Iran Computer and Video Games Foundation
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Formation | January 1, 2007 |
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Type | Nonprofit organization |
Location | |
Area served | Iran |
Parent organization | Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance |
Website | en |
The Iran Computer and Video Games Foundation (ICVGF), also known as the National Foundation for Computer Games (NFCG), is an Iranian nonprofit organization[dubious – discuss] established by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance to control and support the video game industry in Iran.[1]
Established in 2007, the ICVGF is responsible for publishing and releasing video games, supporting Iranian video game developers, teaching video game development, and monitoring the activities of LAN gaming centers in Iran.[2] The ICVGF is also responsible for banning foreign video games that are not compatible with Iran's political views, and filtering video game websites that do not meet governmental rules.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9]
Duties
[edit]![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/e/e5/LevelUpEvent.png/220px-LevelUpEvent.png)
The main duties of the ICVGF are:
- Supporting and promoting game development in Iran[10][11][12][13]
- Educating Iranian game designers, developers, and artists in Iran[14][15][16][17]
- Managing the Entertainment Software Rating Association[18][19][20][21] and the Game Development Institute[22]
- Hosting officially-sanctioned gaming conventions and game jams in Iran[23][24][25]
- Promoting Iranian video games at regional and international gaming conventions and trade fairs[26][27][28][29][30]
- Governing and controlling video game sales in the Iranian market[31][32][33][34]
Video game bans
[edit]One of the responsibilities of the ICVGF is to ban video games that do not meet Iranian ideals or do not follow the Iranian government's media regulations. This is often done in conjunction with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. One notable ban was the 2016 video game 1979 Revolution: Black Friday, which, according to the ICVGF, presented "false and distorted information" about the Iranian Revolution.[35][36] The ICVGF blocked websites offering the game, and conducted an operation to confiscate all copies of the game in Iran.[37] In 2012, the ICVGF denied Bohemia Interactive a license to sell Arma 3 in Iran due to its depiction of the Iran Armed Forces. Arma 3's plot depicts Iran as a leading member of the fictional coalition "CSAT", an antagonistic faction that fights the player's faction, NATO.[38]
Organization
[edit]Entertainment Software Rating Association
[edit]In 2007, the ICVGF established the Entertainment Software Rating Association (ESRA), a self-regulatory organization that assigns age and content ratings for video games released in Iran.[18][39][40][41]
Iran Game Development Institute
[edit]In 2010, the ICVGF established the Iran Game Development Institute (IGDI), a video game development school, made for the purpose of training Iranian video game designers and developers. The IGDI regularly participates in game jams and gaming conventions hosted by the ICVGF, and often wins awards from them.[42][43][44][45][46]
Game | Award | Event |
---|---|---|
Granny and Grim | Best Indie Game of the Year | 1st Tehran Video Game Festival |
Bloody Streets | Best Indie Game of the Year | 3rd Tehran Video Game Festival |
Blue Waters | Best Strategic Game of the Year | 4th Tehran Video Game Festival |
Hate the Sin, Love the Sinners | Best Selected Project | Game Connection Asia 2013 |
Festivals and exhibitions
[edit]![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/bb/FifthFestivalTehrangames.jpg/220px-FifthFestivalTehrangames.jpg)
The ICVGF hosts gaming conventions and game jams in Iran for the purpose of garnering wider appeal for Iranian video games and the Iranian video game industry.
Event | Date | Location in Tehran |
---|---|---|
1st Tehran Game Exhibition | August 17–21, 2011 | Milad Tower |
2nd Tehran Game Exhibition | August 13–17, 2012 | Imam Khomeini Mosalla |
3rd Tehran Game Exhibition | August 13–17, 2013 | Imam Khomeini Mosalla |
Event | Date |
---|---|
1st Tehran Video Game Festival | August 17–21, 2011 |
2nd Tehran Video Game Festival | August 13–17, 2012 |
3rd Tehran Video Game Festival | August 13–17, 2013 |
4th Tehran Video Game Festival | September 2–October 2, 2014 |
5th Tehran Video Game Festival | May 20–August 20, 2015 |
Event | Date |
---|---|
Kashan GDC | April 13 |
Persian Gold Game Development | June 13 |
Global Game Jam | January 13 |
Kashan GDC | April 14 |
Ludum Dare 30 | August 14 |
NES Jam | November 14 |
Ludum Dare 31 | November 14 |
Global Game Jam | January 15 |
Tehran Indie Game Festival | February 15 |
References
[edit]- ^ Mark J. P. Wolf, Toru Iwatani (2015-05-22). Video Games Around the World. MIT Press. p. 277. ISBN 978-0262328494.
- ^ "Iran's National Foundation of Computer Games to Organize Game Centers – Herald Boy". www.heraldboy.com. Retrieved 2016-08-21.
- ^ "Iran plans to block websites offering "1979 Revolution"". 2016-04-17. Retrieved 2016-08-21.
- ^ "Acclaimed PC game banned in Iran due to "hostile intentions"". 2016-06-09. Retrieved 2016-08-21.
- ^ "Iran Bans Video Game Based On Revolution". Retrieved 2016-08-21.
- ^ Lewis, Danny. "Inside Iran's Budding Video Game Industry". Retrieved 2016-07-16.
