Celebrating 20 years of game education
Dr Simon McCallum, senior lecturer in Software Engineering, received the Pioneers of Play award at the New Zealand Game Designers Conference (NZGDC) for his 20-year commitment to the game development industry.
This Pioneers of Play award honours the commitment and dedication of those who have been in the industry for 5, 10, 15, and 20 years or more.
Simon has built an impressive academic career teaching Computer Science since 1999 and specialising in game-specific courses from 2004—the same year he created and chaired the first NZGDC. He is also credited with developing the first university-level game development course in Aotearoa New Zealand.
His fascination with game education began during childhood. “I used to play arcade games at the fish and chip shop next to my house when I was 8”, Simon says. “For my tenth birthday, my father brought me a ZX Spectrum—a home computer you plugged into the TV—and used a tape deck to load programmes. I played games and made my own games in BASIC.”
Simon attributes part of his success to his autism.
“I think the general arc is that, with autism, I have specific interests. Game development has been an interest since I was 10, so for 40 years I have been thinking about making games and programming as my paintbrush. I love teaching and have found a career that allows me to be good at the things I care about. I have followed my passion and found a way to utilise my autistic focus.”
Simon describes game education as a comprehensive and important field of study, stating that, “games are both culturally important and a growing part of our economy”.
He sees game education as a powerful tool that can help address the challenges of artificial intelligence (AI).
“One of the risks of AI is that it makes it too easy to not make decisions. Games are all about interacting and making choices, and they could become the gym of the mind, a way to keep us cognitively fit and flexible,” Simon says.
He highlights the link between understanding motivation and gaming, encouraging individuals to study the field.
“To understand gaming is to understand motivation. We are about to transition to an environment where you think because you want to rather than for economic value,” he explains. “Games challenge thinking—people choose hard games because they make you think. I love learning, so I love games.”
NZGDC is an annual event designed to bring industry professionals, students, and academics together to share and learn from each other, offering valuable experiences and opportunities that drive Aotearoa’s game development scene.