Call for Chapters:

Human-Agent Synergy in Modern Video Games
IGI Global Scientific Publishing
https://www.igi-global.com/publish/call-for-papers/call-details/10261

Editors:
João Paulo Sousa, Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Portugal
Rogério Tavares, Polytechnic Institute of Bragança, Portugal
Emmanoel Ferreira, Fluminense Federal University, Brazil
Rodrigo Domingues, Federal University of Uberlândia, Brazil

Deadline for submission of proposals: September 27, 2026
Deadline for submission of full chapters: November 29, 2026

INTRODUCTION

The video game industry and the field of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) are undergoing a paradigm shift. We are rapidly moving past static, reactive generative AI tools toward Agentic AI, which consists of autonomous, proactive systems capable of reasoning, planning, and executing complex workflows. This evolution gives rise to Human-Agent Co-Creation, a collaborative framework where human creators and artificial agents share agency to shape digital experiences. This transition, far from being strictly technical, is deeply cultural and industrial, reconfiguring the way games are conceived, developed, played, and experienced. Instead of treating artificial intelligence as a mere production utility or a standalone content generator, this new paradigm views agentic collaboration as a transversal force reshaping the entire video game lifecycle. The symbiosis between human intuition and algorithmic autonomy thus establishes a new frontier for interactive media. In the studio and during the design process, AI acts as a collaborative partner that powers initial game mechanics and automated software engineering. Within runtime and the player experience, this dynamic is reflected in the rise of emergent gameplay and Non-Player Characters (NPCs) capable of reasoning, adapting, and negotiating meaning in real time, with its impact extending to virtual market economies. In light of this profound transformation, this thematic track seeks to gather scientific contributions that analyze, critique, and theorize this evolution. The goal is to welcome research covering both the technical and creative dimensions of this new ecosystem, as well as its ethical, economic, labor, and cultural implications.

OBJECTIVE

The primary objective of this scientific volume is to provide a comprehensive, interdisciplinary, and state-of-the-art reference on how the transition to agentic AI systems redefines the gaming ecosystem, altering agency, production, and user experience. By bridging the gap between technical implementation, interaction design frameworks, and socio-cultural critique, this book aims to:

• To critically examine how the transition from static generative tools to autonomous agents fundamentally reconfigures the foundations of game design, production, and distribution.
• To explore how agentic AI redefines the relationship between human creators and artificial systems, shifting it from an instrument and user logic to a framework of collaboration and partnership.
• To analyze and theorize the systemic implications of agentic AI on gameplay, narrative agency, and the socio-economic structures of the gaming industry.
• To bring together multidisciplinary perspectives from game studies, computer science, design, sociology of work, applied ethics, and creative economics capable of fostering a dialogue on this emerging phenomenon.
• To contribute to the development of a conceptual and critical vocabulary that enables the academic community to rigorously keep pace with a transformation that the industry is already experiencing in practice.

TARGET AUDIENCE

This publication is designed to be an essential resource for a diverse group of stakeholders within academia and the interactive entertainment industry, including:

• Researchers and Academics in Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Game Studies, Digital Media, and Artificial Intelligence.
• Game Developers and Software Engineers looking for verified architectural patterns, DevOps workflows, and co-creative tools to optimize production pipelines.
• Game Designers and Writers interested in mastering context engineering, procedural content generation (PCG), and emergent narrative systems.
• Graduate and Postgraduate Students (Master’s and Ph.D. levels) pursuing advanced curricula in digital game design, development, and interactive technologies.

RECOMMENDED TOPICS

We invite original book chapter proposals (empirical studies, technical frameworks, case studies, or theoretical essays) covering, but not limited to, the following thematic tracks:

1. Game Design, Systems & DevOps (Pre-Production & Engineering)

• Mixed-Initiative Design Tools: Frameworks where designers and autonomous agents collaborate to build, test, and balance game systems in real-time.
• Vibe Coding in Game Development: The transition from manual syntax to declarative, natural-language software engineering for interactive graphics and game physics.
• Automated Quality Assurance: The implications of agentic playtesting on the definition of ‘player experience’ and game balance.

2. Intelligent Content & Asset Creation (The Co-Creative Pipeline)

• Human-in-the-Loop PCG: Cooperative procedural content generation of 3D models, textures, levels, and environmental assets.
• Context Engineering & RAG for Narratives: The impact of dynamic memory graphs on narrative agency and the stability of fictional worlds.
• Adaptive Audio & Real-Time Animation: Co-creating responsive soundscapes and character behaviors driven by continuous human-agent feedback loops.

