NYU Game Center at IndieCade 2012
Called “the game industry’s Sundance,” by the LA Times, the IndieCade festival of independent games (www.indiecade.com) is one of the leading venues for game design and game culture. For four days each year in Los Angeles, games on and off the computer are played, displayed, and discussed in exhibitions, panels, lectures, and throughout the downtown Culver City area. A juried competition, all games presented at IndieCade are selected by panels of industry experts.
IndieCade 2012 was a particularly outstanding year for the NYU Game Center. Current and former students, as well as Game Center faculty, presented games, gave lectures, and won awards.
- Game Center faculty Eric Zimmerman won two of the top awards at the festival: the Interaction Award for Interference, a game installation created with architect Nathalie Pozzi, and the Game Design Award for Armada d6, a tabletop game created with designer John Sharp.
- Hokra, a 4-player competitive videogame by Ramiro Corbetta and Nathan Tompkins that was commissioned by the NYU Game Center as part of the 2012 No Quarter exhibition, also received a top prize with the Audience Choice Award.
- Hit Me!, a playfully physical game by NYU Poly designer in residence Kaho Abe, was a Finalist Nominee.
- Yamove!, an iPhone dancing game Finalist Nominee, was created by Game Center professor Katherine Isbister, along with designer Syed Salahuddin and students at NYU Poly.
- BlindSide, an audio-only iPhone game by Game Center graduates Michael T. Astolfi and Aaron Rasmussen, was a Finalist Nominee.
- Staccato, an original sport was an IndieCade Finalist Nominee, created by Game Center current students and recent grads Ben Clarke, Casey Lent, Grant Reid, and Reynaldo Vargas.
- Recurse, a gesture-based iPad game created by NYU instructor Matt Parker, was an IndieCade Official Selection.
- Against the Wall, a philosophical puzzle videogame by current Game Center MFA student Michael Consoli, was an IndieCade Official Selection.
- BaraBariBall, a competitive 2-player videogame by Noah Sasso and commissioned by the Game Center’s 2012 No Quarter exhibition, was an Official Selection.
- The Metagame, a conversational card game by Game Center faculty Eric Zimmerman along with designers Colleen Macklin and John Sharp, was an IndieCade Official Selection.
- NYU Game Center and NYU Poly faculty gave talks and lectures, including Kaho Abe, Andy Nealen, Matt Parker, and Eric Zimmerman.
Congratulations to everyone! The influence of the Game Center at IndieCade is not just an indication of NYU’s importance in the game world, but also of New York City as a world center of independent game creation.
