Toronto Thumbs

Event
Gamercamp Lv3: Seth Cooper Interview

A couple of months back, a game called Foldit made headlines when gamers used it to solve an HIV protein strand that has been eluding scientists for a decade. Fold it is a game where a player is given a protein that they must fold up for maximum points following certain rules. I had a chance to sit down with Seth Cooper from the University of Washington (who worked on Foldit) to talk about the game and to discuss what else is coming out of the University of Washington.

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Event
Gamercamp Lv3: Play

Gamercamp Lv3 was completely devoted to creating an environment of play for its attendees. Everything from the breakout room (stocked with Play-Doh, crayons and paper), to the inspirational talks by local developers allowed creativity to flow and ideas to be hatched. I had a chance to sit down with Jamie Woo and Mark Rabo (separately), co-organizers of Gamercamp, to talk about their ideas on play and how one can use it in their life. In the spirit of play, during the interview we played a game of Exquisite Corpse.

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Upcoming Event
Gamercamp Lv3

Do you know what’s awesome about the gaming community? Everyone is pretty damned awesome. The devs are probably some of my favourite people to hang out with (when I get the rare chance); they are such a warm and creative bunch of people that it actually becomes tough to say goodbye at the end of time spent with them! If you have ever wanted to experience the camaraderie and fun that is associated with the artistry of gaming and play, then you really, really need to go to Gamercamp Lv3.

Held at a number of different venues, Gamercamp celebrates…well…us! With talks, workshops and entertainment, there is something for everyone! Each and every one of us that makes up the gaming community has something to share at Gamercamp.

So what are you waiting for? »

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Gamercamp Level 2
Set the Fight to Music

At Gamercamp, the first session I attended was called Set the Fight to Music (based on the 80′s song Set the Night to Music). Shaun Hatton (EP Correspondent, Musician, Full of Win) and Jeff Alyanak (aka jefftheworld: programmer, DIY fanatic, also Full of Win) spoke about music in video games, and the creation of music in general; both are clearly very passionate about the subject matter, as the talk was lively, entertaining, and informative.

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Events
Gamercamp Level 2

This past weekend was a fun one if you have anything to do with games whatsoever; Jaime Woo and Mark Rabo’s Gamercamp was in full swing on Saturday and Sunday, providing a warm and friendly atmosphere to talk about all things gaming. This year was Thumb’s second year at Gamercamp (though, personally, it was only my first), and it’s not really a surprise to see why we can’t wait for next year!

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Event Re-cap
Gamercamp Wows, Leaves Me Wanting More

Organizers Jaime Woo and Mark Rabo welcome the crowd. Photo by Gavin Hay from the Gamercamp Flickr Pool.

Saturday’s Gamercamp was unlike any other gaming-related gathering I have attended. Since many of them are sponsored by software and console manufacturers and used to promote upcoming big-budget titles from studios with hundreds of employees, the contrast provided by Gamercamp was both refreshing and much needed.

Instead, the event celebrated local talent and featured demonstrations of upcoming indie games as well as insights from successful indie developers about the creative process, business decisions, and team dynamics. Gamercamp was a casual gathering with snack and chat breaks punctuating demonstrations and lectures.

During these breaks I was fortunate to meet with several local gamers and writers, many for the first time, to talk about gaming and other geeky subjects. Among these personalities were the amicable Imaginary Thomas (who was making his annual public appearance), Lori Dance and Dave Waisglass from the new and awesome game blog A Couple of Gamers, Don Tam from GameNorth.ca, Will Perkins and Lucas Rizoli from Dork Shelf, Ry-Tron and Nadine from Aboot Play, Zack Kotzer from Steel Bananas, and Jaime Woo and Mark Rabo, the minds behind Gamercamp.

What was surprising and most humbling was hearing from people who’ve read Toronto Thumbs and enjoyed the site – so to those of you who expressed kind words, thanks again.

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Posted in Arcade, Art, Awesome, Canada, Events, Indie, TORONTO | 7 Comments »

Gamercamp
Mini Pac-Man Cupcakes!

These Mini Pac-Man cupcakes, shown just about actual size (click the photo to super-size it), were just some of the fun snacks at Gamercamp V1.0, held today in Toronto. I just got back from the event, having to duck out early to head out to a birthday party that I’m almost running late for.

Expect a write-up in the near future about the event itself, but for now the main thing to take away is that these mini cupcakes were made by Catherine at Sweetmeat and that they were delicious. The ghosts didn’t even have to be purple with sad faces for them to be eaten, either.

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Event
Gamercamp is Tomorrow

Torontonians, don’t forget: The first-ever Gamercamp is tomorrow! The one-day event celebrating the creativity, art, and history of video games will have presentations from Raigan Burns and Mare Sheppard of Metanet Software Inc. as well as Broken Brothers Deluxe creator Michael Todd and Nathan Vella of Capybara Games.

Various indie pixel art, game demos, and game music will also be showcased at the event, and admission includes dinner and unlimited freeplay of 25 classic arcade cabinets courtesy of Replay Arcade Museum. The schedule has a more detailed breakdown of what’s happening.

Tickets for Gamercamp are $15 in advance or $20 at the door. Advance tickets also come with a raffle ticket for a door prize and can be purchased at Gamercamp.ca. The event will be held at the Lower Ossington Theatre at 100A Ossington Ave., Toronto. Start time is 1 p.m.

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GAMERCAMP
Official Trailer Released!

Yesterday we told you about Gamercamp, the upcoming day-long gaming event to be held November 21, 2009 at the Lower Ossington Theatre at 100A Ossington Ave. in Toronto. But we neglected to include this awesome trailer for the event (I swear it wasn’t on their site yesterday!). So here it is. If you weren’t already excited about Gamercamp, you should be after watching the video.

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