Watch the Video of Last Month’s Virtual Feedback Forum
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| Last month we streamed a feedback forum for people wanting critique from fellow developers on their current projects. Watch the full video below and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel. |
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| The IGDA is making regular updates to our COVID-19 resource page, including a list of virtual events taking place on our Twitch channel designed to help developers through this tough period. (igda.org)
This page, which is being regularly updated by Amanda Kool, provides financial aid information for non-profits, small businesses, artists, freelancers, gig workers, self-employers, and part-timers. |
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Surveys: How Have You Been Impacted by this Crisis?
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| The IGDA is collecting data about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected game developers in order to publish the data and use it to encourage more support for game developers in need and to better understand how to direct the IGDA’s own support approaches. (Google form)
You can also take this survey from the Freelancers Hub, which aims to assess the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on freelance workers. |
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What’s on this month
The NYU Game Center Career Week will take place online, May 4—8. It’s a full week of career-oriented programming for NYU Game Center Graduate and Undergraduate students and alumni, including portfolio, resume and website reviews, and Q&As with development studios. (Details)
!!Con 2020 (pronounced “bang bang con”) is two days of ten-minute talks to celebrate the joyous, exciting, and surprising moments in computing. It will be held as a remote conference from May 9–10. (Details)
Gamerjibe is holding a virtual job fair for gamers and students from May 18–22, with panels on startups, esports, emerging tech, and indie careers with 20+ exhibitors. (Details)
The Nordic Game Conference is being held online this month, May 27–29. Sign up for great speakers, access to countless games industry professionals, a host of networking and social events on Discord, as well as the Nordic Game Awards show broadcast live with some very special guests. (Details)
Narrascope 2020 has been expanded! It will now be held May 28–June 4. There are boot camps for Inform 7, other educational programming, game jams, pointed panels and talks around narration and narrative design and tech. Sign up for free (donations, however, are encouraged). (Details)
The IGDA is holding several virtual events this month on our Twitch channel. Check out our Game Development Crisis Conference on May 14 for ways to continue developing under stress, how to lead and manage teams in this time, and ongoing coping tools for long-term isolation. Click here for the full event listings.
Below is the full video of last month’s IGDA Crisis Conference stream: |
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| Online Moderation & Crisis Community Support – Game Development Crisis Webinar Series |
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On the Horizon
From June 23–25, the Serious Play Conference covers the rapidly growing use of serious games and simulations in training and education. Join sessions on every major market for the use of serious games and simulations in training or education as well as a full track on instructional/game design. (Details)
The 2020 Games for Change Festival will now be a completely online event, held July 14–16 as originally intended. The event will also be free to all attendees! Keep an eye out for registration information in the coming weeks. (Details) |
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And finally…
New York is flattening the curve.
It means that things are slowly, slowly getting better. What the new normal looks like at the other end of this, however, is open for debate.
I’m being constantly reminded of how wonderful our local gaming community is, with the swathe of fundraisers, outpourings of support, and the creative and beautiful ways with which people are adapting to the current climate.
We’re not there yet, but I look forward to the day I can enjoy a cone at our Ice Cream Social (hopefully in the sun) and play the game you’re working on.
Until then.
Virtually,
Matt
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| News and updates from the mothership. |
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Unionization
The IGDA recently published a guide for game developers with informative and actionable information and resources about unions and unionization. (igda.org)
IGDA 2020 Board of Directors Election Results
Our 2020 IGDA Board of Directors Election Results are in! Click the link for the full breakdown. (igda.org)
IGDA showcase
The IGDA is looking to showcase upcoming games that our members are working on. Submit yours via this form and stay tuned for their feature in a future Insider. We want New York to be well-represented, so do us proud, devs! |
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IGDA NYC Virtual Expo
IGDA NYC Discord
Thursday, May 14, 6:30pm
Come spend an evening checking out what NYC game devs have been working on! Whether you want to show off your project or just see what others have been up to, click on the link below to get added to our Discord server. |
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| Celebrating work by the NYC game dev community.
Share your NY game news here or tweet #NYMakesGames.
Section Editor: Matt Fisher |
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Making Waves
- The GDC Relief Fundraiser highlighted in last month’s issue raised an incredible $81,636.13 for game devs affected by the cancellation of GDC. (Details)
- Maria Mishurenko, co-founder of Synesthetic Echo and a teacher at NYU Game Center was featured on Oculus’s blog page celebrating women in VR! Check out the full interview with Maria here.
