Nina Kiel
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beurkeek.bsky.social
Nina Kiel
@beurkeek.bsky.social
210 followers 140 following 190 posts
Game developer, journalist, researcher, diversity and inclusion advocate, IGF finalist

Research fellow at TH Köln/Cologne Game Lab, promoting accessibility in games and developing Open Educational Resources

🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ they/them, sier/sien
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beurkeek.bsky.social
Unsere Podcastfolge zu #SilentHillF ist online!

In knapp zweieinhalb Stunden sprechen wir über die Serienkonventionen, zahlreiche Interpretationsmöglichkeiten und... schwärmen einfach gemeinsam über dieses Highlight im Gaming-Jahr 2025.

insertmoin.de/silent-hill-...

(Patreon-exklusiver Inhalt)
Ein Bild im viereckigen Format. Oben steht in großen Buchstaben Review, darunter ist das Logo von Silent Hill f und daneben das Logo unseres Podcasts abgebildet. Wiederum darunter... befindet sich eine bizarre Bildmontage, ein regelrechtes Photoshop-Verbrechen, bei dem... äh... "jemand" die Köpfe von Wolfram, Micha und mir ausgeschnitten und in das Charlie Conspiracy meme eingefügt hat. Das Ergebnis ist ein Körper mit drei Köpfen, der vor einer Pinnwand mit lauter Notizen und roten Fäden steht. Die Bildunterschrift lautet "Das F steht für fantastisch".
October 31, 2025 at 12:48 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
I'm currently doing a deep dive into #SilentHillF and the more it reveals about the intricacies of its story and mechanics, the more I'm enjoying it.

In particular, players growing and learning more about the world alongside the protagonist through repeated playthroughs works incredibly well.
A screenshot of the game, showing a part of a neighbourhood in rural Japan. Almost at the center of the picture, there's the game's protagonist Hinako, seen from behind, looking up to a balcony. On the balcony, there's another girl wearing a school uniform.
October 23, 2025 at 3:00 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
A quick OER update:

Today I finished one of the most daunting tasks so far: Summarising legislation relevant for games and accessibility.

Our team is now looking for feedback from lawyers and #accessibility experts to make sure I got everything right. If you'd like to help, please get in touch!
A screenshot, showing an excerpt from the document with the following text: European Accessibility Act (EAA) Since June 28th, 2025, compliance with the EAA is mandatory if you’re offering certain services or products in the European Union. As is often the case with accessibility laws, digital games are not mentioned specifically, but that does not mean they’re exempt. In fact, several of the services covered by the EAA are relevant to gaming, specifically: – Digital communication services – E-commerce services – And, to a limited extend, TV and video streaming services Let’s have a closer look at what this means, and what you can do to make your products and services EAA compliant...
October 13, 2025 at 2:30 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
After several months of work, I finished this #embroidery project last weekend. It's my second ever attempt at embroidery and I'm really, really happy with the result.
A close up of the finished work: An embroidered stag beetle, shown from the top, on the back of a dark grey jeans jacket. Behind the beetle's head, there's a golden circle, reminiscent of the sun. A photo of the entire jacket, showing the placement and the size of the embroidered stag beetle.
October 13, 2025 at 7:30 AM
beurkeek.bsky.social
Most recently, #CollectiveShout made this particular claim — without proving empirical evidence — to deplatform adult games.

So: Let's have a look at research from different fields to find out if there's actually any evidence for these claims and why sexual violence seems to be so popular in porn.
A modified version of the Thursday, what a concept meme, depicting a red-haired woman holding a cigarette in her right hand. This version shows the following text at the bottom: Doing proper research before discussing a complex topic. What a concept.
October 10, 2025 at 12:15 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
Today I'm starting my deep dive into the complex topic we've picked for the next episode of Random Encounters: Sexualised violence in (interactive) pornography.
A photo showing a book and several academic papers on a wooden table. The publications are titled Sex and Sexuality in Game Studies, Pornographie Games on Steam, Sexual fantasy research, and Sexual Violence as a Sexual Script in Mainstream Pornography.
October 10, 2025 at 12:13 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
While it's a pity I missed out on most of the social experience of #GAConf this time due to time zone differences, being able to watch the talks now, at my own pace, is also great.

#Gaming #Accessibility
A photo of my laptop standing on my office desk. On the screen, there are four people's webcam feeds. I've activated automated captions, which say: Hello everybody. Um this is our...
October 1, 2025 at 10:09 AM
beurkeek.bsky.social
In diesem Monat sprechen wir in "Random Encounters" über sexuelle Aufklärung und das in Deutschland entwickelte Adventure "Sibel's Journey":

insertmoin.de/sibels-journ...

(Patreon-exklusiver Inhalt)

#Podcast #RandomEncounters #SeriousGames #EduGames
Eine Illustration im westlichen Comic-Stil, die zwei weiblich gelesene Figuren unter einer Brücke zeigt. Die beiden sind gerade dabei, Selfies zu machen.
September 30, 2025 at 12:35 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
Today, we wrapped up our four-day seminar on inclusive #gaming at TH Köln!

This time, we focused on #accessibility and inclusion in media education and were excited to meet students who did not have much prior gaming experience, but were highly engaged and eager to learn more about it.
A close-up of a student from behind. She's sitting in front of a laptop which is running a game, and in the process of assembling the modular Proteus controller. A photo showing most of the room with its modern interior, high walls and a big screen. Two students are playing Mario Kart World while the others are watching. A photo of our desks, where we'd sit occasionally to give short inputs on a range of topics. There's a lot of gaming technology on top and in front of the desks, as well as game-related accessories and decoration. A photo showing a table. On the table, there's a black and blue gaming headset and several pieces of paper with images and text on them. The larger text on two of the pages reads: Mindball Play and Blind Drive.
September 26, 2025 at 2:03 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
"Mlem", or:

Cursed be my brain for seeing faces in absolutely everything.

#SilentHillF
screenshot from the game Silent Hill f, showing a close-up of a teenage girl from behind. She's wearing a traditional Japanese school uniform. The tip of a red scarf is peeking out of a blue collar. On the collar, there are two white sigils, one on the far left and one on the far right corner. Combined, these pieces of clothing look a bit like a face sticking out its tongue.
September 24, 2025 at 5:22 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
Heute ab 15:30 auf dem Schadowplatz in #Duesseldorf: Demo gegen die AfD und deren Wahlkampf. Ich werde vor Ort sein, wer noch? :heart_pride:
Auf diesem Foto ist meine linke Hand zu sehen, die ein Pappschild mit folgender Aufschrift hochhält: Düsseldorf bleibt bunt. Das Wort ist besonders auffällig, in Regenbogenfarben gestaltet.
September 12, 2025 at 11:54 AM
beurkeek.bsky.social
Had a terrible day, but now it's time to unwind. Let's go!

#SuperPuzzleFighterIITurbo
A photo showing the game Super Puzzle Fighter Two Turbo projected on a large screen, a colourful competitive puzzle game with chibi versions of well known Capcom characters. Depicted here: Morrigan and Donovan.
September 10, 2025 at 5:37 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
It took a while due to customs shenanigans, but my copy of the "Bloomsbury Handbook of Sex and Sexuality in Game Studies" has finally arrived!

I wrote a chapter about using digital games for sex education and can't wait to read the other authors' texts, all of which sound incredibly interesting.
A photo showing the book placed upright on a laminate floor, in front of a black shelf. The handbook has an abstract, colourful cover. On the shelf, there are a few consoles: A SNES, a Nintendo 64, a Gamecube, and a PS1. In addition, there's a postcard showing a scene with several characters from the game Mass Effect: FemShep and Garrus kissing on a couch, surrounded by other NPCs.
September 8, 2025 at 3:15 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
I leveled up my embroidery game and finally got a hoop to avoid further rippling. Should have used one from the beginning, of course, but this is my second ever project, so mistakes were expected.
A photo showing the back side of a dark grey jeans jacket with a nearly finished, embroidered stag beetle on it. Some of the cloth is framed by a wooden embroidery loop.
September 5, 2025 at 3:12 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
As a personal note, I'm excited #Atomfall received the award for the best international game.

It has a wide range of great accessibility features and options, which were developed with an in-house specialist as well as several consultants.

But it doesn't just impress with its accessibility.
A promotional image showing a lush, green environment with an atomic plant far in the background. There is lightning and a blue light surrounding the plant, clearly indicating that something's wrong. In the foreground, a masked person with a rifle is standing on a rock. A line of text written on the rock says: Keep out. Close to the person, there's a slightly decayed signpost with a black bird sitting on it.
September 1, 2025 at 1:57 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
Hello there!

