2017 Guest of Honor Whitney Beltrán

Whitney Beltrán, AKA “Strix” is a writer and narrative designer for analogue and video games, scripts and features, and transmedia IP. She has written for studios including Undead Labs, Onyx Path, and Crackhorse Films. She is an expert in world building and narrative design, and holds a Master’s in Mythological Studies. She has published peer reviewed academic papers on psychology and narrative play, contributed a chapter to a university textbook on role-playing games, and has conducted research through Carnegie Mellon’s Human Computer Interaction Institute on technology and live action role-playing.

Strix also heads up a minority advocacy group called Gaming as Other, meant to empower marginalized members of the gaming community. She has recently released her own games, Bluebeard’s Bride. She regularly travels both locally and internationally to conventions and academic conferences to present papers, lecture, and most importantly, play. She believes that narrative games—games that tell stories—can be transformative and powerful tools for learning and growth.

Catch her Twitch show Weekly Affirmations, an exploration of indie games on Hyper Rabbit Power Go!