Communication Professor Christopher Paul presented on video games in both the United Kingdom and the United States. In “’Balance’ and Gaming Capital: Meritocratic Myths in Video Games” at the Flow Conference In Austin, Texas, he argued that the design norm of balance that is a guiding force of video games design facilitates viewing video games as meritocratic spaces, which ignores all of the elements of learning and education that successful video game play is based on.
 
In Manchester, UK, at the Association of Internet Researchers Conference, he presented the paper “It’s In the Game?: Shifting Scene with Online Play.”  He discussed the impact of the way EA Sports is changing what it is selling from product to service. He also presented “Wordplay: Words, Design, Play, and the Rhetorical Analysis of Video Games,” which offered insights into his findings published in his 2012 book on the subject.

Paul received his Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota and joined the faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences in 2008. His research focuses on applying tools rooted in rhetorical analysis to elements of new media, especially video games.

The College of Arts and Sciences, the largest college in Seattle University, offers 42 undergraduate majors, minors, and 7 advanced degrees. The Communication Department offers specializations in digital communication, digital production, journalism, strategic communications, international/intercultural communication, and media studies.