The Interactive Pasts Conference 4

For the fourth time, the Interactive Pasts Conference will take place in Leiden from 8 to 10 October 2025. I always wanted to go, but never could for various reasons. Now I have a new reason: I was asked to help out by moderating a panel. Of course I agreed and now I am super excited to take part in this Archaeogaming conference.

The Interactive Pasts Conference

The first The Interactive Pasts Conference (hereafter TIPC) was held on 4-5 April 2016. It was organised by the VALUE Foundation, a long-term research project/collaboration on archaeogaming. The proceedings of this first instalment were published in the book The Interactive Past (2017). The second instalment took place from 8 to 10 October 2018.

The third TIPC had to be held online due to the pandemic and was for some reason called TIPC Online 2. In any case, it was held on 5-6 November 2020. Shortly afterwards, the second volume, Return to the Interactive Pasts (2021), was published. TIPC 3 took place from 24 to 26 May 2023. Fast forward to 2025, where TIPC 4 is planned.

TIPC 4

The fourth TIPC is finally taking place this year and there is still time to submit entries! The deadline is 15 March. They are looking for papers on archaeology of and in video games (archaeogaming), historical game studies, collaboration, community and network building, academia-meets-game development, regional and period-based game studies (e.g. medievalism or antiquity in games), heritage and memory-making in games, and much more!

I myself am still considering whether to contribute with a small paper, but that will have to be decided in the coming days. Maybe I will talk about my hackathons? In any case, TIPC looks great again and I am looking forward to going. What is always nice about this conference is the close connection to the video game industry, which also contributes to the programme from time to time.

What I look forward to

Well, first of all Leiden, of course. I really like the city and the friends I made there. So being able to be there for a few days is very welcome. I am also looking forward to the pubs in the evenings, as I am sure that something will be possible in that direction. Finally, I look forward to seeing you there! Yes, why not? Have you ever thought of suggesting a topic for archaeogaming? Maybe this is the time and place for you.

Cited Literature

• Archaeogaming
• Archaeology
• Conference
• Leiden
• TIPC