Infinite Ammo

TIGJam: Winnipeg turned out to be better than I was hoping for! And James and Lisanne over at IndieGameTheMovie.com put together a very sweet video about what went on there:

It’s kind of hard to describe game jams to non-game developers… The most immediate metaphor might be imagining that developers are like musicians, getting together to jam out on their instruments – playing whatever feels good in the moment. Through this kind of free experimentation, cool new ideas often emerge.

But it’s not just about making stuff, it’s also about creative and funny people getting together to enjoy each other’s company. Since there are no real rules or restrictions forced onto the event, it tends to flow along naturally based on who shows up and what they’re interested in. Oddly enough, this lack of formal structure makes for a more exciting and fun learning experience than most heavily organized game conferences I’ve been to.

This particular TIGJam had an extra emotional punch for me, as it gave me a great excuse to have a lot of my indie game developer friends from out of town visit Winnipeg.

For me, growing up in Winnipeg was a pretty depressing experience from a game development perspective. I would have loved to find anyone in town who could have taught me how to start making a game, or indeed anyone to share the experience of game development with in general. I remember on two occasions registering for local gamedev courses, only to find out they’d been canceled due to lack of interest a few weeks later. Since this was before the internet was a prominent source of information, I’d end up making regular trips to the downtown library in hopes of finding a new game development or programming book to inspire me. My family and friends had no idea why I was so obsessed with making games. They didn’t believe that there’d be any way to make a job out of it. In highschool, my dad tried to find me a job that would have some relationship to computer programming – the only thing he could find was a soul-crushing data entry position. This bleak lack of community was part of what factored into my willingness to leave Winnipeg when I was 19.

So finally getting to the point where I could see some of my best friends and fellow game developers walking through the core of this messed up city was overwhelming for me. It felt like two worlds colliding.

But the moment that made all the planning (btw, Chrissy did a lot of the planning ^_^ ) worthwhile for me was seeing Chevy Ray, developer of the Flash Punk game library, helping out 17 year old, Winnipeg native Noel Berry with his game. Just a few days ago, a trailer for Noel’s game was featured on IndieGames.com. The fact that Noel is already linked into this community of developers makes me feel really happy for the future of game development in our city.

–

I think that TIGJams only really work because of two key ideas: Diversity and Respect.

Diversity is a word that feels kinda gross, because it’s been overused in many cases. It’s a shame, because the indie scene really does harbour a diverse collection of individuals who create very diverse output. The fact that everyone has their own ideas and wants to pursue them, ensures that we’re not going to be ripping off each other’s game ideas or trying to compete in the exact same space. It also means that we’re self-motivated; we want to see our own unique ideas come to fruition. Nobody has to go around at a TIGJam getting people riled up and ready to work – everyone brings their own work ethic with them.

Respect is something that’s hard to come by, and it’s incredibly valuable. Without a mutually understood respect for the work of others, I don’t think TIGJams would have as much cheerful energy as they do. This is what balances out the self-motivation to pursue one’s own ideas – the interest in what everyone else is up to. It’s also what leads to the transferring of skills and sharing of valuable knowledge that make jams a great place to upgrade your abilities. A capacity to see other people’s perspectives and the open-mindedness to realize that there might be other, better ways of doing things than one’s own are key to making these events work.

Thanks to everyone who showed up! And a big, big thank you with hugs ‘n kisses to Louie Ghiz and Kevin Hnatiuk of New Media Manitoba – and Ryan Fitzgerald of Fortune Cat Games Studio for providing food, space and funding for the jam. I hope we get to do it again sometime!