At the end of January, Goldsmiths and Hacksmiths joined the marathon 48-hour Global Game Jam. Zoe O’Shea reports on what happened, and Jeremy Gow picks four standout games.
What can a group of people achieve in 48 hours? This was a question many of the new ‘Game Jammers’ were probably asking themselves as we approached the delightfully ominous doors of the St. James Hatcham building – a converted church – on Friday 29 January 2016. The Jam was set to begin at 5pm and finish at the same time that Sunday.
The space St. James afforded us was put to good use as the ever increasing buzz of Jammers had started to pour in from before four. White walls echoed the sounds of excited chatting, exclamations of friends catching sight of one another, murmurs of busy hosts trying to assemble and prep the site for the onslaught about to take place, and of course, the steady tapping of many fingers across many keyboards.
Members of the congregation included Goldsmiths alumni, current students, IGGI-letts, friends and a number of dedicated staff.
Our collective anticipation was put to rest when the theme was finally announced as ‘ritual’. And since this was a global event across multiple timezones, we were reminded: “Don’t post ‘til Hawaii knows.”
With a combined sigh of relief (“Last year’s theme was terrible!”), individuals started to make their way around tables introducing themselves. A look at the whiteboard at the top of the room indicated that “speed dating” had begun and the Global Game Jam had kicked off with earnest.
While it would be impossible to cover absolutely everything of interest that took place behind those glass doors in the following two days, honourable mentions must include:
- a sound designer having to create game sounds (using only their mouth) in a secluded backroom
- the use of the word “duress” quite repeatedly by an unnamed Jammer
- a minor Wi-Fi meltdown on the Saturday (addressed with admirable haste)
- a Jammer scaring themselves with their own game in the middle of the afternoon
- a near constant stream of bodies in-and-out of the refreshments space
- and a showing of great dedication (sleeping bags were involved) and camaraderie between all those present this year.
It’s not an easy thing to make “crunch” bearable, but the creativity and positivity shown by the Goldsmiths Jammers at St James reminds us all what the heart of this industry is about.
Jeremy Gow’s top games from Goldsmiths’ Global Game Jam
Ace Exorcist
A card game following the story of an exorcist trying to save the world from evil summoners attempting to bring evil into the world. Jeremy says: “It’s a well-designed card game with beautiful artwork. Our only non-digital game.”)
Habitual
Jeremy says: “Two first year students made a game about maintaining habits to deal with depression.” You play as an individual suffering from depression who begins to deal with their problems through maintaining and repeating habits; as simple as getting up everyday and leaving the house to sharing time with friends and just eating some good food. This game attempts to allow players to look into the ways of dealing with their own problems or helping them on their way.
Curse of Macbeth
A virtual reality horror game which follows the viewpoint of Moira – a young, committed British actress – who is totally consumed by her work after she gets the role of Lady Macbeth. She accidentally unleashes the Curse of Macbeth and the only way to escape is a cleansing ritual.
Mass Effect
You’re a priest who needs to collect all the flaming torches to complete his ritual. Unfortunately the crypt has started flooding. Collect all the torches before they’re covered by the water and make sure you don’t drown yourself. Jeremy says: “There’s a popular [and completely unrelated] series of ‘Mass Effect’ games… so the title is a terrible pun!”
- Play and download the code for the 15 games produced at Goldsmiths
- Browse all 6869 games created during Global Games Jam 2016
- Join Hacksmiths, Goldsmiths’ student-run coding and hacking club
Zoe is currently doing a PhD in Intelligent Games & Game Intelligence at Goldsmiths. She is researching the development of “self-theory” in digital games in order to create adaptive game-play experiences that respond to the player and their current psychological state.
Jeremy is the programme leader for our BSc in Games Programming and Goldsmiths’ training co-ordinator for the IGGI Centre for Doctoral Training.
I constructed the dress using a satin fabric and fibre optic filament which is woven into organza. Using a 
