Mixed Reality Games Workshop @ Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW) 2012 (Seattle, WA, Feb 11-15, 2012 http://www.cscw2012.org/) Call for Participation Collaborative technologies increasingly permeate our everyday lives. Mixed reality games use these technologies to entertain, motivate, educate, and inspire. We understand mixed reality games as goal-directed, structured play experiences that are not fully contained by virtual or physical worlds. They transform existing technologies, relationships, and places into a platform for gameplay. While the design of mixed reality games and interactive entertainments has received increasing attention across multiple disciplines, a focus on the collaborative potential of mixed reality formats, such as augmented and alternate reality games, has been lacking. We believe the CSCW community can play an essential and unique role in examining and designing the next generation of mixed reality games and technologies that support them. To this end, we seek to bring together researchers, designers, and players to advance an integrated mixed reality games’ research canon and outline key opportunities and challenges for future research and development. Our workshop goals are to: * Characterize the relationship between technology-mediated collaboration and mixed reality games in order to improve the design and products of each. * Establish an interdisciplinary community that intersects existing research groups from CSCW and Game Design/Studies that facilitates future collaboration on mixed reality games. Promote small-group formation for proposal writing, data sharing, and co-authoring. * Develop a preliminary mixed reality games research canon with a focus on collaborative, cooperative, and/or social components of game design/play. * Craft a research agenda for future projects, funding, and publications. Identify major research questions, known gaps in the literature, low-hanging fruit, and large-impact possibilities. Our workshop themes include, but are not limited to: * Design Patterns (or Meta-Game) discussions for mixed reality games * Collaborative tools and technologies used in game-design * Game mechanics and tools that support collaborative work/play * Empirical studies of games that require player collaboration, multi-player task management, shared storytelling * Mobile and augmented reality technologies that support context-aware games * Opportunities and challenges that arise from bringing mixed reality games into everyday life * Application areas for mixed reality games with a social, scientific, or educational purpose * Research methods for studying collaborative elements of mixed reality games * Mixed reality games as a testbed for novel collaborative tools * Group performance assessment measures in mixed reality games If you are interested in being a part of our efforts to develop a preliminary mixed reality games research agenda, please submit a 2-4 page position paper (ACM Extended Abstract format) via e-mail to mixedreality [at] affectivegaming.info. Deadline for submissions is November 25, 2011. Further background and details about this workshop can be found at: http://mixedrealitygames.selfloud.net/aboutmixedreality/. We recommend that your position papers: * Describe some aspect of your recent, current, upcoming, or ongoing work in the domain of mixed reality games as broadly described/scoped in our workshop description. * Pose one or more burning questions that you would like to discuss with other workshop participants; or suggest one or more key characteristics or design patterns you think should become part of a mixed reality games' research canon or taxonomy. * Include your name(s), affiliation(s), email address(es), title(s). * Provide a short biography containing your background(s) and areas of expertise. In lieu of -- or in addition to -- a short bio in your position paper, consider making a “meet henry” style intro in video or slideshow. We would post all of these on our workshop site as a virtual warm-up before we all meet face to face. (Example “meet henry” slideshow at: http://www.slideshare.net/chereemoore/meet-henry.) Note that this intro could be uploaded any time before February 1, 2012. * Specify what you want to get out of the workshop. How would you like to use the workshop as a stepping-stone? (e.g., as precursor to articles for a Special Issue somewhere? …another follow-on workshop? …a conference-based Alternate Reality Game? …etc.) Not required for submission, but strongly encouraged, since we'll be asking participants for it during the workshop itself: * Prepare a visual representation (sketch, diagram, concept model, photo, screenshot) of your core idea/question, because we plan to post it on a large shared wallpaper throughout the workshop. Multimedia pieces (videos, audio) are a definite plus. If accepted, here are some items for the workshop itself: * Since we will be doing lightning round talks during the early part of the workshop, please prepare a fast-deck of slides (estimate no more than 2-3 minute talk). These slides should be submitted in advance (no later than January 31, 2011). These slides may be in addition to the visual artifact that you bring to share your core idea, issue, or question for the workshop. * Please don't hesitate to bring an example of a game (or one of your favorite games) that you think: * Exemplifies some design/play issue for mixed reality games, or * Could be transformed into a mixed reality game, or * Would be just plain fun to play during the post-workshop Research-through-Play session. * The example you bring can be digital or physical – or BOTH! Sincerely, The organizers Elizabeth Bonsignore, University of Maryland Derek L. Hansen, Brigham Young University Zachary O. Toups, Texas A&M University Lennart E. Nacke, University of Ontario Institute of Technology Anastasia Salter, University of Baltimore Wayne G. Lutters, University of Maryland, Baltimore County Steve Benford, University of Nottingham