SxSW 2019

The Psychology of Zelda has allowed me to travel throughout the United States to promote the book. This type of travel would typically be limited to going to Barnes and Noble throughout Ohio to sign copies of the book. I have been fortunate enough however to go to conferences to present the research associated with the book. One such presentation was last week at South-by-Southwest (#SxSW). I need to thank Dr. Anthony Bean and BenBella Books for the opportunity to discuss an area of research that I’m passionate about. The presentation was well received and streamed via SxSW’s Twitch Channel.

This article won’t focus on the content of the presentation as I feel I have covered that topic on this site. I believe it would be a better use of time to discuss my overall impressions of this year’s conference. The tricky element associated with attending (and writing about) SxSW is appreciating the multi-headed nature of this conference. Film, music, comedy, and interactive make up the four main tracks of SxSW. SxSWEdu and SxSW Gaming are considered as part of the SxSW Family. These six tracks mean that SxSW lasts ten days with over a quarter-of-a-million people within the Austin City Limits.

Within the mass of humanity, the over-promotion of brands and products of all shapes and sizes, and the chaos of the crowds, I found there were a few highlights worth mentioning about my time in Austin.

One of the takeaways from the conference was learning more about the logistics of the Overwatch League and their plans to expand their market share. It was interesting to listen to Nate Nanzer talk about how the Overwatch League was attempting to expand into more local markets. They planned to basically build off of the national and international media coverage to build up the local market interest in the sport. Nanzer noted one key theme on Twitter that showed the local support for Overwatch. He stated, “I see tweets all the time that say ‘I don’t know what e-sports are, but it says ‘Philly’ so I’m in.” Mina Kimes did a fantastic job interviewing Nanzer and addressing the key questions surrounding the league.

The moniker of Austin being the “Live Music Capital of the World” is well earned. I believe every restaurant and bar in Austin had live music of a variety of genres. Even the airport had a musician in every restaurant, bar, and the SxSW pop-up shop. A live music scene is embedded in the DNA of Austin. I think about Tom Waits and Willie Nelson performing on “Austin City Limits” and walking up and down 6th Street hear chords broadcasting from windows in the neighborhood. This experience was one of the reasons I wanted to present in SxSW.

SxSW Gaming itself was the nice hybrid between the PAX conference (for the fan base, the focus on video games, and the layout of the exhibit hall), GenCon (for the interactions with game developers), and OCA/NCA/ICA (for the broad base of speakers and special guest that bring in to present). I had a chance to discuss the history of SxSW Gaming with Estevan Aviles. The most significant point that impresses me about Estevan and SxSW Gaming is how he and the conference adapted the reach of the entire SxSW experience to serve the gaming community better. The exhibit hall for SxSW Gaming was inline with the exhibit hall for SxSW Interactive. It’s doesn’t feel like you are lost in a crowd, but instead allowed to float between the different companies on the floor and talk to them without feeling like they are too busy to talk to you.

The last highlight was our panel on the “Psychology of the Legend of Zelda.” Dr. Anthony Bean, Dr. Rachel Kowert, Dr. Emory S. Daniel, and I had the honor of being the closing panel for the conference. The Discovery Stage was designed to be a more casual speaking space. It was the first time that we spoke with a table or podium in front of us. It was also a more comfortable presentation. It was the last time that we had an opportunity to discuss the book in front of a conference audience. The running joke was we are “an academic cover band,” and SxSW Gaming was the closing show of our U.S. tour (tour shirts coming soon). The session gave us a chance to present the highlights of the previous four conference where the topic was covered. It also provided an occasion to reinforce key points from the book.

Overall, SxSW Gaming was a success. “The Psychology of Zelda” sold out all 50+ copies in the SxSW Bookstore on the last day of the conference. We had a chance to discuss the research we enjoy to fans who were eager to hear what we wanted to say.

We hope we will have a chance to come back next year to SxSW Gaming and address new passions and topics.