Frans Mäyrä
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fransmayra.bsky.social
Frans Mäyrä
@fransmayra.bsky.social

A professor, Tampere University, Finland. Nature photographer. Fan of fantasy, science fiction, new media and old ideas.

www.unet.fi
www.fransmayra.fi (personal blog)

Computer science 28%
Sociology 21%

Let's remember there has also been bright moments this year. - To a better one! 🥂

Pelitutkimuksen vuosikirja 2025, the Finnish yearbook of game research now available: pelitutkimus.journal.fi/issue/view/1...
Pelitutkimuksen vuosikirja Pelitutkimuksen vuosikirja 2025
pelitutkimus.journal.fi

Reposted by Frans Mäyrä

Busy week for the CoE blog! Have a look at this blog post where Matilda Ståhl, Aska Mayer (@amayer.bsky.social), Robyn Hope, Rainforest Scully-Blaker (@rainforestsb.bsky.social) and Nick Taylor (@nickttaylor.bsky.social) discuss intersections between survival games and survivalism.
Centre of Excellence in Game Culture Studies – Matilda Ståhl, Aska Mayer, Robyn Hope, Rainforest Scully-Blaker, Nick Taylor: Looking to the future? Intersections between survival games and survivalism...
This post introduces SURVIVE, a project that has been a site of collaborative inquiry since 2025, looking at the intersections of ideas and practices of survivalism and preparedness in digital game…
coe-gamecult.org

New issue of Eludamos is out (with eg review of the Monstrosity book, and many interesting articles) - septentrio.uit.no/index.php/el...
Vol. 16 No. 2 (2025) | Eludamos: Journal for Computer Game Culture
ISSN: 1866-6124
septentrio.uit.no

Reposted by Frans Mäyrä

We're delighted to share the news that the Foundation for Economic Education has granted funding for our Doctoral Researcher Aasa Timonen's dissertation study 'Transmedia worldbuilding in massive game franchises.' Read more about Aasa's project: gameresearchlab.tuni.fi/the-foundati...
The Foundation for Economic Education awards funding to Timonen’s doctoral research
We are happy to share that the Foundation for Economic Education has granted funding for MA Aasa Timonen for her doctoral research project Transmedia worldbuilding in massive game franchises. Descr…
gameresearchlab.tuni.fi

Our new professor, Usva Friman, @usvaf.bsky.social, and her research is introduced also in this video:

youtu.be/W-5MYNyIGic?...
Usva Friman
YouTube video by Tampere University
youtu.be

Reposted by Frans Mäyrä

We are very happy to announce that @koneensaatio.fi has granted funding for the ‘Against the stream of manhood’ project led by @merilainen.bsky.social for 2026–2027. Congratulations to Mikko and his team! You can read more about the project here: gameresearchlab.tuni.fi/new-project-...
New project funded by Kone Foundation
Photo: Project PI Mikko Meriläinen. Photo by Antti Yrjönen. We are happy to announce that Kone Foundation has granted funding for the ‘Against the stream of manhood’ project for 2026–20…
gameresearchlab.tuni.fi

One more owl pic, for your weekend relaxation:

Our unit and university are seeking a media scholar who has one leg in the AI research:

tuni.rekrytointi.com/paikat/?o=A_...
Tenure track position (Assistant Professor, Associate Professor or Professor) in Artificial Intelligence and Media / Tenure track -tehtävä, Tekoäly ja Media (Apulaisprofessori tai Professori)
tuni.rekrytointi.com

Sample of my nature photography: the small ruler of the forest. (Eurasian Pygmy Owl.)

Today in Helsinki, speaking in the Research Council of Finland event about the results and impacts (both of which are numerous and diverse) of our Centre of Excellence, now completing its term. This project has been a decade of life for me and my colleagues. What a trip! It has been worth of it all.

