MGSA Month-long Competitions Start Again Next Week!
Hey there, guys!
You know what we miss? We miss regular local dev competitions. I can't speak for anyone else, but some of my most important learning in the black art of game development came from regular competitions that challenged everyone to come up with something rad and interesting in a month. Short jams are good and fine, but there's still nothing like a long-form comp to stretch your design muscles and produce something a bit more substantial than what you can whip up over a weekend. It also gives you more time to learn new tools and apply new techniques, while still having the chance to produce something complete and reasonably well-polished by the end of it all.
Well, it's time to bring them back, don't you think? Worry not, stalwart forumites, @francoisvn and I are on the case. We've been knee-deep in the dead planning, and we're happy to announce the return of MGSA dev comps! YAAAAAY!
Think this is good news? We have better news: the first of the new comps is starting next week!
Interested? Read on for some basic info. Not interested? Read on for some basic info anyway.
*************** STUFF FOR KNOWING *******************
WHAT IS THIS THING?
Think of it as a longer-term version of the shorter game jams that are so popular nowadays (GGJ or Ludum Dare). You get a theme, you find yourself a team (or go solo), and produce a game over the course of a whole month instead of a day or a weekend. This gives you the chance to produce something a bit more fleshed-out and developed than your standard jam game, and you have the opportunity to learn more in the process.
WHEN IS IT HAPPENING?
The aim is to have a new comp every two to three months, depending on volume of entrants and speed of judging. The first of these will be starting early next week, though, so keep an eye out for the official competition thread from next Monday!
HOW DOES IT WORK?
We'll announce a theme and the final rules and procedures in the dedicated thread next week, but the broad strokes are as follows: From the moment we post the theme, you'll have a month to make a game to suit that theme. You'll need to create a dedicated thread for your entry on the forums, keeping track of your progress in that thread as your game grows and develops. It's wise to seek (and give!) frequent feedback to each other throughout the month to ensure that your games develop in the right direction. The best entries are always the ones that actively seek feedback and post frequent status updates. You do want your entry to be the best, right?
At the end of it all, a panel of judges will look over all the entries and decide which ones stood out the most in terms of interesting ideas, good execution of the theme and other mysterious criteria, and after four to six weeks of intense deliberation we'll post the results in another thread so everyone can see how they did.
WHO CAN ENTER?
Anyone who wants to. You can be a newbie dabbling in game creation for the first time, or an experienced dev looking for a challenge. You're not limited in your tools either - from Game Maker Studio to Construct, Unity to UDK, Adventure Game Studio to your own home-rolled engine, if it produces a playable game, you can use it.
(Protip: Please do not try to roll your own engine in a month. :P)
WHAT DO WE WIN?
Other than having a kickass game that you finished with your bare hands (perfect for that portfolio) and valuable new experience in game dev? Well, every single entry will receive a short paragraph of critique from our panel of judges, and the top three will be showcased in a dedicated slot at at the monthly MGSA community evenings for others to admire and critique. Woo!
I WANT IN, BUT I CAN'T PROGRAM / ART / AUDIO/ DESIGN/ SKILLZ D':
Well then, you have two options - either use this as a perfect opportunity to try your hand at something new, or else use the skills you DO have to help out on a project that catches your eye. See a game made of cubes that inspires you to make amazing replacement art? Is an entry just dying for some meaty sound effects or a fine musical backtrack? Is someone struggling to implement a feature or a special effect that you know how to do or want to attempt? Drop by the thread and offer your services.
Likewise, be open to accepting help from specialists in other fields if they like your game. And if you know someone who might be perfect to fill a skills gap you find yourself with, approach them!
**********************************
Do you like what you've read? Keep an eye open for the competition thread, which will pop up next week Monday evening.
Have any questions or concerns? Drop us a line here, and we'll answer as best as we can.
We're super keen on making this a regular thing, so we're counting on you to spread the word and make some kickass games for this first one! See you all next week.
LET THE GAMES BEGIN!
You know what we miss? We miss regular local dev competitions. I can't speak for anyone else, but some of my most important learning in the black art of game development came from regular competitions that challenged everyone to come up with something rad and interesting in a month. Short jams are good and fine, but there's still nothing like a long-form comp to stretch your design muscles and produce something a bit more substantial than what you can whip up over a weekend. It also gives you more time to learn new tools and apply new techniques, while still having the chance to produce something complete and reasonably well-polished by the end of it all.
Well, it's time to bring them back, don't you think? Worry not, stalwart forumites, @francoisvn and I are on the case. We've been knee-deep in the dead planning, and we're happy to announce the return of MGSA dev comps! YAAAAAY!
Think this is good news? We have better news: the first of the new comps is starting next week!
Interested? Read on for some basic info. Not interested? Read on for some basic info anyway.
*************** STUFF FOR KNOWING *******************
WHAT IS THIS THING?
