You might think of video game development as something that happens overseas, but for a while now, Australians too have been making their mark in the world of video games. Incredibly popular titles from the past decade of gaming, including smash hits like Hollow Knight and Untitled Goose Game, were made here in Australia by small, indie development teams. Our local industry continues to grow and evolve constantly. Did you know that 91% of Australians now own a video game device?
One of the most exciting things that has grown alongside Australia’s footprint in the video games industry in recent years is the robust range of video game development study options at UTS. In these classes, students learn game design principles and go on to create their own video games. For many students, the UTS Student Games Showcase is the perfect opportunity to show off their hard work – and there was plenty to show off at this year’s event back in June.
I was lucky enough to see some of these student-made games for myself at this year’s showcase. And I certainly wasn’t disappointed – but rather, completely blown away by the quality of the projects on show. In this post, I’ll go over my impressions of the event, plus I’ll show you where you can have a go at playing the games from the showcase.
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Building 11 was completely abuzz with activity and excitement when I arrived at the Showcase, with the event spread out over four classrooms. Each project team had a screen and computer set up so that attendees could both see and play the games. With an assortment of different genres, gameplay and art styles on display, the immense creative efforts of the students behind the games was clear. Here are just a few examples of the impressive projects I saw:
- There was some serious artistic flair in projects like Scarlet, Silence, Sunrise (a cosy murder mystery with overtones of the classic farming RPG Stardew Valley) and Iris (a retro-styled survival horror).
- Students had dreamed up imaginative and hilarious characters, including a wizard who hates golf but is cursed to play for his freedom (in Dungeon Golf) and a dove who collaborates with bees as he rushes to reach his wedding on time (in The Dove of My Life).
- Unique takes on different video game combat styles, such as the multiplayer kendo-simulator Kendoka and adorable animal ninjas in Primal Punch-up.
It would be impossible to summarise all of the gaming excellence on display into a single post, so I highly recommend taking a look at the full list of games and trying some out for yourself – many can be played from within your browser!
These projects ranged from platformers, first-person shooters, party games through online multiplayer adventure games. The level of sophistication goes up year by year, to the point that now our students are starting to publish these games into the market. A few years ago, that was unthinkable. We are very proud of how far they have come!!!
Jaime Garcia Marin, Senior Lecturer
Levelling up
With such a range of incredible projects on display, it’s not surprising that the showcase caught the attention of industry professionals. Arcane Raiders, a colourful rogue-lite reminiscent of the wildly popular Hades, always seemed to have a crowd of eager players at the screen when I walked past. One of those visitors was none other than Naresh Hirani, Studio Head at the Sydney headquarters of Riot Games (best known for publishing League of Legends and VALORANT).
During the showcase, the Playmakers Student Society was running a competition for Armless Samurai, a game developed by the 2023 Playmakers Development Team. This “fast paced first-person parkour game” puts the player in the shoes of a samurai who has lost his arms, and must now use his legs to dash and kick through levels filled with obstacles and enemies. The Playmakers Development Team is another great way for students interested in game development to learn the ropes, as the student run team aims to emulate the environment of a real game studio.
Creating Armless Samurai last year was a fun and challenging experience. We had a team of over 20 students work on the game throughout the spring semester and then a smaller group of around 8 to remaster the game and polish it for a release on steam over the summer holiday period. Overall we are quite pleased with the end result which currently has 100% positive reviews on steam.
Ben Comino, Producer in Playmakers Development Team
Achievement gained
There are so many moving parts in game development, and it’s hard to make a video game – let alone a game that looks great, offers an engaging concept and works well. This makes the student work on display at the showcase all the more impressive.
For students, the opportunity to participate also offers a meaningful way to both celebrate their achievements, and to continue to develop their skills in game design.
The entire team is very pleased with the numbers of the Student Games Showcase. This has been without doubts the largest showcase since its inception in 2017. We had nearly 400 attendees ranging from family, friends, UTS academics, aspiring Game Development students and our wonderful industry partners from NVIDIA, UBISOFT, RIOT Games, SXSW, to name a few.
Jaime Garcia Marin, Senior Lecturer
Visit the 2024 Student Games Showcase gallery to see photos from the night, and stay up to date with all things game design via the Games Studio homepage.