This past weekend, the largest physical site-based gamejam in the world – the Global Game Jam – united over 28,800 participants from 518 locations across 78 countries to simultaneously create 5441 games. We teamed up with Game CoLab, a local game development incubator, to host one such site at Arizona State University’s Digital Culture Studio with the ASU Herberger Institute.
Most of the hackathons and game jams we do (especially Code for Good events) are collaborative rather than competitive. In those, there isn’t a judging and ranking system; learning is the focus, cross-team assistance is praised, and prizes are awarded by a merit-based raffle. In competitive events like this, the focus tends to be on demonstrating your preexisting skill in rapid development. The pleasant surprise for me was how big learning was still a focus. I was excited hearing “aha” moments come from those devs who hunger for learning – pro tip: those will go far – and seeing the blend of other skill sets come together to create truly inspiring games.
Intel as a company had the honor of being considered a “headliner” sponsor for the Global Game Jam overall, and established Code for Good as an official diversifier for the games created worldwide. Any game that focused on encouraging STEM education, early literacy, healthy lifestyle choices, or similar societally beneficial themes could be registered as meeting the criteria for this diversifier; an impressive 183 games worldwide did exactly that in addition to the overall GGJ theme of “What do we do now?”
At our Global Game Jam site we hosted 44 such enterprising developers, who together registered 12 games – an impressive 10 of which were playable by the end of 43 working hours. The wrap-up afterwards was held at Endgame, a nearby game-themed drink-and-eatery, where participants and spectators were invited to play all the games created here (as well as some from indie devs in the area) and vote on their favorite in three categories:
- “Needs to be made” - One you particularly feel deserves continued development. Winners received memberships to Game CoLab for completion of their game; runners-up received educational game development materials donated by Game CoLab.
- “Most fun” - One you would most enjoy playing more. Winners and runners-up received Steam gift cards (or Amazon if Steam cards didn’t work).
- “Code for Good” - One you feel best embodies the spirit of the Code for Good diversifier. Winners and runners-up received Amazon gift cards.
The variety of skills and team makeup created a bunch of great games in that short time. Some used Unity, some used Game Maker, and some custom built their game engines from scratch. In alphabetical order, the demos are:
“Andre the Dragon Slayer"
After defeating Tiamat, the dragon boss of an RPG, the hero returns home only to find that the restless spirit of the boss has hitched a ride. You must now deal with the haunting (and unpleasant chaos that ensues); spoiler alert: in the end you befriend the dragon, teaching a lesson in friendship beyond bias.
Winner – Code for Good
“Aztec Vector”
‘Aztec Vector is a game about survival and pathfinding in an ancient Aztec temple. It does not require razor sharp reflexes, however a keen mind and attention to detail is required. Beware for falling boulders and a deadly body-chopper while guiding your character to the Sacred Shrine.’ The analytical skills embedded in the core mechanics emphasize forethought and critical thinking.
Winner – Needs to be made
Runner-up – Code for Good
Runner-up – Most fun
“Excalibur XD”
Adrift on a broken space ship, the pilot (player at controls) and mechanic (player reading from manual) must together restart the ship before tragedy befalls them.
“Exit”
When 4 characters awaken in a basement with no knowledge of how they got there, teamwork is key in finding and reaching the exit as quickly as possible. ‘Escape the house or die!’
“Humpty Dumpty – An Age Old Tale”
‘Humpty Dumpty is an interactive story that tells the tale of the age old narrative of Humpty Dumpty. A large egg who sat on a wall and had a great fall. Alas, all the Kings Horses and all the Kings Men could not, put Humpty together again.’ Despite knowing the ending, take control of the titular star in this action-platformer to reach the top.
“Rebel Alliance”
‘Our Multiplayer First Person Platform Survival Game! What will we do? When the foundation falls from under you? Will you survive? Will we cooperate? Will we all Die? Find out! 4 will enter how many will leave? 3-D Tron Light Cycle / Atari Snakes game. 4 players run across a floor that falls out from underneath them. Cause your friends and enemies to plummet to their death. Be the lone survivor.’
Winner – Most fun
“Social NetWars”
‘Social NetWars is a game were social media comes to life attacking you and your friends. You must defend against an onslaught of different enemies before they reach your friends list and followers.’
“Trauma”
‘Trauma is game that deals with the hateful things that people say. How do you respond when someone says something negative to you? Does it actually matter in the end? Everyone suffers Trauma.’
“TRIO”
‘TRIO number of players: 2 game type: abstract time to play: 5 minutes goal: be the first to make a trio set up: One player chooses red and the other player chooses blue Your goal is to be the first person to make a trio. A trio consists of three shapes in a straight line which satisfy all of these conditions: They are all the same color or they have three different colors They are all the same shape or they have three different shapes They are all the same size or they have three different sizes The three shapes are in ascending or descending order or all are the same size.’ The only completely analog entry of our games.
“What Do We Do Now?”
(No screenshot)
‘Note: This game was made by a 17-year old junior and a 14-year-old freshman, the fact that we finished it is amazing. "Our world is full of death, sorrow, and insanity...so we left for space. Now i know they follow you everywhere" - Unknown The year is 2117, A command station in space has been built for the research and development of alien life. We follow the path of the anestetic scientist, Dr.[REDACTED] who has woken up not knowing what has happened. On August [REDACTED], 2117, patient-137 escaped his cell on level [REDACTED]. it rampaged and killed everyone onboard, leaving nothing but debris and blood, for it consumed eveery drop of human flesh. This creature has a appetite for anything that moves, one that can't be satisfied. The Doctor wakes up to find a complete disaster before him. The Doctor was hit on the head by a loose pipe and was knocked out while fleeing to a safe zone. He is the sole survivor, all his friends, collueges, and his wife are dead. however, her concious somehow has gotten into the Doctor's mind and is the sole drive to keep him going, he must escape, for them, for her...’
You can see our site’s games at http://globalgamejam.org/2015/jam-sites/phoenix-global-game-jam-2015/games or try out some of the Code for Good games from around the world http://globalgamejam.org/2015/games?title=&country=All&city=&tools=All&diversifier=18160&platforms=All
The Global Game Jam is an incredible event beyond how awesome hackathons and gamejams already are; the scope, reach, and diversity inherently present here let great games spring to life over the course of one short weekend. To any company looking to hire: repeat performance at such events is proof that these participants are smart and get things done.
More information about this event is available at the Global Game Jam website (http://globalgamejam.org), and check out the television coverage of the event from PBS https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pg9zzBq50tY
Photo credits – Stephanie Salisbury
Game CoLabs reps running the show: Ben Reichert and Austin Shamp, with assistance from myself (Brad Hill) and my veteran hackathon mentor Chris Moody (we are under the OB, E, JA, and AL of the banner at the top, respectively).
Immagine icona:
