The Power of Play: Pesaro hosts a video game festival as a tool for social impact.

It was held at the House of Emerging Technologies – CTE Square in Pesaro, press conference to present the first edition of The Power of Play, festival that celebrates video games as a tool for change, scheduled on 10 and 11 October 2025 at the Scavolini Auditorium in Pesaro.

The event is organized by IIDEA, the association representing the video game industry in Italy, on the initiative of the Municipality of Pesaro – CTE Square and University of Urbino Carlo Bo, in partnership with Games for change, an international organization that promotes the creation and use of video games with positive social impact.

They were present at the press conference Paola Nonni, Alexander Bogliolo e Thalita Malagò, who presented the complete program of the first Italian edition of the international festival on socially impactful video games. During the two days, they will alternate on stage 30 speakers from 7 countries (Italy, Belgium, France, Poland, Sweden, United Kingdom and USA) with keynote speech and in-depth panel on 6 thematic tracks: wellbeing, sustainability, culture, human rights, education and awareness.

They will also be organized 6 practical workshops for primary and secondary school students, while in the 'showcase area It will be possible to try video games and socio-cultural experiences and meet their developers. Alessandro Bogliolo underlined: “The engagement is the key to social change and innovationThe Power of Play represents the values ​​of the CTE Square project, in two significant days: the World Mental Health Day and the inauguration of the Europe Code Week. "

Thalita Malagò added: “Let's valorize video games beyond entertainment, recognizing them as tools of connection, inclusion, cultural growth, well-being and education. "

Previews of the program

Among the keynote speaker include: Sam Barratt (UN), Lindsay Grace (University of Miami), Lucrezia Ercoli (Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna), Aubrey Quinn (ESA), Nicholas Elles (Video Games Europe).

Il 10 October, will be assigned Italian Video Game Awards – Games Beyond Entertainment 2025, with two categories:

• Best in Impact: video games that address relevant social issues

• Best in Learning: video games that support learning

THE11 October, first official day of the EU Code Week 2025, will be dedicated to the use of video games in educational contexts, with panels for teachers and practical workshops for schoolsThe initiatives will be presented EU Code Week 2025 e Games for Change Student Challenge.

Friday 10 October at 18.30pm, an appointment open to the public: the family influencer Driving without a license, with the support of Professor Manuela Cantoia, they will talk about thecorrect use of video games by children and teenagers and the role of parents.

The WOM Challenge

The festival adopts WOM Pocket, an application that encourages active participation and networking. Free registration on Eventbrite, full program on www.thepowerofplay.it.