- ^ Azali, MohammadReza (2016-02-21). "The First National Conference on Computer Games in Iran". Techrasa. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
- ^ "Iran's video-gaming industry poised for action – Africa M.E." 2016-04-02. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
- ^ Šisler, Vit (2013-01-01). "Video Game Development in the Middle East: Iran, the Arab World, and Beyond". In Huntemann, Nina B.; Aslinger, Ben (eds.). Gaming Globally. Critical Media Studies. Palgrave Macmillan US. pp. 251–271. doi:10.1057/9781137006332_18. ISBN 978-1-349-43501-2.
- ^ "Top Rank in Mideast Video Game Production". Financial Tribune Daily. 2014-11-16. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
- ^ "Iranian video games draw interest of customers in global markets". irna. Archived from the original on 2017-03-05.
- ^ "Iran's video-gaming industry poised for action – Africa M.E." 2016-04-02. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ "Status of Video Games in Iran". Financial Tribune Daily. 2016-01-19. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ "Iranian Expo Promotes "Proper Culture Of Computer Games"". 16 October 2008. Archived from the original on 2017-03-05. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
- ^ "Iran national foundation of computer games News, Videos, Reviews and Gossip – Kotaku". Kotaku. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
- ^ "Iran tries to crack games market". BBC. 2009-08-20. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
- ^ "Iran's National Foundation of Computer Games to Organize Game Centers – Herald Boy". www.heraldboy.com. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
- ^ a b "About ESRA - IRCG official website". Archived from the original on 2016-07-26. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
- ^ Caoili, Eric (30 December 2008). "Iran Sets Up ESRA Game Ratings, ESRB Denies Link". www.gamasutra.com. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ "Islamic system will rate video games | The National". 30 November 2010. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ Newbould, Chris. "Islamic video game rating system launched". www.digitalproductionme.com. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ "Iran Game Development Institute | Global Game Jam®". globalgamejam.org. 2013-12-12. Retrieved 2016-06-25.
- ^ Lien, Tracey (2012-10-25). "The stressful life of Middle Eastern game developers and reality of their craft". Polygon. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
- ^ Azali, MohammadReza (2016-02-21). "The First National Conference on Computer Games in Iran". Techrasa. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ "Iranian Expo Promotes "Proper Culture Of Computer Games"". 16 October 2008. Archived from the original on 2017-03-05. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ "Iranian computer game companies to attend Game Connection 2015". 2015-10-26. Retrieved 2016-07-11.
- ^ "Iran interactive games on display at world's biggest fair in Cologne". www.irna.ir. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ "I was surprised to learn that there's an Iran sponsored booth at Gamescom - here's a pic of their pavilion (booth)". TopTopic.com. Archived from the original on 2016-10-12. Retrieved 2016-08-23.
- ^ "Post-nuclear: video games are 'blooming' in Iran and some make up to '200k' a day | Sci-Tech | DW.COM | 19.08.2016". DW.COM. Retrieved 2016-08-23.
- ^ "Iran to participate in Gamescom 2016 in Germany". The Iran Project. 2016-08-18. Retrieved 2016-08-23.
- ^ Lewis, Danny. "Inside Iran's Budding Video Game Industry". Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ Jafari, Hamed (2015-09-21). "5.5 Million Iranian Players on Clash of Clans". Techrasa. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ Jafari, Hamed (2016-02-07). "$140M Video Games Market Revenue in Iran". Techrasa. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ "Top Rank in Mideast Video Game Production". Financial Tribune Daily. 2014-11-16. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ Chiaramonte, Perry (2016-06-07). "Tehran blocks sale of video game depicting Iran's 1979 revolution | Fox News". Fox News. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
- ^ Cragg, Oliver (2016-06-09). "Acclaimed PC game banned in Iran due to "hostile intentions"". International Business Times UK. Retrieved 2022-10-11.
- ^ "Iran plans to block websites offering "1979 Revolution"". Tehran Times. 2016-04-17. Retrieved 2022-10-11.
- ^ Sarkar, Samit (2012-09-19). "'Arma 3' banned in Iran". Polygon. Retrieved 2022-10-11.
- ^ "A New Rating System for Video Games based on Islamic Values Endorsed today in Dubai | Games industry press releases | Develop". Archived from the original on 2016-08-29. Retrieved 2016-06-25.
- ^ "Islamic Video Game Rating System Launched at Dubai World Game Expo | IslamToday – English". en.islamtoday.net. Archived from the original on 2016-06-04. Retrieved 2016-06-25.
- ^ "Islamic Game Rating System Announced". Retrieved 2016-06-25.
- ^ "Game Jam at FUM in Sept". Financial Tribune Daily. 2016-07-13. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ "Class of 2016 | Moody College of Communication". Moody College of Communication. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ "Iranian Companies Developing New Video Games for Local Players – Herald Boy". www.heraldboy.com. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ "Finding video games with added cultural value | Digital Culture | DW.COM | 06.08.2015". DW.COM. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
- ^ ""Hate the Sin" named best at Game Connection Asia". www.payvand.com. Retrieved 2016-11-08.
External links
[edit]- Official website
- Old domain
- Tehran Game Festival Archived 2018-08-28 at the Wayback Machine