Starting at 6:50, Eugene Jarvis will be talking with with the participants of the Chicago Game Jam as the keynote speaker. Eugene has been one of the industry pioneers making memorable games from pinball machines to the classic Cruis’n USA racing game. He is now leading his own development studio called Raw Thills Inc. in the Chicagoland area. He has also been named the first Game Design resident at DePaul University in their game development program.
The video of the keynote
6:40 – We used the random video game name generator to get crazy game names and giving an elevator pitch that would be the game. Hilarity ensued.
6:44 – Christian Arca of Toy Studio (go Christian!) kicked things off. Let do this!
6:45 – Neal from the IGDA in Chicago is giving a brief overview of the events. Talking about future awesome IGDA events here in Chicago.
6:47 – Eugene Jarvis is being introduced.
6:50 – Eugene stated by asking us a question, “What is a game?”
6:51 – Lots of answers – it is an escape from reality is a common answer
6:51 – Another question asked by Eugene, “Why do we play games?”
6:51 – Lots of answers again. “Reality sucks,” Eugene said. “We want a fantasy world with no consequences.”
6:52 – “You get immediate feedback from games. In real life you don’t know if something isn’t working for months. The feedback from the real world is all mixed up. Game design is fixing a reality. We can explore fantasy.”
6:53 – Eugene is talking about how Game Jams are great for game design. Finding that simplistic center of a game helps focus things. Pointed out that Tetris could have been created at a game jam. It’s all about keeping the reality simple.
6:55 – More tips for the game jammers: “Keep the gameplay simple and then work on the story. Always keep the game playable.”
6:57 – In game jams you can’t channel your inner “Steve Jobs.”
7:00 – The talk is over. Thanks Eugene!
7:00 – The attendees are introducing themselves…. the theme to follow soon!
