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Archive for game jams

Play Games at Global Game Jam 2014

Posted by Will Lewis

· Sunday, January 19th, 2014

“At the Global Game Jam, friends and community members come together to make their own games in a span of 48 hours. After that jam, these games need to be played!

Join us on the evening of Sunday, January 26th in Room 263 of the Art Institute of Portland to see the final steps of a 48-hour game-making challenge. As games become completed, play them side-by-side with their developers!

This event is free and all ages, and snacks will be provided. Please share with friends and family for an evening of creative community fun!

For more information about the Global Game Jam, including registration if you’d like to join the challenge, visit the official event posting: http://pigsquad.com/events/global-game-jam-2014“

Global Game Jam 2014

Posted by Will Lewis

· Sunday, November 24th, 2013

To register and find out more about Portland’s Global Game Jam 2014, visit http://pigsquad.com/events/global-game-jam-2014.

“The Global Game Jam (GGJ) is the world’s largest game jam event occurring annually in late January. GGJ brings together thousands of game enthusiasts participating through many local jams around the world. GGJ is a project of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA).”

Design Week Celebrates Indie Games

Posted by Jeffrey Sens

· Thursday, October 10th, 2013

· No Comments

Today marks the beginning of Stumpquest, a 4-day extravaganza of indie tabletop and videogames for Design Week. Sponsored by the Portland Indie Game Squad and Pixel Arts, we’re starting with a Twine Workshop at the Art Institute from 2-4pm.

Twine Software

Twine is a simple, visual design software for creating interactive or experimental fiction, a kind of make your own adventure game, with rich media. After the workshop, we’ll be putting our new skills to use at our 6-hour Twine Jam on Saturday.

Friday has something for everyone with a Game Lab Board Game Testing to play tabletop board games and an Indie Games Tournament, where contestants compete for prizes on the big screen at 5th Avenue Cinema. The tournament line up includes:

Crypt of the NecroDancer: A hardcore roguelike rhythm game. Move to the beat with the game’s epic sound track or your own MP3s.

Zero Zen: A Ludum Dare creation made in 48 hours that combines Sumo wrestling and fighter planes.

Samurai Gunn: A lightning-fast Bushido brawler for two to four players. Each samurai is armed with a sword and gun, with only 3 bullets to a life. Discipline and quick reflexes are the key to deflecting bullets and sending your opponents’ heads rolling.

On Saturday, we have an Indie Games Arcade with a huge display of independent development talent and the Twine Jam. Finally, on Sunday, we cap off Design Week with a Film Screening – Going Cardboard: A Board Game Documentary.

We hope you’ll join us for the largest, most diverse indie games fest in Portland!

Bringing Games to New Youth: Twine Workshop and Game Jam

Posted by Jeffrey Sens

· Friday, October 4th, 2013

· No Comments

Last weekend, Pixel Arts held our 1st Youth Game Jam at the Portland Indie Speed Run. Co-hosted with the Portland Indie Game Squad and the University of Portland’s Department of Engineering, 11 youth between the ages of 9-17 threw themselves into experimenting and tinkering with game design.

Our amazing volunteer community provided kids hands-on learning projects with GameMaker and free, open source Gimp to make art assets. Parents and kids expressed their thanks and appreciation, and we’d like to thank them for braving the stormy weather!

Indie Speed Run 2

This isn’t the only opportunity for youth though! Next week, Design Week Portland arrives from October 7-12th. We’re collaborating with PIGSquad again, this time to host a Twine Workshop and Twine Jam during a 4-day extravaganza we’re calling Stumpquest. Our Twine events let you create interactive stories and fiction, including art, which the Portland Mercury described as a “craft choose-your-own-adventure-style, text-based games.” Parents are welcome to stay while our mentors guide youth into making games, so enroll now for Stumpquest and get in on the fun.

Portland Indie Speed Run – Come see our games!

Posted by Will Lewis

· Saturday, September 28th, 2013

By this Sunday, over 60 game makers of all ages will have been making their own video games over a 48-hour weekend. Come see and play the results in a showcase of local creative talent!

We will be in Shiley Hall Room 319. To find the building, search for “Shiley Hall” in the University of Portland campus map.

For more information about the Portland Indie Speed Run, visit the official event posting.

Stumpquest Twine Workshop

Posted by Will Lewis

· Thursday, September 26th, 2013

Learn how to make text-based games through the Twine game engine! Use your storytelling skills to create an adventure with words, learning tools that will enable you to participate in our Twine game making challenge on Saturday.

For more information about the Stumpquest Games Fest, visit the main event page.

Stumpquest Twine Jam

Posted by Will Lewis

· Thursday, September 26th, 2013

Use your text-based game making skills to develop a complete Twine fiction within 6 hours based on a competition-wide theme. Challenge yourself to design a compelling story accented with the ability to provide your reader with a chance to interact and choose their own adventure!

For more information about the Stumpquest Games Fest, visit the main event page.

Stumpquest Games Fest

Posted by Will Lewis

· Thursday, September 26th, 2013

A 4-day tabletop and video game festival in Portland, Oregon
The Stumpquest Games Fest is a games festival celebrating the integration of games, design, art, and technology in collaboration with independent developers. Come participate in the multifaceted medium of games through design and play! Click event titles below to learn more about each event.
In addition to attending, registration is open for volunteers and those who want to showcase their game projects.

Twine Workshop
Thursday, October 10th – 2pm to 4pm: Art Institute of Portland
Learn how to make text-based games through the Twine game engine! Use your storytelling skills to create an adventure with words, learning tools that will enable you to participate in our Twine game making challenge on Saturday.

