Innovation in Indie Games
…the panel!
So, I’m moderating a panel at the Independent Games Summit at the Game Developer’s Conference this year. The topic is “Innovation in Indie Games.” Here is the brief, per the gdconf.com:
“Join the luminary creators of the Experimental Gameplay Project at CMU, IGF-winning Braid, flOw, and Cloud, and the brilliant Everyday Shooter as they dissect innovation in indie games. How do we generate Earth-shattering ideas that will change the face of gaming? Can small teams innovate? Is ‘innovation’ really what we want?”
Needless to say, I’m over the moon. I got exactly who I wanted for the panel:
John Blow – Co-founder of the Indie Game Jam and Experimental Gameplay Workshop, creator of the IGF-winning “Braid“.
Jon Mak – His works include Gate 88, ToJam Thing (a Toronto Game Jam ‘06 contribution), and the soon-to-be released (and highly IGF-winning) Everyday Shooter.
Kyle Gabler - Co-creator of the Experimental Gameplay Project at Carnegie Mellon and the accompanying website, games, and, arguably, the whole rapid prototyping craze that’s been sweeping around lately.
Jenova Chen – Co-creator of flOw and Cloud, founder and creative director of That Game Company, and designer on the DS version of Spore.
I’ve designed the format for my panel and written a long list of questions, such as:
Do constraints breed creativity? If you had unlimited resources, what game would you make?
How much can you innovate inside the context of a game people want to play? Not fun per se but just something that people want to play.
What are the metrics of success for innovation?
The Independent Games Summit has sold out, meaning that it has 500 attendees registered. What, I wonder, would everyone else like to ask these amazing, creative, luminary designers? If you’re in the audience you’re free (but not guaranteed) to ask your questions in person. If not, I’d love to hear from you.
Have anything you want to ask John, Jon, Jenova, and/or Kyle?