I regularly write about my research in public venues and provide comment in the media on contemporary issues and topics that relate to games and play. I believe public engagement is an important part of academic service, and I have significant experience with pre-recorded and live television, and was most recently one of the key academic experts in the ABC Lifestyle TV series, ‘Help! My kid is a gamer!‘. If you’d like to reach out to me for my input or comment, please email me:
If your inquiry is urgent you can also contact The University of Sydney’s media office.
Selected Media Engagement
The Guardian (22/08/2022) Global success of Cult of the Lamb showcases Australia’s video games development talent
The Australian (23/07/2021) Virtually reality: ‘Gaming offers escape and empowerment’
ABC News (29/11/2020) Gaming has soared during the coronavirus pandemic — is that a positive response to isolation or a reason to worry? [Watch on YouTube, ABC News Article]
Al Jazeera English (29/08/2020) Apple Terminates Developer Account of Epic Games
Sydney Morning Herald (15/08/2020) Fortnite maker’s gamble could see mobile players shut out of the game
CNET (14/08/2020) Fortnite maker Epic’s battle with Apple and Google is about making them into villains
PC World. (16/06/2020) Why do gamers like RGB lights?
Help! My Kid is a Gamer! ABC Lifestyle TV Series, October 2019, https://iview.abc.net.au/show/help-my-kid-is-a-gamer
ABC Life (29/10/2019) What to do when your child starts spending money in video games
ABC News (8/8/2019) Loot boxes in big games like Call of Duty and Overwatch to publish odds for random items
WCCFTech (28/5/2019) WHO’s Diagnosis of Gaming Disorder Questioned by Professors from the University of Sydney
Sydney Morning Herald (5/3/2019) A Happy Medium? Why Screens are not all that bad.
Apple App Store (5/12/18) Game Trend of the Year: Battle Royale
Triple J’s Hack (28/11/18) Do we need more action on loot boxes?
The Guardian (17/08/18) Videogame loot boxes addictive and a form of ‘simulated gambling’, Senate inquiry told
ABC News (14/06/18) E3: Loot boxes on the way out, developers say, as games like Fortnite show new way to monetise
ABC News (12/06/2018) Fortnite is taking over. These experts want you to play it with your kids.
The Guardian (20/06/18) Fortnite: schools warn parents of ‘negative effects’ of video game on students
Catalyst [National TV Broadcast, Feature Story] (16/07/16) Orangutans at Melbourne Zoo to be given more video games. [Watch on YouTube, ABC News article]
Seven News [National TV Broadcast] (09/02/16) World-First technology enables highly intelligent orangutan to interact with humans at Melbourne Zoo
Nine News [National TV Broadcast] (09/02/16) Tech Savvy Orangutans master Computer Games at Melbourne Zoo
ABC News (03/02/16) Orangutans in Melbourne Zoo playing Interactive Videogames using Xbox Technology
The Project [National TV Broadcast, Feature Story] (03/02/16) Gaming Orangutans [YouTube Link]
Pursuit (02/02/16) Kinecting with the Orangutans
The Age (01/02/16) Experiment has Zoo’s Orangutans seeing Red
ABC News (13/07/16) Pokemon Go: Holocaust Museum, Auschwitz ask players to Go somewhere else
The Sydney Morning Herald (14/08/16) EVE Online: Worldwide multiplayer RPG tests the boundaries of fun
New Scientist (09/10/13). The Rise of Consequences in Video Games.
Publications in Popular Media
Carter, M. & Egliston, B. (01/2022) Privacy Concerns and Data Harms in the Metaverse. The World Financial Review
Carter, M. & Egliston, B. (05/2021) All work and no play in the future of virtual reality. Sydney Business Insights
Egliston, B., Mavoa, J. & Carter, M. (04/05/2021) Sure, videogames want to get you hooked on spending. But there’s no evidence they can manipulate you. The Conversation
Egliston, B, & Carter, M. (07/04/2021) ‘Potential for harm’: Microsoft to make US$22 billion worth of augmented reality headsets for US Army. The Conversation
Carter, M. & Mavoa, J. (17/03/2021) Why is kids’ video game Roblox worth $38 billion and what do parents need to know? The Conversation
Egliston, B. & Carter, M. (20/11/2020) The war between Xbox and Playstation is no longer about consoles. It’s about winning your loyalty. The Conversation
Carter, M. & Egliston, B. (24/09/2020) No Escape from Reality. Real Life Magazine
Carter, M. & Egliston, B. (18/09/2020) Facebook’s Virtual Reality Push is about Data, not gaming. The Conversation.
Mavoa, J. & Carter, M. (11/09/2020) Child’s play in the time of COVID: screen games are still ‘real’ play. The Conversation
Egliston, B., Moore, K. & Carter, M. (20/08/2020) Apple, Google and Fortnite’s stoush is a classic case of how far big tech will go to retain power The Conversation
Egliston, B. & Carter, M. (4/2/2020) Twitch.tv and the work of watching. Overland
Webber, S. & Carter, M. (29/11/2019) Virtual Reality won’t make cows happier, but it might help us see them differently. The Conversation
Carter, M. & Egliston, B. (17/12/2018) Broken records, ‘crunch’ and freemium that’s not free: 2018 was a huge year in gaming. The Conversation
Mavoa, J. & Carter, M. (16/01/18) Minecraft teaches kids about tech, but there’s a gender imbalance in play. The Conversation
Carter, M. (02/01/18) The five most anticipated games of 2018. The Conversation [https://goo.gl/hsyLWP]
Carter, M. (27/11/17) ‘Loot boxes’ and pay-to-win features in digital games look a lot like gambling. ABC News.
Velloso, E. & Carter, M. (11/07/16) The Pokémon GO craze sees gamers hit the streets but it comes with a warning The Conversation.
Carter, M. & Velloso, E. (12/07/16) Some places should be off limits for games such as Pokémon GO. The Conversation
Webber, S., Carter, M. & Sherwen, S. (15/03/16) Orang-utans play video games too, and it can enrich their lives in the zoo. The Conversation.
Carter, M. (07/12/15) The Moral Dilemma: Monopoly or Zombies. Pursuit
Carter, M. (23/3/15). Screen Ecologies, Multi-Gaming and Designing for Different Registers of Engagement. Gamasutra
Carter, M. & Bjork, S. (4/8/15). Cheating at Candy Crush Saga. Gamasutra
Carter, M. & Allison, F. (30/11/15). Voice Interaction and Player Identity Dissonance in Games. Gamasutra