The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Curtain comes down on THIS maiden event
Abertay University teams show off their creations to visitors
THIS Festival has closed its doors after a successful maiden run.
The three-day event recognised those who have contributed to the world of game design and promoted the industry to people throughout Dundee.
A successful awards ceremony was held on Thursday evening at Duke’s Corner bar in Dundee which saw some of the brightest names in computer games design triumph in the battle for prizes.
Dundee games design legend David Jones, who was responsible for gaming mega-hit Lemmings and the hugely successful Grand Theft Auto, was named as the inaugural inductee of the Games Design Awards hall of fame.
On Friday, Dundee Council’s city development convener Lynne Short officially opened the festival, held at West Ward Works.
Various teams of designers from Abertay University were on hand to show off their creations and to speak to visitors.
A free arcade studio was also on offer for those visiting.
Friday evening saw a Street Fighter tournament being held at Abertay University.
An “Arcadia” day was held on Saturday, which was billed as “a grassroots celebration exploring independent, alternative, and experimental play in games, space and culture”.
Numerous speakers, including UK Games Fund chief executive Paul Durrant, delivered talks during the festival.
Among those present were game designers Will Traynor, Gary McCartan and Emma Rydstrom.
All three experts said they believe events like THIS to be crucial to inspiring the next generation of gamers and designers.