‘Code Name Spy’ has been named as the winner of the biggest ever Ukie Student game jam, making it the second consecutive win from students at the University of Goldsmiths.
The jam, which ran 11-12 May 2015, saw 14 teams from Ukie’s student membership competing against each other to create the best game possible in 36 hours, with the theme’ identity crisis’.
The teams were paired with industry mentors and supplied with food and drink, with the winning game being given an exclusive pitch on Square Enix’s project Collective and receiving a specially made trophy for their university.
Goldsmiths student team leader Aldo Curtis said:
We had a great time and we are ecstatic to have been chosen as the winners with our game, Code Name Spy.
“We wanted to make something different which fitted the jam theme and this is why we came up with a conversation game where you play through a seven year old’s idea of a spy movie. We spent a lot of time laughing about the art, sounds and the ridiculous script, but we learned so much from the jam.
“We had a great venue at Goldsmiths, and being partnered with an industry mentor, like our own mentor Ed Fear, meant we could get valuable critique, tips, advice and comments on the game which really helped us create the best game possible in the given time.
The full Goldsmiths team were Aldo Curtis, Sam Hayhurst, Sokol Murturi and Andrea Castegnaro, all students on the MSc in Computer Games & Entertainment.
Dr Jo Twist, CEO of Ukie said, “The standard of games that the Ukie students managed to make in such a short period of time was amazing. The jam offers invaluable experience to games industry stars of tomorrow and gives them a chance to get quality one-to-one time with key industry people. All the entrants have really done themselves proud.”
Mentor of the Universe and CEO of Utopian World of Sandwiches, James Woodrow said:
“I am completely lost for words. It is such a privilege to have been awarded Mentor of the Universe! It’s very moving to have been put forward by the team. They put in a lot of hard work and it was an absolute pleasure to have worked with such a terrific bunch over the course of the jam.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what they do in the future as they really came together to produce something quite beautiful for their first ever game jam and I am sure they all have bright futures ahead of them in the industry. I hope that everyone involved enjoyed the experience as much as I did.”
‘Code Name Spy’ and all other game entries from the game jam will be available on Ukie’s website in the coming weeks.
Study games computing at Goldsmiths: