NJ IGDA: April 2010 Pecha Kucha Recap

Eight presentations, one great evening! The variety of topics covered at last week's IGDA NJ Pecha Kucha Night was incredible. Everything from mobile gaming to tips on marketing your game was covered during the evening's lineup. As the night went on, the event proved to have a little something for everyone.

Pecha Kucha Night was held at Mompou in Newark NJ last Thursday (April 29th) and the topics covered some extremely varied subjects. There were presentations on video game marketing, concept art, as well as one on in-game screenshots and what makes them really pop. The turnout was great, with around 25 people showing up to watch presenters discuss their topics of choice.

Here's a quick rundown of the speakers and their presentations (in no particular order):

Nick Smolney: Mobile Gaming - What's on the Fringe!?

Who wouldn't love to be the mayor of their local pub? Nick's presentation was in tune with those of us who are on the go, while talking about mobile games such as 4-Square, which takes "virtual check-ins" to a whole new level. An important piece of this presentation was the mention of the re-kindling of the IGDA Mobile SIG. Good stuff for those who like finger gaming on the move.

Sundiatta Cowels: Reporting on and Presenting the People behind the Games

Get out there and experience life for yourself! Sundiatta's presentation was focused on the art of getting out there to provide the community with feedback on the who's who and what's what of the video game industry. One of the most important takeaways from his presentation was that fact that passive experience has its limitations. To live life to the fullest, you need to experience things in the physical aspect.

Coray Seifert: Look Here, Feel This - What Makes Awesome Screenshots Awesome?
A Pecha Kucha drinking game is one way to keep the crowd's attention! Coray's presentation was on the impact that in-game screenshots have and what makes them so intriguing. The talk details the aspects of point of view, displacement, focus and how to place things in certain areas that really draw the attention to the viewer's eye. Lots of tantalizing screenshots along with an interactive presentation kept the crowd enthralled.

Casey Gatti: Postmortem of Ace Omicron for iPad & iPhone
Boldly going where no dev has yet to go! (For now...) Casey's presentation was on the good and bad of their development process of Ace Omicron. While the iPad is a new platform to develop for, Casey and his team jumped in despite the lack of an iPad to test on. They used an emulator which made things...interesting. Overall, a good recap of the ups and downs of a new platform to develop on.

Tom Monahan: Ways to immerse a player in a game and add replay value.
How do you really capture the player's attention and connect them to the game? Tom's presentation went on to elaborate on the different ways to really capture the moment for the player and keep them immersed within the game. Things like more conscious / moral decisions within the story line allow the player to create a deeper connection to the game. This connection also adds a level of replay value that is invaluable.

Sean R Scott: What do Publishers want?

No "BS" pleeeassee! Sean's presentation elaborated on what publishers are really looking for. With an emphasis on being confident (not cocky), the idea is to maintain your pitch. If you are consistent and confident, chances are you will go far. The best part is that this philosophy can be applied to most aspects of pitching a game as well as game development.

Francis Acupan: Art of the Concept Pitch - Project Levin

Don't throw anything away! Francis' presentation was on concept art and how to pitch it. With some good advice on, once again maintaining consistency, the focus was on common sense. One good point to take away was you should never throw away your concept, even if it doesn't get used right away. Chances are it can be used for marketing and possibly in future installments of the game.

Drew Sikora: Marketing Duhs and Don'ts

Hot chicks on your cover art are always a seller! Drew went on to talk about some of the things that draw the attention of the consumer as well as other aspects the drive away the consumer. Along with some consistent marketing strategies, minor differences can go a long way.

Overall, the evening was a great success! The room was full of buzz and the audience was attentive. The varied presentations kept it fresh from start to finish and best of all everyone had a really fun time. Mark our words, Pecha Kucha night will return and when it does we encourage you to get involved and give a talk. I'm sure you have something you could present on for 6 minutes 40 seconds...

P.S - All of the full presentations can be found here:  IGDA - NJ Chapter Thread