INTERNATIONAL ACADEMIC CONFERENCE

GAMES OF WAR

THIRD EDITION

Gdańsk, 24th February 2026

About the conference

The Faculty of History at the University of Gdansk together with Magnus Ducatus Foundation in collaboration with European Humanities University and the Department of Computer Systems and Technologies of Simon Kuznets Kharkiv National University of Economics, are proud to announce the 3rd international academic hybrid conference “Games of War”, coming on the 24th of February 2025. The event is held every year on 24 February, marking the anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation in 2022. It stands as both an act of academic reflection and a gesture of solidarity with Ukraine and all those affected by war.

Over the past editions, Games of War has grown into a significant international forum for scholars, game designers, historians, and cultural researchers.

1st Edition (2024): Focused on the representations of war and historical conflict in games, exploring how game mechanics and storytelling engage with violence, trauma, and memory.

2nd Edition (2025): Expanded to include the war in Ukraine as a central topic, with Ukrainian academics, game developers, and cultural analysts sharing firsthand perspectives on how games respond to ongoing conflict.

3rd Edition (2026): Will examine the evolving narratives of war, identity, and resilience in digital and analog games — four years into the full-scale invasion, and more than a decade since the invasion in Ukraine began.

The language of the conference is English.

No conference fees. Participation is free.

Information on Ukrainian games about the Russian invasion can be found here:

  • David Mullich speech from “Games of War” Conference (2024) Link
  • Video from the Digital Dragons Conference (15-16 May 2023) by Dr. Yaraslau Kot: Games of War – Games that were born from flames of Russian aggression
  • Presentation (PDF) from Dr. Y. Kot’s  Lecture at the University of Gdansk on 1st December 2023: Link
  • Article from DOU.UA (2022) covering 15 games about the invasion: Link
  • Article from The Guardian (2022) on games about the invasion: Link
  • Article from Polygon.com (2022) overviewing several games about the invasion: Link
  • Article from Mezha.Media (2023) overviewing games developed in Ukraine during the full-scale war: Link
  • Catalogue of Documenting Initiatives: Link

Patronages

Faculty of History, University of Gdansk

 ul. Wita Stwosza 55,
 Gdańsk, Poland