Game Lab Board Game Testing
Friday, October 11th – 5pm to 10pm: Art Institute of Portland
Act as a playtester for locally made games, or play old favorites! Choose from a wide selection of different tabletop games to sample different art, gameplay, and writing styles, critiquing along the way to join the game design conversation.

Indie Games Tournament
Friday, October 11th – 6pm to 10pm: 5th Avenue Cinema
Compete for prizes on the big screen in an indie games videogame tournament! Join teams and compete in free-for-alls to push for first place. Games include Zero Zen, Crypt of the Necrodancer, and Samurai Gunn.

Indie Games Arcade
Saturday, October 12th – 2pm to 10pm: Art Institute of Portland
Play games and interact with their developers in a huge display of independent development talent! From homemade arcade cabinets to widescreen projections of your favorite popular indie games, enjoy an atmosphere of play and interactivity in the midst of Portland’s largest indie games event!

Twine Jam
Saturday, October 12th – 2pm to 8pm: Art Institute of Portland
Use your text-based game making skills to develop a complete Twine fiction within 6 hours based on a competition-wide theme. Challenge yourself to design a compelling story accented with the ability to provide your reader with a chance to interact and choose their own adventure!

Film Screening – Going Cardboard: A Board Game Documentary
Sunday, October 13th – 2pm to 4pm: 5th Avenue Cinema
Cool down from your gamer’s retreat with a documentary featuring the modern design, production, and lifestyle of boardgames and gamers.

Game Jam for Youth: Indie Speed Run, Sept 27 & 28th 2013

Posted by Jeffrey Sens

· Tuesday, August 27th, 2013

· No Comments

Indie Speed Run 2013

Besides OMSI’s Mini Maker Faire on Sept 14 & 15th, we have another opportunity for youth to play, make and design games together.

Saturday Sept 27 and Sunday 28th 2013, we are co-hosting the worldwide Indie Speed Run with the Portland Indie Game Squad and the University of Portland.

What is the Indie Speed Run?

Indie Speed Run can be summed up easily. It’s an opportunity. Sure, there’s the maelstrom of fame, money, and prizes that are going to magically tornado around your body once you slam-dunk your competition into submission with the greatest game ever programmed, but there’s a deeper, and (arguably) far more important concept at the heart of what we’re trying to accomplish: creation.

Youth are invited to jam from 1pm-7pm each day. We are happy to say, mentors from our community will be on hand to facilitate and offer guidance on programming, design, and art and animation. We have room for 20 youth jammers, so register now here for a space.

The event is FREE, but participants who pay the Speed Run entry fee can win prizes. Games will be judged by game industry professionals including such luminaries as:

Ron Gilbert – MONKEY ISLAND
Markus “Notch” Persson – MINECRAFT
Trent Oster – BALDUR’S GATE: ENHANCED EDITION
Jason Rohrer – PASSAGE
Vander Caballero – PAPO & YO
Kellee Santiago – JOURNEY
Dino Patti – LIMBO
Ben “Yahtzee” Croshaw – Zero Punctuation

Besides jamming to create new games, we have opportunities for volunteer to get involved and level up their skills. New volunteers need to attend one of our orientations, either September 23rd and 24th, at Woodstock Library. Interested by mentoring? Let us know here.

Portland Indie Speed Run

Posted by Will Lewis

· Thursday, August 22nd, 2013

UPDATE
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ATTN: Portland Indie Speed Run jammers! E-mail ISR via http://www.indiespeedrun.com/devsite/index.php?option=com_rsform&view=rsform&Itemid=8 to submit your game if you were affected by the power outage!
—-

Register here!

General Info:
The Portland Indie Game Squad, Pixel Arts Game Education, and the University of Portland are hosting a 48-hour game jam from September 27th through the 29th. Participants will gather Friday evening, hear the jam’s secret theme, then race against the clock to make a game using their technical skills, teamwork, and everything learned along the way! People without specific or advanced technical skills are of course welcome to participate to learn new things and meet the community.

Basic Schedule:
Friday, September 27th:
6pm-7pm – Form teams and meet other jammers.
7pm-7:30pm – Receive theme and start jam.
Sunday, September 29th:
5:30pm-7pm – The public is welcome to come and watch final game-making steps and finished games.
7:00pm-8:00pm – Wrap up, clean up, go home, and go to sleep.

Equipment, sleep, food:
A very small amount of computer and board game development equipment/supplies will be provided; please plan on bringing your own equipment. If you bring something like a PC tower, you are welcome to leave it at the jam site for the entire weekend, and it will be safe if you need to leave the University for any amount of time. Sleeping space will be provided, though jammers are responsible for their own overall health and wellness (which will be supported via suggested breaks, mealtimes, etc.). Updates regarding on-location snacks, a map of nearby restaurants, and free licenses from software companies will be posted in the comments of community page event listings.

Registration:
Please register via our Game Education PDX form; we have room for 50 jammers, and those who register will be accepted before walk-ins. If you are participating remotely, post in this thread or tweet at @PIGSquad with the #pdxspeedrun and #pigjam tags asking for the theme or a team match up, and we’ll help! Participants are welcome to work alone.

Indie Speed Run Component:
It is very highly recommended that all teams register with the Indie Speed Run competition. It costs $25 per team, allowing a great panel of professional judges (including Ron Gilbert, Notch, SUDA51, and Peter Molyneux this year) to evaluate your finished game; the games with the highest scores will receive prizes, including up to $2,500.

Youth Component:
Via Pixel Arts Education, game-making mentors will facilitate youth aged 9 – 17 and their parents to participate in their own jam during the available hours of Saturday and Sunday from 1pm to 7pm. Parents are welcome to register via our youth registration form; we have room for 20 youth jammers. If you are interested in volunteering to help mentor and guide youth in their jam, please submit your volunteer inquiry here!