UPCOMING EVENTS

Hey all,

We took a week's break after the Global Game Jam to get our bearings, but we're coming back this week with two events:

Firstly, EA is doing a technical presentation on Tuesday Feb 9 at 5:30pm in the South Campus Hall Festival Room. I actually don't know much about it, other than that Alex Hyder, Executive Producer from EA Montreal, will be the one giving the presentation. Executive Producer of a studio is a pretty big deal, so I'm sure he'll have plenty of interesting stuff to talk about. You should all come out, as there's going to be free pizza and the opportunity to network with people in the industry!

Secondly, Jonathon Rodriguez and Stephen Whitmore will each be giving a post-mortem talk regarding their Global Game Jam entries. They'll talk about what went right, what went wrong, and what they'll do differently next time. It should be an interesting set of talks, both for people that were in the Jam (that can relate), and for people just making games in general, as much of what they learned can be applied to longer projects. The talks will start at 6:00pm on Wednesday night, though we still haven't gotten confirmation of a room yet, so I'll let you know where they'll be in a later post in RCH 205!

I hope to see all of you at both events! They should be a good time!

Cheers,
Sherban Gaciu
UW-GDC President

POST GLOBAL GAME JAM

Hey all,

Before anything else, a huge congratulations to everyone who participated in the Global Game Jam. I am still feeling the tiring after-effects of getting 7-8 hours sleep over two days, but, as I'm sure everyone at the Jam can attest, it was well worth it!

Here our games; bask in their glory!

http://www.globalgamejam.org/sites/university-waterloo/games

It was hard, and I'm sure we'd all do things slightly differently next time, but I hope everyone who went enjoyed it, and I really hope some friends were made in the process.

If you did come to the Jam, post a quick comment about what you thought. It'll help us make it better next year, and hopefully get even more people to participate!

Cheers,
Sherban Gaciu
UW-GDC President

P.S.: Here are some photos taken of some participants. Special thanks to AJ Fraser for taking them. There's also video coming soon!

GLOBAL GAME JAM

Hey guys,

First post of the new year! We've already had our introductory event, where we outlined our plans for the future of the club in the coming semester and beyond. There will be a news post covering that, for those who couldn't make it to the first meeting, but this post isn't that.

Instead, this post will talk about the Global Game Jam:

The Global Game Jam is a challenge for groups around the world to make the best game they can within 48 hours. It's a huge event run worldwide. This is the 2nd annual Jam, but check Kotaku's story of the first one:

http://kotaku.com/5153545/youve-got-48-hours-make-a-game

This year, it's going to be even bigger. Take a look at the Global Game Jam website, which describes the event in more detail:

http://globalgamejam.org/

That's why we registered the University of Waterloo as a host location. We have a place (the Math Comfy) rented for 48 hours, with couches, vending machines, internet, and a close-by Tim Hortons. We have a projector where we can watch some GGJ Keynotes from important people, and (I'm hoping for) a fairly decent group of participants. The cool thing is, because it's a team event (probably teams of about 4-6 people) you don't need to know how to program to get in. You can do just art, or just design, or whatever you're good at. Even testing can be a great help!

Also, you don't necessarily need to be at the Jam for the full 48-hours. Need to do some schoolwork, meet with some friends, or even, you know, sleep? (as if UW students do that!). Come out anyway! It'll be a lot of fun and you'll get something done to be proud of!

It starts on Friday at 5:00pm in the Math Comfy (the 3rd floor of the Math building; the room with the couches beside the C&D).

Some experience, no experience, all levels welcome!

See you out there!
Sherban Gaciu
UW-GDC President

SHOW & TELL

Last weekend's 24 Hour Game Making Competition went very well! I hope those who came out had a good time.

The judging will commence soon, with the three judges ranking games based on the following categories:

• Technical Difficulty
  While being technically advanced won't win the competition alone, we wanted a category to recognize the effort in making something that's a bit more tricky (this was a programming competition after all).
• Creative Use of Theme
  How close did the entry stick to the theme? Did it do anything with it that wasn't necessarily obvious? This category recognizes thinking outside the box.
• How Fun is It?
  In the end, this is a game competition, so how fun is the game to play, really?
  

Our last event of the year, the end-of-term Show & Tell, will be held on November 28th at 7:00pm in MC 2065. At this event, we'll show this year's 24-Hour entries, and in the end, unveil the Top 3 Winners, who will each walk home with a prize from Electronic Arts [EDIT: As seen on the front page].

The Show & Tell is also a great place to show off things you've been working on throughout the semester. Have a polished game? How about just a work-in-progress? Come on out and let the UW Community see it in action!

Cheers,
Sherban Gaciu
UW-GDC President

24 Hour Game Making Competition

After taking a small a break from club events due to midterms, November 13th marks the return of the 24 Hour Game Making Competition!

The rules are simple:

1. Based on a theme given at the start of the competition, make a game from scratch, using any programming language and/or API (excluding 'game maker' software programs) within 24 hours.
2. Games must be submitted to the club mailing address (uw.gamedevclub[AT]gmail[DOT]com) before the 24 hour deadline. Judges will attempt to run any games, but please provide instructions if the method isn't obvious.

At first, those were the only rules. However, the "from scratch" part of the first rule is a bit hazy, as, unless one were to actually mine for minerals, process those minerals, build a working computer, define a programming language, and then make a game, it technically wouldn't be "from scratch" (and even then, you took those materials from the Earth, cheater!). So, because various programming languages and APIs start at different levels of "scratch", competitors are allowed to use existing code, with two conditions:

1. If a competitor chooses to use pre-existing code, it must not be game-specific. For example, a sound-engine is a valid piece of pre-existing code to use; however, a piece of code that performs a jump action is not. (If you're unsure, send an email).
   