I'm back from my three-week summer vacation and currently finding my way back into my work routine. Since I also took some time off social media, I'll share a couple of notable events that took place during my absence.
A photo showing me sitting behind a wooden table in front of a brick wall. I am a slender white person with short, reddish hair, wearing a sleeveless light grey shirt. I'm looking at the camera with a bright smile.
September 1, 2025 at 12:56 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
My three-week summer vacation begins tomorrow and I'll use this opportunity to take a little break from social media. See you in September!
A black and gray digital drawing in a simplified comic style. It depicts me with sunglasses, slurping tap water through a straw. In the background, the sun is smiling, looking pretty relaxed.
August 8, 2025 at 10:13 AM
beurkeek.bsky.social
My and a fellow games journalist played the game because – crazy idea – we wanted to have a look at it before joining the discussion, and yes: It's bad. Unbelievable bad.

When we reached the scene shown below we had a laughing fit that lasted several minutes.
A screenshot of the game showing a 3D model of a woman wearing a really, really strange costume with a leopard print. The text on the bottom on the screen says: Wow, you're really commited to beavers, huh?
July 31, 2025 at 11:27 AM
beurkeek.bsky.social
In "Random Encounters" geht es diesmal heiß her: Wir daten uns quer durch einen Haushalt, vom tête-à-tête mit einem Bett bis hin zu elaborierten Rollenspielen mit unserem D20-Würfel.

insertmoin.de/random-encou...

(Patreon-exklusiver Inhalt)
Das Titelbild des Spiels, das passenderweise eine große Zahl kunterbunter, extravagant gekleideter Figuren zeigt, welche die menschlichen Varianten von Haushaltsgegenständen darstellen. Sowohl die Charaktere, den Hintergrund als auch das Logo zieren zahlreiche Herzen.
July 30, 2025 at 9:45 AM
beurkeek.bsky.social
In other news: I'm also happy to share that our Open Educational Resources on game #accessibility already cover a wide range of topics, and we're still adding more content.

The resources will be published early next year, free of cost.

#OER #Education #GameDevelopment #InclusiveGameLab
A screenshot of a text editor. On the left side of the screen, there's a long list of bullet points mentioning topics such as navigation assistance, optional clues, and visual alternatives to auditory feedback. On the page next to it are several paragraphs of text and a screenshot from the game Atomfall, which is highlighted as a positive example for font size options.
July 29, 2025 at 2:41 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
Leider wieder besonders aktuell:

Mein 2022 erschienener Artikel über das Deplatforming von Adult Games und Spielen mit queeren Inhalten. Meine Interviewpartner*innen und ich prognostizierten damals, dass sich itch.io als sicherer Hafen für solche Werke nicht langfristig würde halten können.
A screenshot displaying the following text: Vorerst wird diese Kulturgeschichte auf Itch.io für die Nachwelt erhalten – aber wie lange noch? Es gibt durchaus Grund zur Sorge: "Itch.io ist für den Moment sicher, aber es scheint nicht wahrscheinlich, dass das so bleibt, wenn man bedenkt, wie die Dinge laufen," sagt Souha Al-Samkari und Mr. Hands ergänzt, dass auch Itch.io über kurz oder lang Probleme mit Zahlungsdienstleistern und deren strengen Regeln gegen sexuelle Inhalte bekommen wird. "Und wenn die Wahl zwischen Spielen für Erwachsene und der Abwicklung von Zahlungen besteht, kann schnell entschieden werden, Ersteres zu verbieten." Zwar betont Betreiber Leaf Corcoran immer wieder, dass es nicht sein Ziel sei, mit Itch.io reich zu werden. Aber auch er muss nach den Regeln des Kapitalismus spielen, und diese Regeln sind auf Profit ausgelegt.
July 24, 2025 at 1:03 PM
beurkeek.bsky.social
Last week, I got to talk about sex work(er) representation in digital games at the TALK:IN event in Berlin. I was pleasantly surprised by the audience's interest in this topic and the deep conversations that followed. Thanks again to @gameinfyi.bsky.social for having me!

(Photo by Julian Dasgupta)
A photo showing me on stage next to a large screen in a brightly lit room. On the screen is the first slide of my presentation, featuring a scantily-clad, female sex worker from the game Cyberpunk 2077 and the following text: Nina Kiel, You're so handsome, I might just give you a discount, die Darstellung von Sexarbeit in digitalen Spielen.
July 9, 2025 at 1:15 PM