Environmental Storytelling symposium with Austin Walker
Date & Time:
Friday, February 20, 2026
9:30 a.m.–3:00 p.m.
9:30 a.m.–3:00 p.m.
Location: Cleone Peterson Eccles Alumni House
On/Off Campus: On Campus
2026 Symposium in Environmental Storytelling:
Exploring connections between narrative, place, and digital environments
9:30 a.m. — Coffee and pastries
10 a.m. — Keynote address
“The Body is the World and the World is the Body”
Austin Walker, game designer and critic
11:30 a.m. — Panel 1
- Erick Verran: “Amusing Ourselves to Death in the Survival Horror Theme Park”
- Clay Grubbs: “Technomasculinity and Simulation in Metal Gear Solid 2”
- Jose Zagal: “Why Do Sports Videogames Have Referees?”
1:30 p.m. — Panel 2
- Alf Seegert: “Laying Bare the Device: Forced Perspective in Videogames”
- Justin Carpenter: “Tropes of Storyworld Formation in the Outer Wilds Ventures Museum”
- Saxton Nelson: “‘Who chose this face for me?’: Reading Joyce Through Videogame Narrative Forms”
3 p.m. — Conclusion
This event is sponsored by the Tanner Lab on Environmental Storytelling, co-directed by Nathan Wainstein, Justin Carpenter, and Sam Tett.
Views expressed in Tanner Humanities Center events do not represent the official position of the Center or the University of Utah.
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