- Diego Garcia talks about designing the art in Damaged In Transit in this article on Gamasutra. Damaged In Transit was recently released on Switch and is also available on Steam.
- Playcrafting recently updated their website along with a brand-new logo. Check it out here.
- Joanna Fang, Emmy award-winning resident Foley artist at Alchemy Sound, gave the game audio community of NYC a presentation on Foley and ran the audience through some of the basics of what’s involved in a typical Foley session. The video is now up on YouTube; check it out here.
- Read this article on Killscreen featuring game developer Zach Gage, who talks about his influences, creative processes, and more.
- New York was well-represented at Ludo Narra Con! Sande Chen, Clara Fernandez-Vara, and Sam Barlow were panelists, and the games made in New York featured Her Story, Telling Lies, and Lamplight City.
- Wonderville’s Wonderverse was featured on Bedford+Bowery. The project aims to make a theme park with rides and attractions in Minecraft. Read the article here.
- Robert Yang penned a piece for RockPaperShotgun entitled: “The legacy of fy_iceworld, Counter-Strike’s divisive and hugely popular custom map.” Read the full article here.
- ICYMI, watch NYU Game Center’s Incubator Info Session here.
- Death By Audio Arcade’s “How to Build An Arcade Cabinet” talk at MagFest 2020 is now up on YouTube! Check it out here.
- With the unfortunate cancellation of the Figment Festival, the organizers are creating a virtual community and would like your input on strategies to tackle the new challenges and opportunities brought up by recent world events. Fill out the form here to add to the discussion on interactive art.
- In lieu of a GDC Narrative Innovation Showcase, Clara Fernandez-Vara and Matthew Weise published this piece outlining all the games that were going to be presented.
Awards
- Congratulations to Matt Boch, Gabe Cuzzillo, and Bennett Foddy on winning a BAFTA for Audio Achievement in their game APE OUT! (Details)
- Congratulations to Yamiao Liu of the NYU Game Center for being selected for the Women Techmakers Scholars Program! The program seeks to create gender equality in the tech industry by encouraging women to excel as active participants and leaders in the field. Click here for more information about the initiative.
- Museum Multiverse VR by MADE IN BROOKLYN GAMES has been nominated in the Webbys From Home awards in the Independent Creator category. You can vote for the game here.
Launched
- Dive into Life Hutch VR by Chthonic Studios, an immersive cinematic story, and experience first-hand as Captain Terrence flies a starfighter on a desperate mission to save mankind, searches for safety on an alien planet, and outwits a robot gone mad. (Website)
- Damaged In Transit by Wyatt Yeong, Diego Garcia, and Greg Heffernan is now available on Switch! This mind-bending action-puzzler will leave you cross-eyed as you simultaneously pilot your two delivery drones.
- The first level of Red Planet Farming, created by Nina Demirjian, Sean Park, and Sean Porio, is now available to play on CoolMath Games! Play it here.
- StarCrossed by Contigo Games is now available on Switch and XBox! StarCrossed is an action arcade game with a magical girl aesthetic and a cooperative twist!
Beta
- No Body Home is a co-op platformer about two little ghosts searching for delicious cake in a house that’s haunted … with humans! Sign up for the beta through The Sheep’s Meow’s Discord.
- Project 👺 by Fabraz is looking for beta testers. Fill out the form here if you would like to participate.
- Sign up for VoxPop Games’ closed beta platform launch here. VoxPop Games is a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Independent Games Distribution & Development platform.
Crowdfunding
- Talking Games with Reggie and Harold will be a unique seven-part podcast with former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé and award-winning author/journalist Harold Goldberg. They are raising funds for a new initiative to bring games and games writing courses to high school students in homeless shelters in New York City. (gofundme)
- Having already donated thousands of polypropylene protective suits, gloves and helmets to help fill the gap in protective equipment, Beat The Bomb have set a goal to raise $25,000 for NYC Health and Hospitals (gofundme). You can play their game, Fauci’s Revenge here.
