The Global Game Jam (1/30 – 2/1): A Pizza Powered Premiere

Will there be shouting?
Could be.
How about tears?
Maybe.
And pizza?
No doubt!

Friday (1/30) at 5P until 5P Sunday (2/1) the New Media Institute will be the scene of a new media first – the inaugural Global Game Jam. Below you will find more information about the GGJ from UGA’s site coordinator, Casey O’Donnell. But what you really need to know is that about a dozen game geeks (hey, that is what they call themselves) will gather to create a playable game – in 48 hours! Creativity on a deadline is a recipe for drama – so stay tuned.

Yeah, this is a cool event. But more than just creating a game, this is really a kick-off. UGA is getting into the game biz!

Georgia (the state) has staked a claim in the growing gaming industry. In May, Governor Perdue signed the best tax incentive package for gaming companies in the country. Georgia is currently home to over 20 game-related companies with hundreds of employees. The Georgia Department of Economic Development has created a video-game czar to help recruit and support video game companies (think of Asante Bradford as a kind of friendly czar). And Georgia colleges and universities are cranking up programs to support a sector that is still growing – when others aren’t.

Now UGA is stepping up to play its part. Casey O’Donnell, a newly minted Ph.D. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (and, yeah, RPI is a techno heavy-weight) with a wealth of experience in videogame companies, has joined the faculty in the Telecommunications Department in the Grady College. And he is teaching in the NMI this year.

Professor O’Donnell has set a goal of making UGA a videogame player. But we won’t be trying to duplicate what they are doing at that other institution on North Avenue. Casey is helping UGA understand that there is room for more than computer coders in gaming field. Game companies need graphic designers, musicians, videographers, writers, even advertising people. In short, those companies need the type of creativity that we swim in at UGA.

Although gaming is a powerful segment of the digital economy, UGA is not just interested in developing the videogame workforce. Through our focus on gaming, we are going to learn more about interactivity. Always the bread and butter of gaming, interactivity is now vital to all new media. Understanding the ways games captivate players can help publishers and broadcasters develop the products and services that will thrive in the new digital marketplace. Videogames can be our entrée to making new media content more engaging and involving.

So the Global Game Jam is just the first step. I promise to send you a report – and pictures. I think these guys will make something very cool happen. Never underestimate the power of pizza!

GGJ Details & Organizational Meeting (Tu, 1/27) -- Casey O’Donnell

From 5:00 p.m. on Friday January 30th, until 5:00 p.m. Sunday, February 1st, more than 1,000 college students, faculty and members of the game industry will join together for a 48 hour game building marathon, in the first Global Game Jam (GGJ). Participants will be given the details of the game design theme, constraints and mechanics allowed when the clock reaches 5:00 p.m. local time in each region. As the time zones change, so will the constraints, mitigating any advantage location might give one team over another. While individual and regional Game Jams have been held in the last few years, there has never been one the size and scope of the GGJ.

Here is the basic breakdown: A group of dedicated game designers, artists, engineers, and sound techs are going to design a game in 48 hours. We will spend two days straight, from Friday at 5PM to Sunday at 5PM, in the New Media Institute Lab in the Grady College. We will receive instructions for themes, design, and constraints at 5PM, and will split into teams to design several game prototypes. If anyone you know might be interested, they MUST attend the last informational meeting on Tuesday, Jan 27, at 6:00PM at the Pub at Gameday, downtown Athens. All participants MUST be 18 years of age or older, and serious about game design; there are no other constraints. Participants are strongly encouraged to bring snacks and sleeping bags to the Jam, as sleep schedules might become quite irregular, due to the unique nature of the event. For general information, go to http://globalgamejam.org. Any further questions can be directed to Casey O'Donnell, Athens Chapter IGDA President , at casey.odonnell@ggda.org.

This week’s DBB (Tu, 1/27) – Vert, Zipcar, & Kevin Planovsky (NMI Alum)

This week’s Digital Brown Bag guest (Tu, 1/27, 12:30P, Journalism, Room 401) is a NMI alum and former Mobile Media Scholar, Kevin Planovsky. Kevin has been working at Zipcar, an innovative transportation company for the last couple of years. And now he is the principal in a brand new mobile marketing firm, Vert. Kevin is going to tell us about what it is like beginning a new media company and career. Join us!