Think of it as a longer-term version of the shorter game jams that are so popular nowadays (GGJ or Ludum Dare). You get a theme, you find yourself a team (or go solo), and produce a game over the course of a whole month instead of a day or a weekend. This gives you the chance to produce something a bit more fleshed-out and developed than your standard jam game, and you have the opportunity to learn more in the process.
WHEN IS IT HAPPENING?
The aim is to have a new comp every two to three months, depending on volume of entrants and speed of judging. The first of these will be starting early next week, though, so keep an eye out for the official competition thread from next Monday!
HOW DOES IT WORK?
We'll announce a theme and the final rules and procedures in the dedicated thread next week, but the broad strokes are as follows: From the moment we post the theme, you'll have a month to make a game to suit that theme. You'll need to create a dedicated thread for your entry on the forums, keeping track of your progress in that thread as your game grows and develops. It's wise to seek (and give!) frequent feedback to each other throughout the month to ensure that your games develop in the right direction. The best entries are always the ones that actively seek feedback and post frequent status updates. You do want your entry to be the best, right?
At the end of it all, a panel of judges will look over all the entries and decide which ones stood out the most in terms of interesting ideas, good execution of the theme and other mysterious criteria, and after four to six weeks of intense deliberation we'll post the results in another thread so everyone can see how they did.
WHO CAN ENTER?
Anyone who wants to. You can be a newbie dabbling in game creation for the first time, or an experienced dev looking for a challenge. You're not limited in your tools either - from Game Maker Studio to Construct, Unity to UDK, Adventure Game Studio to your own home-rolled engine, if it produces a playable game, you can use it.
(Protip: Please do not try to roll your own engine in a month. :P)
WHAT DO WE WIN?
Other than having a kickass game that you finished with your bare hands (perfect for that portfolio) and valuable new experience in game dev? Well, every single entry will receive a short paragraph of critique from our panel of judges, and the top three will be showcased in a dedicated slot at at the monthly MGSA community evenings for others to admire and critique. Woo!
I WANT IN, BUT I CAN'T PROGRAM / ART / AUDIO/ DESIGN/ SKILLZ D':
Well then, you have two options - either use this as a perfect opportunity to try your hand at something new, or else use the skills you DO have to help out on a project that catches your eye. See a game made of cubes that inspires you to make amazing replacement art? Is an entry just dying for some meaty sound effects or a fine musical backtrack? Is someone struggling to implement a feature or a special effect that you know how to do or want to attempt? Drop by the thread and offer your services.
Likewise, be open to accepting help from specialists in other fields if they like your game. And if you know someone who might be perfect to fill a skills gap you find yourself with, approach them!
**********************************
Do you like what you've read? Keep an eye open for the competition thread, which will pop up next week Monday evening.
Have any questions or concerns? Drop us a line here, and we'll answer as best as we can.
We're super keen on making this a regular thing, so we're counting on you to spread the word and make some kickass games for this first one! See you all next week.
LET THE GAMES BEGIN!
Comments
PS: Are boardgame entries allowed (I'll assume they'd be simple enough for the judges to be able to print and play them themselves or otherwise, person be near enough a judge to show it personally)?
In terms of submission, I'd like to minimize the time the judges need to commit, so I'd prefer if judges can play a version before/after a meetup or such. That said, a PnP version will definitely be super helpful during and after the compo!
- More people who actively and regularly create PnP games of other peoples' to test.
- Better context of discussion as you'll be talking with other boardgame designers/players.
- People sharing in your context of design as you'll all be making boardgames to the same theme.
- Good, solid limitations that (should) result in games that people are willing to easily and quickly PnP.
So anyone interested in boardgame game jamming, it's really a lot more beneficial to check out BGG compos there and be part of them. (in terms of getting feedback, in terms of getting exposure to the right people like multiple playtesters and potential publishers, in terms of getting familiarity with the most fitting audience)
The only con I can see from my suggestion above is that they're not people "we" all know already there. Well isn't that where the best feedback and advice come from? Utter strangers?
I'm not *against* putting boardgames here, of course, but I think it'll be more beneficial for boardgame designs to focus their energy towards where it's most likely to get the maximum returns.
At this point I would link to the stickied thread on BGG forums > boardgame design > design contests > that has a list of all their contests running. It's very well organised.
But their servers are down right now for a server migration XD
@Tuism, you're absolutely right in that sense. I'm planning on going where I'm inspired. So, if a comp on BGG inspires, I'm there. If one here inspires, I'm here - and not necessarily making boardgames :)
PS: I'm assuming Twine games will be allowed?
https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1270074/current-contest-info
Sorry for not being as accommodating as possible, but for the time being our focus is on getting the competitions to be a regular thing again, and at this point in time that's easiest to do if we focus on video games.
The new compo thread should be up soon (Monday or Tuesday), so get ready to make some games!!!
For instance, if I made...
...within the theme, would it be an acceptable entry as long as the guidelines for board games are followed (my responsibility to get a playable version to judges etc)?
Perfectly fine if this wouldn't be accepted, but I'd like to know where the limits are.
Oh, and yes, Twine games are allowed, if you're inspired and able to write interactive fiction based on the theme.