People Features

By Jason Choo

Ever faced a prospect so daunting in life, it felt like you really were David, about to go up against Goliath? As a beginner in game development as well as an undergraduate student, my Twelve Labours came in the form of an event called Global Game Jam (GGJ) that was held recently on 30th January and lasted till 1st February.

For those who do not know of it, according to the press release:

"Global Game Jam brings together talented individuals and teams from around the globe and rallies them around a central theme, for which they have 48 hours to create their game. With 1,650 participants at 54 locations in 23 countries, GGJ is a showcase of the creativity and talent of the international game development community."

Author, Jason Choo

Joining the professionals

Now, from the perspective of a 2nd year student still working on his game development degree at London Metropolitan University, I was naturally taken aback when my course leader, Fiona French, invited us to join the London division as participants i.e. developers.

I remember the first thought that came to my mind was, "Hang on a minute, have I just been asked to work and compete with some of England's best game development professionals who have been creating brilliant games, probably since the day I was born?! Count me in!"

Day One

Since the 30th was a Friday, many participants were still engaged in other activities and did not make the 2pm target. However, as the clock ticked on, people started coming in and we had 30 or more outrageously talented individuals gathered by the time the keynote speech was delivered by Kyle Gabler, game developer of World of Goo fame.

A silent buzz spread across the room as newly acquainted participants started forming teams, discussing constraints and, conceptualization went into overdrive.

Random ideas were thrown around, some absurdly silly, others brilliant beyond ingenious, and at the end of Day One, most teams managed to come up with solid game concepts.

Day Two

On Day Two, development hell breaks loose as all the various teams started building their game and implementing their mechanics. Game mechanics and features were materialized, tested, cursed at, brought back to the drawing board, redone, and remade again.

In an extreme case, one of the teams actually had to restart their game from concept phase again at 10.30pm as they scrapped their first game because it was 'unplayable' and 'lacks fun'. Also, about 15 or more people spent the night on-site on Day Two compared to Day One which only had about seven or so.

Day Three

Then came Day Three, which escalated the situation, from development hell, into Armageddon, as various teams struggled with attempts to finish implementing their game mechanics and features, or testing for and removing bugs from their games, and in rare cases, put on the finishing touches to their games.

Those who succumbed to fatigue and exhaustion were either still sound asleep or did not appear until 10am, while others toiled away, with veins popping all over their temples. But by crunch time, i.e. 3-5 hours before we were supposed to submit our games at 3pm on the final day, a panicky, urgent rush could be felt throughout the room like a train speeding towards impending doom.

Show 'n' Tell

However, after the deadline expired and all of the teams had submitted their work, the atmosphere instantly changed into one of relaxation and relief. Next up was the Show 'n' Tell at 5pm where all the participating teams briefly elaborate and demonstrate what they had conjured up in the past 48 hours.

After several hilarious, innovative presentations and round of applauses, Global Game Jam London finally came to an end. I gave a standing ovation to each game.

All smiles

As I returned home, nothing could wipe off the silly smile off my face. Yes, it was terribly exhausting, and, yes it was rather nerve-wracking, but nothing could ever substitute the experience I had gained and the fun I had during the event, knowing and working with, as well as against, all those unbelievably amazing people who participated.

No, we did not manage to create the free to play, independent version of Grand Theft Auto 4 but I sincerely believe that all the games made were equally awesome in their own unique and meaningful way.

And to top it all off, the snow that enveloped London on Monday started that night on my way back! My first Game Jam experience and the overall event was definitely a phenomenal success. Here's hoping for a similar, if not greater, experience at Global Game Jam 2010, which I would most certainly be looking forward to participating in!