- ABS vs THE BLOOD QUEEN by BumbleBear Games is a spooky 2D side-scrolling adventure set in the Killer Queen universe. This new title builds upon Killer Queen’s gameplay, codebase, physics, audio, and art. This project builds on five years of concept, design, and iteration. (Kickstarter)
- Defuse It by Alex & Liz is a 2-3 player game that sparks collaboration by having players work together to decode their instructions and press the correct color sequence to defuse a bomb before the clock runs out. It’s fun for game nights with your friends and family. (Kickstarter)
- Torchbearer 2nd Edition by Burning Wheel is a roleplaying game of desperate adventure. The expeditions you undertake are taxing on your body, your mind and your very nature. To survive, you must carefully manage your food, water and light resources. To excel, you must fight for what you believe in. To prosper, you must fill your bags with loot and treasure. (Kickstarter)
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| Happenings in the NYC game dev community and beyond.
Unless otherwise noted, events are (probably!) free to attend. Follow @GameDevNYC for event alerts. Contact nyc@igda.org to add your org’s events.
Section Editor: Matt Fisher
Due to the current pandemic, and in the consideration of public safety, all events listed are remote.
Monday, May 4
RealTime Conference 2020 – RTC brings together 4,000+ leaders in real-time across industries and around the globe to share and spur the myriad ways in which areas such as XR, design, and manufacture are changing the ways we work, play and live.
Made in NY Media Center Freelancers Hub: Personal Finance for Freelancers, Entrepreneurs, and Artists – Learn how to set financial goals, create a spending plan that works for you, and establish the habits that lead to financial health.
Playcrafting: Jump Into Unreal Engine – An Unreal Engine overview and primer with the Epic team. This class will cover hi-level overviews of the Unreal Engine User Interface, Material System, Lighting, Blueprints, and Rendering Systems.
Tuesday, May 5
VIRTUAL NY Tech Meetup – Take a break, see some really cool tech, and network with fellow attendees. (Donations encouraged)
Wednesday, May 6
Playtest Night w/ Wonderville via Discord – Screenshare and demo your game, and get awesome feedback from the NYC gaming community.
Thursday, May 7
IGDA Webinar: Supporting Remote Teams at Small Studios – An online webinar focused around equipping game developers and studio leadership with the knowledge and tools they need to sustain successful development in times of crisis.
IGDA Webinar: How to Master the Art of Public Speaking & Presentations – Learn the most important components of any presentation such as the importance of silences, eye contact, and the removal of filler words.
Saturday, May 9
Wonderville: Game-A-Week Student Showcase Stream – A panel of game developers from New York and beyond play through the highlights of student games from Long Island University’s Game-A-Week class.
DownToDash: Virtual Games Night – A fun session of Scavenger hunt, Pictionary, Truth or Dare, Family Feud and more. (Donation: $0-$50)
Sunday, May 10
DownToDash: The Virtual Writing Circle – Get inspired by hearing other peoples’ work, relax in a comfortable space, and warm up your creativity. Bring your work or see where the writing prompts take you. (Donation: $0-$50)
Playcrafting: The Basics of Sound Design for Games – Delve into the process of creating sound effects, and learn how to work harmoniously with all of a game’s moving parts to create games with great audio. ($20)
Thursday, May 14
IGDA Game Development Crisis Conference – Technical tools for continuing development under stress and change, leadership and management of teams during crises, and ongoing coping tools for long-term isolation.
IGDA NYC Virtual Expo on Discord – Come spend an evening checking out what NYC game devs have been working on. Whether you want to show off your project or just see what others have been up to, follow the links to get added to our Discord server.
Monday, May 18
Playcrafting: Game Law for Indies – Walk the legal road from game design document to first sale and highlight red flags you should absolutely be aware of. The class will focus on your broader understanding of what is relevant and why and when it is necessary to be cautious. ($20)
Tuesday, May 26
AWE Nite NYC – Online meetup – Join online for a whole host of industry speakers and fellow AR enthusiasts.
Wednesday, June 3
Babycastles: Viewtiful Joe – Game of the Month Club – Jean-Pierre Dominguez demos Viewtiful Joe, a love letter to 2d beat-em-up platformers, going through the main games, spinoffs, and even the anime.
Recurring Weekly
Mondays
Tuesdays
Wednesdays
Thursdays
Saturdays
Sundays
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Recent jobs, internships, scholarships, grants, exhibitions, and other opportunities.View or submit a listing for free.
Section Editor: Matt Fisher
Jobs
Education
Internships
Volunteer
Exhibit/Speak/Publish
Funding/Programs/Contests
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| Benefits for IGDA members.
Join here. Log in for all member discount codes and details.
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| Looking for work? Hiring?
Visit our Jobs and Opportunities board to view or post listings for free.
Want to help us do things?
Learn about volunteering with the chapter.
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