon Beck as the 2015 D.I.C.E. Summit opening keynote speaker taking place Feb. 3-5, 2015 at the Hard Rock Hotel Las Vegas. Fourteen additional speakers from among gaming industry technologists, gaming industry pioneers, and D.I.C.E. Awards nominated games will also be taking the stage.
Newly confirmed to take the stage:
- Brandon Beck, CEO and co-founder, created Riot Games in 2006 with a vision to build a game company that prioritizes the player experience in the way games are developed, delivered, and supported. Beck will open up the summit the morning of Wednesday, Feb. 4th.
- Mark DeLoura, independent game technologist and previous senior advisor for digital media at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. DeLoura will helm a session titled “The View from Washington, DC."
- Michael de Plater, design director at Monolith Productions – de Plater will be speaking on “Player Stories vs. Designer Stories – Empowering Players around the world” to showcase an overview of the key design influences and inspirations for the Nemesis System, and discuss some possible future ideas for narrative systems and the opportunities for new types of collaboration between developers and players.
- Jeri Ellsworth, Inventor, Chief Hardware Engineer and Co-Founder at castAR – Ellsworth is a panelist on “The Shape of New Realities” to discuss the future of games and entertainment in this new VR and AR landscape.
- Mohamed Fadl, eSports Director at Wargaming – Fadl is a panelist on “Sustainability in the Esports Landscape" discussing the progression of eSports and its future on a regional and global level in 2015 and beyond.
- Tommy Francois, New IP Editorial Director at Ubisoft – Francois will discuss “Creative Maturity Through Life Experiences – How to Build Engaging Open Worlds” to explain how Ubisoft teams are building meaningful open worlds that will immerse players through the Game System Story, a first of many out of the box tools that help foster mature creativity.
- Alan Gershenfeld, President and Co-Founder of E-Line Media and serves on the advisory board for PBS Kids New Media, iCivics and the Joan Ganz Cooney Center For Educational Media and Research (Sesame Workshop) and Games for Change – Gershenfeld will discuss “Games Thousands of Years in the Making,” a case study on the hit Never Alone discussing the launch, as well as his vision for a broader ‘World Games’ movement.
- Robin Hunicke, game designer, producer and CEO and co-founder of Funomena. Hunicke will moderate the panel, “The Shape of New Realities” to discuss the future of games and entertainment in this new VR and AR landscape.
- Kevin Lin, COO at Twitch – Lin will moderate “Sustainability in the Esports Landscape,” a panel on the progression of eSports and its future on a regional and global level in 2015 and beyond.
- Bob Lowe, game director, Avalanche Software – Lowe will present on “Disney Infinity: A Platform Without Borders” to introduce how the Disney Infinity game platform is breaking down borders both inside the Walt Disney Company and in the global gaming universe of consumers and game developers.
- Gloria O’Neill, President and CEO of Cook Inlet Tribal Council and Executive Chair and board member of E-Line Ventures, LLC – O’Neill will discuss “Games Thousands of Years in the Making,” a case study on the hit Never Alone discussing the launch as well as vision for a broader ‘World Games’ movement.
- Alexey Pajitnov, Tetris creator, Pajitnov will join Henk Rogers, Managing Director of The Tetris Company, on the “Secret Origins of the Tetris Phenomenon” to recount their earliest memories of the struggles, lessons, pitfalls, and triumphs.
- Chris Sigaty, executive producer at Blizzard Entertainment – Sigaty is a panelist on “Sustainability in the Esports Landscape" discussing the progression of eSports and its future on a regional and global level in 2015 and beyond.