Imagine my surprise when Thomas Vigild from the Nordic Game Program contacted me to alert us to the fact that they’re holding their own NGD event, but in their case it stands for “Nordic Game Day.” By pure coincidence, they’re also holding their event on the same day as our National Gaming Day. We couldn’t have planned this better if we’d tried.
Here’s some information Thomas sent me.
“On November 13th, 2010, the first Nordic Game Day is bringing games and game culture to all Nordic libraries and thus creating a big, open, and free game festival across the whole Nordic region.
120 libraries in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and even Greenland have enlisted for the day, which will consist of lectures, competitions, game movie showings, and games – and both digital games and ‘undigital’ board games will be played. The purpose is to expose the growing game culture and local game developers in the Nordic region and include new audiences of all ages, who have never felt the fantastic and social aspects of gaming.
In all the Nordic countries, digital games are hugely popular materials in libraries, and in Denmark, it is now possible to freely lend new computer games on the brand new and world’s first digital platform called ‘Downlon’ (Downloan). Compared to other countries, games are normal in all Nordic libraries, and this is one of the key messages of Nordic Game Day.
Nordic Game Day is a collaboration between the Norwegian National Library and the Nordic Game Program.
Contact Thomas Vigild at thomas@nordicgameprogram.org for further information.
We’re going to talk about potential partnerships, but how great is it to have another 105 libraries playing games on the same day we are? Game on, Nordic libraries!