Dear Tampere University colleagues: you can still vote in the Academic Board election until the end of this work week, the deadline is on this Friday, 28 November, at 17:00. You can find the list of candidates and the voting link on this intranet page: intra.tuni.fi/en/organisat...
intra.tuni.fi

Tampere University is having the Academic Board elections again - please do not forget to vote, if you are working here. Many excellent candidates supporting university democracy and autonomy:

Just a reminder that the deadline for these three postdoctoral researcher positions is already coming close: it will be on Friday, 31 October 2025 (the submission system will close at 23.59.00 EET / UTC+2). Thank you all for spreading the word!
tuni.rekrytointi.com/paikat/index...
3 Postdoctoral Researchers (cultural game studies) / 3 tutkijatohtoria (kulttuurinen pelitutkimus)
tuni.rekrytointi.com

Please note that the Games and Culture, Volume 20 Issue 8 (December 2025) is already out, online first:
journals.sagepub.com/toc/gaca/20/...
Sage Journals: Discover world-class research
Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.
journals.sagepub.com

Reposted by Stefano Gualeni

Three (3) new postdoctoral game studies positions are now open for applications. These are related to the exit phase (2026-27) of the CoE-GameCult, and positions will situated in the Tampere University Game Research Lab, COMS/ITC, Tampere University.

tuni.rekrytointi.com/paikat/index...
3 Postdoctoral Researchers (cultural game studies) / 3 tutkijatohtoria (kulttuurinen pelitutkimus)
tuni.rekrytointi.com
Come work with us! We are hiring 3 postdoctoral researchers working in cultural game studies from the beginning of 2026 until the end of 2027. Read more and apply by 31.10.2025 (at 23.59.00 EET / UTC+2):
3 Postdoctoral Researchers (cultural game studies) / 3 tutkijatohtoria (kulttuurinen pelitutkimus)
tuni.rekrytointi.com

Pelikulttuuristrategiapäivä 5.11.2025: Pelikasvattajien verkosto sekä PEGASUS-hanke toteuttavat tilaisuuden kansallisen pelikulttuurin strategiatyön edistämiseksi:
pelikasvatus.fi/pelikulttuur...
Pelikulttuuristrategiapäivä 5.11.2025
Pelikulttuuristrategiapäivässä keskustellaan pelikulttuurin merkityksestä, tulevaisuuden mahdollisuuksista ja siitä, miksi Suomi tarvitsee yhteisen pelikulttuuristrategian.
pelikasvatus.fi

New issue of the Games and Culture journal is out:

journals.sagepub.com/toc/gaca/20/...
Sage Journals: Discover world-class research
Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.
journals.sagepub.com
If you have stuff in Academia.edu, it might be good to reconsider?

Remember that our Oasis Talks are also usually streamed (via YouTube) and archived as video - today Prof Nick Webber talked about TTRPGs/Remnants of Play:
www.youtube.com/@oasis_tuni
oasis_tuni
OASIS is a social learning space and living lab at the Tampere University. OASIS is the home for Game Research Lab game and book collection and a meeting point for students, staff and visitors of the ...
www.youtube.com

Issue 16 for the International Journal of Role-playing is out. This special issue focuses on Consent and Analog Role-playing Games. Susan Haarman joined the editorial team to lead this publication.
journals.uu.se/IJRP/issue/v...
No. 16 (2025): International Journal of Role-playing Issue 16 | International Journal of Role-Playing
Special Issue: Consent in Analog Role-playing Games
journals.uu.se

Fafnir – Nordic Journal of Science Fiction and Fantasy Research invites authors to submit papers for issue 1/2026. Research into any and all aspects of science fiction, fantasy, and other speculative genres is welcome from a range of disciplines.
DL 31 Dec 2025: fafnir.journal.fi/about/submis...
DiGRA 2026 will be hosted at Maynooth University in Maynooth, Ireland from 14 to 18 June 2026.
The 2026 conference theme is Intersectional Pleasures.

digra.org/digra-2026-h...
DiGRA 2026 Conference Announcement - DiGRA
The DiGRA Executive Board is pleased to announce that DiGRA 2026 will be hosted at Maynooth University in Maynooth, Ireland from 14 to 18 June 2026.
digra.org

I started in Tampere University as a comparative literature student in Fall 1985. Decades later, I opened this week the latest iteration of the Introduction to Game Studies course, with c. 50 students enrolled. Show goes on, students just keep getting younger.

Joram - I have deleted my post, and will think about my position regarding digital filters more when I've recovered. Indeed in in flu and slightly feverish right now - sorry!