West Shore Community College (WSCC) and Chicago Gamespace will co-curate The Plot Thickens: Storytelling in Gaming, a multisite exhibition exploring how games tell stories in innovative and unexpected ways. The exhibition runs Nov. 7, 2025, through April 26, 2026.
Featuring video games, board games, and game-inspired artworks by 12 artists from around the world, The Plot Thickens highlights the narrative power of interactive media while challenging common misconceptions about gaming.
Exhibited works include Elizabeth LaPensée’s When Rivers Were Trails (2019), Sam Barlow’s Her Story (2015), Adrienne Ciskey’s Bitter Pills (2016) and the classic text adventure Zork (1980). Other featured titles include Florence, Mediterranea Inferno, The Last Express, and Keisha Howard’s mixed-reality piece Mind Faux (2025).
“Every game has a story, but no two are ever the same,” said Chicago Gamespace Curator Jonathan Kinkley. “We shape those stories through our own choices—a quality that makes games the most unpredictable storytelling medium.”
Eden Ünlüata-Foley, WSCC art professor and curator, said, “We’re thrilled to partner with historical societies, libraries, and art centers to showcase games in spaces where collective stories are both preserved and reimagined.”
Exhibition sites include the WSCC Manierre Dawson Gallery and William M. Anderson Library, Ludington Area Center for the Arts, Mason County Historical Society, Mason County Public Library in Ludington, Chicago Gamespace, Chicago Public Library’s Wicker Park Bucktown Branch, and the Japanese Arts Foundation, among others.
An opening reception will be held Nov. 7 at the Ludington Area Center for the Arts, free and open to all. Visit westshore.edu for hours and site details.
The Plot Thickens is part of WSCC’s Humankind Series, which fosters community dialogue through art, presentations, and performances. This year’s theme, “Storytelling,” celebrates the power of stories to bridge cultures, spark empathy, and shape our world. Visit westshore.edu to learn more and for a complete list of locations that are part of the exhibit.
Founded in 1967, West Shore Community College in Scottville, Michigan, is committed to excellence in education and to supporting students as they pursue personal and professional goals. Its mission is to make the community a better place in which to learn, live, work, and prosper.
Founded in 2020, Chicago Gamespace is a video game museum dedicated to exploring the art and history of gaming. Located in Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood, it hosts exhibitions, a permanent collection, and a shop of video game art prints. Learn more at www.chicagogamespace.