GDC 12: Hands-on preview of FEZ
As I stumble through the doors being frisked by weary bouncers, I find myself standing in the middle of the DNA Lounge. It is here that 8bitSF is throwing their POW event, where indie developers mingle and network at live show of various indie rock bands inspired by video game culture. As I just finished listening to The Glowing Stars set finish on stage, I turned my head and confirmed what was curiously in my peripheral. Low and behold, FEZ was available for play in a make shift kiosk where no one was playing it. This was an opportunity that spoke directly to me and on this wild ride; I was spoken to yet again on so many levels by little Gomez.
GDC 12: Facebook Game Developer Conference
Today’s web traffic is that of a different beast. We blog online, we play our games online, and most commonly, we participate in the act of social networking. Facebook has climbed to the top of social networks, with a member base of over 845 million users, becoming one of the more prominent platforms for social gaming and applications. In 2011, Facebook poured over $1.4 billion of it’s finances for game developers to take advantage of. Whether you’re a gamer or a developer, it’s a trend that’s hard to ignore. The rabbit hole will only get deeper as Facebook aims to ingrain itself into your ever day gaming routine, regardless of whether or not you’re "casual" or "hardcore."




GDC 12: The art of Folk Game Design
As the hall slowly fills up, Doug Wilson of Die Gute Fabrik takes center stage. Wilson discusses the philosophy of folk game design, the art of imagining applications and fundamentals that are conceived through simple rules that apply some sort of deputized restriction that can be applied by the allowance that modern day tech that motion gaming has given us. The excitement in the crowd is especially thick, a very thick, almost tangible sensation that hangs on every word he speaks as we bear witness to the propositions and theories that folk game design can provide to help motion gaming shake the stigma of being a gimmicky fad.