2. All pre-existing code must be emailed to the club mailing address (uw.gamedevclub[AT]gmail[DOT]com) at least 24 hours before the start of the competition, for approval. Approved code will be made freely available to any one on the club mailing list, and must be made freely available to anyone who requests it during the competition.

There is actually no way of us realistically restricting the use of the internet, so we're really relying on the honour system for people not to cheat. Please, don't do it. It's in the competition's, the club's, and ultimately your best interest to play it straight. Thanks in advance.

The festivities begin with the announcement of the theme, on Friday November 13th at 8:00pm in MC 2061. Prizes (in the form of video games) will be given to the competitors with the top games, kindly donated by Electronic Arts.

MC 2061, a computer lab with Linux machines, will be made available for the duration of the competition for competitors wanting to "geek-it-up" with fellow developers for 24 hours (a helluva good time!). However, since we're relying on the honour system anyway, competitors aren't required to stay in MC 2061 for the duration of the competition. Simply submit a game before November 14th at 8:00pm.

In previous years, there were actually people who had never written a game prior to entering, but who did very well in this competition, so even if you feel under-experienced, come on out. It's a great opportunity to get a completed game in your portfolio, and a wonderful chance to hang out with other game developers from all over campus.

So, to recap, the dates:

November 12th - 8:00pm - Deadline for emailing any pre-existing code
November 13th - 8:00pm - Start of the competition; be in MC 2061 to hear the theme
November 14th - 8:00pm - Deadline for competition; make sure to submit before this deadline!

Please note, if your completed game will not fit inside an email attachment (wow, big game!) there will be some form of external storage in MC 2061, where you may copy your game and it will count as submitted.

If you have any questions, please comment, or email the club address. Good luck, and may the best game pwn!

Cheers,
Sherban Gaciu
UW-GDC President

RECENT HAPPENINGS

The first Event Day of the UW-GDC-reset has come and gone, and overall was a success. Stephen Whitmore introduced his entire audience to a new API during his tutorials, Roman generated a heated discussion over stories in various game genres, and almost everyone chimed in with an opinion on how to make games with meaning. I'm hoping those who went realized the breadth of the presentations and discussions, and actually got something out of it. If you did go, please comment on this news entry in regards to what you liked and didn't like, as there's always room for improvement. As always, if you have any ideas for future presentations, discussions, or anything else, you can email them to the club email address: uw.gamedevclub[AT]gmail[DOT]com

If you missed the first Event Day, not to worry, there are more coming. We also have a couple of smaller events coming up:

Firstly, Electronic Arts has asked us to reach out to the UW development community and advertise their presentation The Secrets Behind the Ball. It will be a technical talk by physics expert Asim Shahjahan on FIFA's complex ball simulation. EA will of course bring their customary shwag, including hats, shirts, and some recent games (Beatles anyone?). Even though this is mostly a physics-based talk, EA will also be advertising their co-op positions, so anyone interested should definitely check it out. It will be on Wednesday October 14th from 7:00pm-8:30pm in the DC Colloquium.

We will also be hosting a Game Jam Night on Friday. Game Jam Nights are when us developers can get together and just get cracking on our current projects, or start new projects out of the blue. There have been quite a few people, both at our Event Day and through email, who have asked if there is anyone interested in making a group game. If that sounds like you, come out and get something done. It's all going down on Friday October 16th at 7:00pm in the Math Comfy Lounge inside MC (third floor, right beside the coffee shop).

Also, our first Developer Podcast is up! Developer Podcasts are recorded discussions by developers, both professional and indie, about relevant topics in our industry. The first podcast features two pros from EA Mobile. Go check it out! If you want to be on a future podcast, drop us a line at uw.gamedevclub[AT]gmail[DOT]com.

We have plans for more events and site features for the rest of this semester and beyond, to try and get the UW development community together to Learn, Create, and Explore. Drop us a line if you have any ideas, and keep an eye out on the site. And, if you aren't yet on our mailing list, get on it by sending us an email with the subject MAILING LIST.

See you all out there, and Happy Thanksgiving.

Cheers,
Sherban Gaciu
UW-GDC President

EVENT DAY NUMBER ONE

The UW-GDC is proud to announce that our first event of Fall 2009 will take place on October 3rd in MC 4059. Here’s what you can look forward to:

• Introduction
  1:00pm-1:15pm
  A short introduction to the club and what we’re about, presented by Sherban Gaciu, club President.
  

• Java & Slick Programming Tutorial
  1:15pm-2:30pm
  Club member Stephen Whitmore’s first of four beginner tutorials, using the Java programming language and Slick API. If you want to know how to program a game, come to these to find out. As always, everything used by Stephen’s tutorials is freely available on the web. Please note that at least a basic knowledge of programming is assumed.
  

• Roman’s Story
  2:30pm-3:15pm
  A discussion on interactive storytelling: what have games done, what have other media done, and where are we headed? Presented by Roman ZImine.
  

• Can Art Be Fun?
  3:15pm-4:00pm
  A discussion about the maturing games industry, where we can go in the future, and why we would want to get there. Presented by Sherban Gaciu.
  

• Show & Tell
  4:00pm-
  Show off your stuff! Don’t have anything? Comment (constructively!) on the work of others.
  

Not all of these topics will appeal to everyone, so you don’t have to come to everything – just pick whatever interests you (and if it happens to be everything, all the better!). See you out there!

Cheers,
Sherban Gaciu
UW-GDC President

Want to host your own discussion at a future UW-GDC event? Drop us a line at uw.gamedevclub[AT]gmail[DOT]com