Iran Computer and Video Games Foundation

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Iran National Foundation of Computer Games

Formation| January 1, 2007; 18 years ago (2007-01-01)
Type| Nonprofit organization
Location|

* Tehran, Iran

Area served

| Iran

Parent organization

| Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance
Website| en.ircg.ir

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]

Poster for the "LevelUp" video game development event, hosted by the ICVGF

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]

Main article: Entertainment Software Rating Association

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]

Video games developed by the Iran Game Development Institute  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]

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|

The official poster of the Fifth Tehran Video Game Festival

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.

Iran Game Exhibitions 2011–2013  Event  | Date  | Location in Tehran

|
|

1st Tehran Game Exhibition  | 17–21 August 2011  | Milad Tower
2nd Tehran Game Exhibition  | 13–17 August 2012  | Imam Khomeini Mosalla
3rd Tehran Game Exhibition  | 13–17 August 2013  | Imam Khomeini Mosalla
Tehran Video Game Festivals 2011–2015  Event  | Date

|

1st Tehran Video Game Festival  | 17–21 August 2011
2nd Tehran Video Game Festival  | 13–17 August 2012
3rd Tehran Video Game Festival  | 13–17 August 2013
4th Tehran Video Game Festival  | 2 September – 2 October 2014
5th Tehran Video Game Festival  | 20 May – 20 August 2015
Events hosted or sanctioned by the ICVGF  Event  | Date

|

Kashan GDC  | 13 April
Persian Gold Game Development  | 13 June
Global Game Jam  | 13 January
Kashan GDC  | 14 April
Ludum Dare 30  | 14 August
NES Jam  | 14 November
Ludum Dare 31  | 14 November
Global Game Jam  | 15 January
Tehran Indie Game Festival  | 15 February

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Mark J. P. Wolf, Toru Iwatani (22 May 2015). Video Games Around the World. MIT Press. p. 277\. ISBN 978-0262328494.
2. ^ "Iran's National Foundation of Computer Games to Organize Game Centers – Herald Boy". www.heraldboy.com. Archived from the original on 10 September 2016. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
3. ^ "Iran plans to block websites offering "1979 Revolution"". 17 April 2016. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
4. ^ "Acclaimed PC game banned in Iran due to "hostile intentions"". 9 June 2016. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
5. ^ "Iran Bans Video Game Based On Revolution". Retrieved 21 August 2016.
6. ^ Lewis, Danny. "Inside Iran's Budding Video Game Industry". Retrieved 16 July 2016.
7. ^ Azali, MohammadReza (21 February 2016). "The First National Conference on Computer Games in Iran". Techrasa. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
8. ^ "Iran's video-gaming industry poised for action – Africa M.E." 2 April 2016. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
9. ^ Šisler, Vit (1 January 2013). "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.
10. ^ "Top Rank in Mideast Video Game Production". Financial Tribune Daily. 16 November 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
11. ^ "Iranian video games draw interest of customers in global markets". irna. Archived from the original on 5 March 2017.
12. ^ "Iran's video-gaming industry poised for action – Africa M.E." 2 April 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
13. ^ "Status of Video Games in Iran". Financial Tribune Daily. 19 January 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
14. ^ "Iranian Expo Promotes "Proper Culture Of Computer Games"". 16 October 2008. Archived from the original on 5 March 2017. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
15. ^ "Iran national foundation of computer games News, Videos, Reviews and Gossip – Kotaku". Kotaku. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
16. ^ "Iran tries to crack games market". BBC. 20 August 2009. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
17. ^ "Iran's National Foundation of Computer Games to Organize Game Centers – Herald Boy". www.heraldboy.com. Archived from the original on 10 September 2016. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
18. ^ a b "About ESRA – IRCG official website". Archived from the original on 26 July 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
19. ^ Caoili, Eric (30 December 2008). "Iran Sets Up ESRA Game Ratings, ESRB Denies Link". www.gamasutra.com. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
20. ^ "Islamic system will rate video games | The National". 30 November 2010. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
21. ^ Newbould, Chris. "Islamic video game rating system launched". www.digitalproductionme.com. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
22. ^ "Iran Game Development Institute | Global Game Jam". globalgamejam.org. 12 December 2013. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
23. ^ Lien, Tracey (25 October 2012). "The stressful life of Middle Eastern game developers and reality of their craft". Polygon. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
24. ^ Azali, MohammadReza (21 February 2016). "The First National Conference on Computer Games in Iran". Techrasa. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
25. ^ "Iranian Expo Promotes "Proper Culture Of Computer Games"". 16 October 2008. Archived from the original on 5 March 2017. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
26. ^ "Iranian computer game companies to attend Game Connection 2015". 26 October 2015. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
27. ^ "Iran interactive games on display at world's biggest fair in Cologne". www.irna.ir. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
28. ^ "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 12 October 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
29. ^ "Post-nuclear: video games are 'blooming' in Iran and some make up to '200k' a day | Sci-Tech | DW.COM | 19 August 2016". DW.COM. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
30. ^ "Iran to participate in Gamescom 2016 in Germany". The Iran Project. 18 August 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
31. ^ Lewis, Danny. "Inside Iran's Budding Video Game Industry". Retrieved 18 July 2016.
32. ^ Jafari, Hamed (21 September 2015). "5.5 Million Iranian Players on Clash of Clans". Techrasa. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
33. ^ Jafari, Hamed (7 February 2016). "$140M Video Games Market Revenue in Iran". Techrasa. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
34. ^ "Top Rank in Mideast Video Game Production". Financial Tribune Daily. 16 November 2014. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
35. ^ Chiaramonte, Perry (7 June 2016). "Tehran blocks sale of video game depicting Iran's 1979 revolution | Fox News". Fox News. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
36. ^ Cragg, Oliver (9 June 2016). "Acclaimed PC game banned in Iran due to "hostile intentions"". International Business Times UK. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
37. ^ "Iran plans to block websites offering "1979 Revolution"". Tehran Times. 17 April 2016. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
38. ^ Sarkar, Samit (19 September 2012). "'Arma 3' banned in Iran". Polygon. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
39. ^ "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 29 August 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
40. ^ "Islamic Video Game Rating System Launched at Dubai World Game Expo | IslamToday – English". en.islamtoday.net. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
41. ^ "Islamic Game Rating System Announced". Archived from the original on 22 September 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
42. ^ "Game Jam at FUM in Sept". Financial Tribune Daily. 13 July 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
43. ^ "Class of 2016 | Moody College of Communication". Moody College of Communication. Archived from the original on 20 June 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
44. ^ "Iranian Companies Developing New Video Games for Local Players – Herald Boy". www.heraldboy.com. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
45. ^ "Finding video games with added cultural value | Digital Culture | DW.COM | 6 August 2015". DW.COM. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
46. ^ ""Hate the Sin" named best at Game Connection Asia". www.payvand.com. Retrieved 8 November 2016.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website
* Old domain
* Tehran Game Festival Archived 28 August 2018 at the Wayback Machine