Lethbridge Herald

Virtual game jam kicking off

LETHBRIDGE COLLEGE WILL BE WELL-REPRESENTE­D AT ANNUAL EVENT

- Greg Bobinec LETHBRIDGE HERALD

Despite the ongoing COVID19 pandemic, organizers of the Global Game Jam were not deterred from continuing their annual worldwide event that brings together participan­ts from over 100 countries to spend 48 hours with, to develop either an online or board game.

Lethbridge College has traditiona­lly hosted the competitio­n, but this year because of the pandemic, the competitio­n has gone entirely online. The college will still be well represente­d as Allyson Cikor, an instructor in the Virtual and Augmented Reality ( VR/AR) program, is one of the organizers of the events.

As well, the event has proven popular with students from both the VR/AR and Multimedia programs, as it is a chance to put their skills to work in a real-world environmen­t.

“Whether you’ve never made a game before but would like to try, or you are an experience­d developer, we invite you to join us online for the 2021 Global Game Jam,” says Cikor.

“Lethbridge and other jam sites around the world will be spending a weekend making games and meeting other local game developer enthusiast­s. We’re here to create community, have fun and celebrate making games.”

Although Global Game Jam is a competitio­n, it is an event that welcomes all skill levels to collaborat­e and explore ideas. Participan­ts may participat­e as individual­s or in teams, but are encouraged to get the most out of the jam by making friends and working alongside others. Pre-formed teams are allowed, and individual­s will also have the chance to join teams at the event.

The Global Game Jam event will begin with a welcome and keynote ceremony at 6 p.m. today and the event wraps up with team presentati­ons at 5 p.m. on Jan. 31.

With the event being online, participan­ts will use Discord to connect to the local community. For more informatio­n on the internatio­nal events and to register, visit globalgame­jam.org/2021.

Follow @GBobinecHe­rald on Twitter

 ?? Herald file photo by Greg Bobinec ?? Game developers test out their design and programmin­g skills as part of the last year's Global Game Jam at the Lethbridge College.@GBobinecHe­rald
Herald file photo by Greg Bobinec Game developers test out their design and programmin­g skills as part of the last year's Global Game Jam at the Lethbridge College.@GBobinecHe­rald

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