Playcrafting & Microsoft have partnered up yet again to bring the Global Game Jam 2018 to Manhattan in Times Square according to a press release.
The Global Game Jam is a worldwide event where participants at multiple locations try their hand at making a game with a time limit of 48 hours. The time pressure of game jams can lead to some interesting projects being created, a handful of which might evolve into fully-fledged games after some polishing. One such example is Receiver by Wolfire Games - it was originally created as part of the 7-day FPS challenge before being turned into a retail product.
Playcrafting is an organization that focuses on educating developers about the variety of skill sets they'll need to survive in the modern video game market. They offer classes ranging from full-on development courses to workshops that last for a weekend or even just a day. The organization also hosts the Play NYC gaming convention and the Bit Awards on a yearly basis. Aside from their educational offerings, Playcrafting also hosts monthly demo nights and quarterly expos where hundreds of indie games in various stages of development are laid bare to the world for the general public to try firsthand.
This weekend, Playcrafting will once again be acting as one of many sites for the Global Game Jam 2018. Check out this video that goes over some of the interesting bits from last year:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQtzPaFwy1s
The Global Game Jam 2018 will run from January 26, 2018, at 6:00 PM, until January 28, 2018, at Microsoft's Time Square location. The event will be open until 9:00 PM each night with drinks & snacks provided on site and heartier food in the surrounding area. Aside from the brand new games being made right then & there, demos of local indie titles will be available to play. Awards will be handed out in various categories at the conclusion of the event on Sunday.
If you're in the New York City area and you'd think checking this out sounds like a good bit of fun, you can sign up to attend the event here.
What do you think of the idea of game jams? Do you have any particularly favorite titles that sprung forth from such an event? Let us know in the comments below!