3. Gameplay, Interface & Interaction (Runtime Experience)

• Autonomous NPCs & Persistent Memory: Character architectures that adapt to player history, creating genuine co-presences and emergent gameplay.
• HCI for Shared Agency: UX/UI design patterns that mitigate friction, manage cognitive load, and foster trust between humans and AI agents.
• Player Experience (PX) in Co-Creative Worlds: Evaluating player psychological responses to infinite, algorithmically adapted virtual spaces.

4. Game Economies, UGC & Market Dynamics

• Agent-Based Economic Simulations: Predicting and stabilizing in-game economies, virtual asset inflation, and market behavior using autonomous simulation agents.
• AI-Empowered User-Generated Content (UGC): Democratizing game modding and content creation by integrating intelligent tools into player communities.
• Synthetic Marketplace Governance: The automated curation and moderation of asset-flipping, synthetic spam (AI Slop), and fraudulent transactions in digital storefronts.

5. Critical Studies, Ethics & the Future of Authorship

• The Philosophy of Joint Authorship: Redefining legal, artistic, and intellectual property ownership when copyright is split between humans and agents.
• Socio-Economic Impacts on Industry Labor: The evolution of traditional developer roles, pedagogical shifts in gaming education, and industrial displacement risks.
• Cultural Reception: Player and creator resistance or acceptance of synthetic aesthetics, and the value of human craftsmanship in the automated age.

SUBMISSION PROCEDURE

Researchers and practitioners are invited to submit on or before September 27, 2026, a chapter proposal of 1,000 to 2,000 words clearly explaining the mission and concerns of his or her proposed chapter.

Authors will be notified by October 11, 2026 about the status of their proposals and sent chapter guidelines.

Full chapters of a minimum of 10,000 words (word count includes references and related readings) are expected to be submitted by November 29, 2026, and all interested authors must consult the guidelines for manuscript submissions at https://www.igi-global.com/publish/contributor-resources/before-you-write/ prior to submission. All submitted chapters will be reviewed on a double-anonymized review basis. Contributors may also be requested to serve as reviewers for this project.

Note: There are no submission or acceptance fees for manuscripts submitted to this book publication, Human-Agent Synergy in Modern Video Games. All manuscripts are accepted based on a double-anonymized peer review editorial process.

All proposals should be submitted through the eEditorial Discovery^® online submission manager.

PUBLISHER

This book is scheduled to be published by IGI Global Scientific Publishing, an international academic publisher of the “Information Science Reference”, “Medical Information Science Reference”, “Business Science Reference”, and “Engineering Science Reference” imprints. IGI Global Scientific Publishing specializes in publishing reference books, scholarly journals, and electronic databases featuring academic research on a variety of innovative topic areas including, but not limited to, education, social science, medicine and healthcare, business and management, information science and technology, engineering, public administration, library and information science, media and communication studies, and environmental science. For additional information regarding the publisher, please visit https://www.igi-global.com. This publication is anticipated to be released in 2027.

INDEXING INFORMATION FOR PROSPECTIVE AUTHORS

IGI Global Scientific Publishing meets the criteria for inclusion in major indexing services such as Scopus; however, it is important to note that all indexing decisions are made independently by these services. IGI Global Scientific Publishing books are selectively indexed by the indexing organization after publication. Indexing cannot be guaranteed for any book prior to publication, and the indexing organization has complete control over the final selection and timeline.

IMPORTANT DATES

September 27, 2026: Proposal Submission Deadline
October 11, 2026: Notification of Acceptance
November 29, 2026: Full Chapter Submission
January 3, 2027: Review Results Returned
January 31, 2027: Final Acceptance Notification
February 7, 2027: Final Chapter Submission

INQUIRIES

João Paulo Sousa
Instituto Politécnico de Bragança
[email protected]

Rogério Tavares
Polytechnic Institute of Bragança
[email protected]

Emmanoel Ferreira
Fluminense Federal University
[email protected]

Rodrigo Domingues
Federal University of Uberlândia
[email protected]

CLASSIFICATIONS

Computer Science and Information Technology; Education; Life Sciences; Media and Communications; Social Sciences and Humanities; Physical Sciences and Engineering