Dr. Kris Alexander
Since the age of eight, Kris Alexander has spent two to four hours a day playing video games -- while working a full-time job, being a present father and husband, and running a successful business. Known as "the professor of video games," he teaches game design at Toronto Metropolitan University, where he received his BA and MA. For his PhD at Concordia University, he wrote his thesis on video game design in education. He is also a two-time globally ranked video game player. As an educator, he teaches video game design, virtual production and esports broadcasting -- the core ingredients of the metaverse. He strives to show that the power of video games extends behind and beyond the controller, offering what many of the three billion gamers on earth see and enjoy when playing video games: a new perspective.
The Red Bull Gaming Hub is a modern take on classroom and community, focused on three areas:
1. Video Game Design
2. Esports Broadcasting
3. Virtual Production
One part live streaming classroom, and one part interactive 3D development, the gaming hub is led by instructors who are active members of the communities that the RBGH space serves, with public facing personas and established track records in video game, esports, and virtual production spaces. We focus on Games User Research as a framework for developing and testing game ideas, as well as host community centered events, in addition to serving as the training space for TMU Esports.
Love it, live it, show it, and give it (barz).
Dr. Kris Alexander, the professor of video games, is a two-time globally ranked player turned scholar, and game developer. His work focuses on video game design, esports broadcasting, and virtual production.
Currently the Director of The Red Bull Gaming Hub (external link) a live broadcast classroom and interactive 3D training facility at Toronto Metropolitan University focused on esports broadcasting, virtual production, and video game design, Dr. Alexander has gained global attention with his TED Talk (external link) entitled ‘How Video Games Can Level Up Education’, which has been viewed over 1 million times.
Dr. Alexander has also completed academic video essays with Wisecrack (external link) , done educational work with Epic Games (external link) , worked on esports in academia with Red Bull (external link) , Team Liquid (external link) , the Esports Travel Summit (external link) , and even transformed into an animated bear live on Breakfast Television (external link) . He is Canada’s academic expert guide to the nuanced nature of video games that extends beyond the playing of games.
