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Peterborough, Ontario – February 21, 2017 – They came. They created. They celebrated.
PTBO Game Jam 02, held February 17 to 19 at Fleming College’s Kawartha Trades and Technology Centre, was a resounding success, drawing more than 150 participants – more than half of those game developers – and resulting in a very impressive 33 games created.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-j6oYJod5Q
“Watching the organic growth of this event has been astonishing,” enthuses principal event organizer Matthew Davey of Peterborough game development studio dotBunny.
“Hearing the stories of individuals and their journeys to get here made all the work organizing it well worth it. I can’t wait to see what we can do for PTBO Game Jam 03 as we are now starting to catch the eye of much larger markets.”
With the theme Alternative Facts at its center, the semi-annual not-for-profit showcase of all things game development saw programmers, designers, artists and others involved in game-development disciplines gather to plan, design and create games in a specified time frame.
When all was said and done, 33 games were made and judged – 28 of those developed in the Unity game engine. Cash prizes were ultimately awarded in four categories – Over 29 Team (Brendan Quigley, Chris Stretten, Josh Reynolds and Rob Waite); Over 29 Solo (Jeffrey Moore); Under 29 Team (Matthew Greer and Natasha Monk); and Under 29 Solo (Matthew Kingdon). A paid subscription to GitHub for a year was awarded to the Most Valuable Jammer (Arin Blue).
PTBO Game Jam 02 also presented an event-opening Educational Block that featured Robert French who led a seminar on the steps and processes involved in the creation of PAC-MAN.
Davey notes PTBO Game Jam 02 saw a huge increase in sponsor support compared to that of the inaugural event held in August 2016. Davey thanks Fleming College, Funky Rustic, GitHub, IBM, Peterborough Tech Advisory Council, Ricky’s All Day Grill, acorn30, Aramark, Audiokinetic, Community Futures Peterborough, Gotta Havva Pizza, inXile Entertainment, Kawartha Lakes Community Futures Development Corporation, Liftlock Studios, Pagefolio and Unity for their invaluable support.
PTBO Game Jam History
With the goal of fostering a local game development community to the benefit of future generations of game developers, Matthew Davey, the founder of Peterborough-based game development studio dotBunny, organized and hosted the inaugural not-for-profit PTBO Game Jam 01 in August 2016 at the Holiday Inn Peterborough-Waterfront. That event saw 11 new games created and judged.
Based on the overwhelming response to, and success of, that initial gathering, plans were made to host a follow-up event in early 2017, which was held February 17 to 19 and saw 33 games created. Davey continues to work with a stellar team of industry professionals to ensure the success of the PTBO Game Jam to the benefit of the industry as a whole as well as participants.
It’s estimated that more than 19 million Canadians identify themselves as “gamers,” participating, at some level, in an industry which is expected to grow to a startling $100 billion market value come 2019.
Contact Information
Matthew Davey
matthew.davey@dotbunny.com