B2G On-Location: Manila Game Jam 2012 Day Three

Day three, for many, was a day of joy and fulfillment. Hundreds of lines of code and art were drawn, sweat and tears were shed, and each dreamer proudly showcased their works, the product of two days filled with creative weaving and boundless potential.

You may be wondering what the heck I’m talking about. What else but the third (and final) day of the 2012 Manila Game Jam! Hit the jump and read up!

(Photo credits go to our resident fighting game guru Billy)

Manila Game Jam 2012: Day Three

January 29, 2012

De La Salle-College of St. Benilde amphitheater

5:00 P.M.

The theme for this year was the Ouroboros, which for many symbolizes the loop of life and death, and for some, immortality. The thought hit me after leaving the location during the first day of the 2012 game jam, and I was excited to see what kind of games the jammers were able to craft while keeping to this theme.

Like the first day of the game jam I arrived at the location thirty minutes late. Traffic was bad along the EDSA stretch because of the Bourne Legacy shoot, but that didn’t stop this weaver from reaching Benilde. I was joined by two people: the Lady Nine (my lovely player two) and Billy Anonuevo, Back2Gaming’s resident fighting game guru. With the party now complete (save for Vince who was scheduled to arrive late), we proceeded up the Benilde building.

We arrived at what was, at first glance, looked like a game developer’s conference: table after table were jammers showcasing their games to passing on-lookers, participants and visitors alike. There were so many games that we didn’t have time to try them all out. I’m proud to say though that the games developed surpassed my expectations.

First game I tried out was You Again? by 1HP. Sir Mars Balisacan (a fellow Benildean faculty member and professional game developer) was leading the team. The game was developed using Unity 3D, with full 3D art assets implemented.

The game had a simple yet enticing mechanic: using the mouse, you control a man running across a straight path laden with various elements such as crystals that augment your abilities and enemies that will make you age on collision. The plot thickens after getting hit a couple of times: after the player dies, you will then play in the afterlife and will perform exactly the opposite of what your previous objective was; in this case, you have to get hit by the enemies to return to life. To add flavor to the game, you get older each time you get hit in the normal world, and younger in the afterlife.

I then moved on to another game, this time by students from CSB. The game is called Burp by team 9 Stooges. Watch the video below for the game:

Next, Billy takes a few whacks at two more games, namely Save your Soul by Chill Hour Interactive and Ulupong by Ulupong and Friends. See the video below for the games (and some of Billy’s witty dialogues):

Before we took a breather, Billy and I decided to play one more game. This time, we were treated to a mobile experience with Dragon Orbs by Level Asian: a craftily-made game that features superb art and was developed on the Windows Smart Phone using XNA. Video below:

By this time, Billy and I were trashed. There were so many games that it was hard to keep track all of them. We decided to take a break by speaking to Sir Norman Lee (CSB-GDD) regarding the event and his insight regarding the future of game development in the country:

No rest for the wicked! Billy and I decide to dive back into the fray to try out more games. This time, we are treated to a vintage experience, care of GameJelly and their game GameJelly:

After that amusing trip down game-dev memory lane, we moved to the back part of the amphitheater to try out Enclosure: Infinite Hues by The December Team. These boys from Anino Games had such a compelling game that I simply had to try it out for myself while holding the camera:

After playing this infinitely interesting puzzler, Vince finally arrived. We then headed off to the stage to try out the game I was excited most about: Fourobo. The guys from By Implication were kind enough to give us a run-down of this intense (and seemingly expensive) multiplayer game:

After that sprite-based thrill-ride, we took our seats as the event came to a close. The awarding ceremony was coming up, but not before a few industry talks from Nokia, Globe Telecoms and Boomzap.

There were a dizzying number of awards that were given this year, which I will simply list down below:

Best Windows Game: Dragon Orbs by Level Asian

Best Unity 3D Game: Soul Dragon by Pink Chicken

Best Java Game: Someone Like Me by Generic Games

5th Place: You Again? by 1HP

4th Place: Dragon Orbs by Level Asian

3rd Place: Soul Dragon by Pink Chicken

2nd Place: Cursed Steps by Toadie (Roan Contreras)

And last but not the least, taking away both the People’s Choice Award as well as the Judge’s Choice was none other than Enclosure: The Infinite Hues by The December Project.

The 2012 Manila Game Jam is a testimony to the fact that game development is strong in our country. If these guys can create brilliant games like these in two days, imagine what they can do in a longer period of time.

This is truly just the beginning, as we wait for the next Global Game Jam this coming 2013. Till then, stay tuned and keep the dreams alive!

~ Shin