As part of the Slamdance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, Professor Washko‘s work “The Game: The Game” will be included in the showcase DIG (Digital, Interactive & Gaming). Showcase DIG features new and unseen works by emerging visual artists and indie game developers from around the world. In addition to “The Game: The Game,” the showcase will also feature BVOVB: Bruising Vengeance of the Vintage Boxer and The (De)escalation Room. The festival runs January 19-25.
“The Game: The Game” is a video game presenting the practices of several prominent seduction coaches (aka pick-up artists) through the format of a dating simulator. In the game these pick-up gurus attempt to seduce the player using their signature techniques taken verbatim from their instructional books and video materials. The game sets up the opportunity for players to explore the complexity of the construction of social behaviors around dating as well as the experience of being a femme-presenting individual navigating this complicated terrain.