TopCon! 2027: Theology of Play

What if the table where you play is also the table where you grow?

TOPCON! is an emerging conversation centered around the theology of play. We gather each year to explore the idea that God uniquely designed humans to engage in play. This is part of our expression of the image and likeness of God.

TOPCON! is designed for leaders and lay alike. Our past participants have been pastors, academics, Christian educators, ministry directors, and parishioners, and they all shared one thing in common: they loved to engage in play. Keep in mind, we do play a lot of board games, but you don’t have to be a “gamer” to join us. In fact, you don’t even have to like board games when you come to the conference, because we guarantee you will when you leave.                                                                         

TOPCON! 2027 Overview

This year, the Theology of Play Conference will center around the theme: Co-Creation. God didn’t just create the world and fill it with living creatures. God formed us in the image and likeness of the Divine, which quintessentially expresses itself in our capacity for creativity, innovation, and play. In short, God designed us to be creators as well.

We are co-creators with God.

At our 2027 conference, we’ll be exploring this idea, what does it mean to be a co-creator with God? What role does the Holy Spirit play in our creative expressions? How are we existentially wired to co-create with one another as an expression of the Divine? Finally, how might this notion of being co-creators with God manifest itself through tabletop games and game design?

To those ends, our keynote speaker this year is Daryl Andrews, a professional game designer from Canada, who is known in the industry for co-designing dozens of games (with a pretty impressive list of fellow designers, I might add). You might recognize him from games like Sagrada, Caffeine Rush, Bosk, or more recently, LeyLines. With over forty games to his credit and another dozen or so on the way, Daryl undoubtedly brings a wealth of experience creating in collaboration with others.

Although he’s a full-time game designer today, in his past life, he’s served as a youth minister, a prison guard, and a Mountie (one of those is a lie). We’re excited to hear what Daryl will share with us at TOPCON! 2027. Don’t forget, every registered participant will receive a signed copy of one of Daryl’s many games. For more information about Daryl, check him out on Instagram: Daryl Andrews.

At TOPCON! 2027, you’ll also have the opportunity to hear an opening keynote from TOPCON! founder and conference organizer, Jason Brian Santos. This year, Jason will explore the idea of collaborative creative expressions as a manifestation of the Holy Spirit in Tabletop games and game design. We’ve got a few more speakers lined up, but we’ll be announcing them in the weeks to come.