Innovative training

IULM Game Lab is born: the video game as a cultural language

The programme kicks off with an event dedicated to the 40th anniversary of Super Mario Bros., realised in collaboration with Nintendo.

by School Editorial

22 April 2026

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

The programme with Super Mario Bros.
The video game market
The educational dimension
IUL Game Lab

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

IULM announces the birth of IULM Game Lab, a new platform dedicated to research, teaching and dissemination on videogames and, more generally, on ludic forms understood as cultural objects and social practices.

The programme with Super Mario Bros.

Opening the public programme is an event dedicated to the 40th anniversary of Super Mario Bros., realised in collaboration with Nintendo. The initiative, conceived as the opening event of the spring calendar, proposes an accessible but rigorous reflection on the evolution of the video game and its cultural impact, starting from one of the most recognisable icons of contemporaneity.

"The birth of the IULM Game Lab represents an important step in the University's path towards the study of contemporary languages and creative industries," stressed Valentina Garavaglia, Rector of IULM University. "The videogame is today a central cultural form, capable of influencing imaginaries and modes of communication. Placing this project in an open and shared space means strengthening the dialogue between university and society'.

The video game market

The centrality of the video game in the contemporary cultural landscape is reflected in a structural growth of the sector, which is also increasingly relevant in terms of employment and education. In Italia, in 2024, the video game market reached EUR 2.367 billion, with about 14 million video gamers (33% of the population between 6 and 64 years old, 84% of whom are of age). The national production has over 200 operators, around 2,800 employees and an estimated turnover of between EUR 180 and 200 million (data: Video Games in Italia in 2024 by IIDEA/Annual Data Report on Europe's Video Games Sector by Video Games Europe). More than half of the companies expect new hires or collaborations in the two-year period 2025-2026.

At European level, the latest analyses by the Council of the European Union and the European Commission indicate that the sector is more than eleven times larger than in Italy and is recognised by institutions as an integral part of the cultural and creative industries, with a growing impact on employment and economic development.

The educational dimension

Alongside the economic dimension, the educational dimension also emerges: the conscious use of video games in education can increase student motivation, support different learning styles and facilitate the understanding of complex content. More than 60% of teachers, however, point to the need for specific training to integrate them effectively into educational paths.

IUL Game Lab

It is in this context that IULM Game Lab was born, with the aim of giving continuity and visibility to a set of activities that the University has been developing for over twenty years, strengthening its dialogue with the outside world. The project therefore has a twofold mission:

- offer students an environment in which training, experimentation and confrontation with professionals are organically integrated;

- Contribute to the University's positioning on gaming and digital cultures, through an approach that combines critical reflection and openness to the public.

The laboratory is located in the new IULM 7_# Open Space, on the ground floor of the campus in via Filargo 38. Conceived as a dynamic and shared space, it is dedicated to students and teachers and is open to the public, as a place for interdisciplinary meetings and planning.

"The Game Lab was created as a place of convergence between research, teaching and popularisation,' added Matteo Bittanti, Associate Professor in Media Studies and director of the Milan Machinima Festival. The aim is to study the videogame as a complex cultural language and to build opportunities for open discussion. Super Mario is an ideal starting point: an extraordinarily readable design system that continues to influence the way we think about and design games'.