Games Chef and Fu: Design Contest Updates

So hey, this happened: My Game Chef entry, The Eleventh Hour, is a Finalist. Pretty cool! I was more than a little surprised to discover that, to be honest -- not because I'm not proud of my work, but because seriously, there were 96 other entries this time around. And 15 of them were in Italian! How'm I gonna compete with that? Apparently, the answer is "Somehow."

The bell pepper symbolizes games.

Anyway, I'm pretty psyched about this turn of events, because it means I've made the Finals three years in a row now, which certainly feels like a feat. I kinda don't really count 2010's Action City, which may be unfair, but the Finals for that year didn't even involve any peer review or any real critical process. Still, I did get positive feedback about it, so I'm not dismissing it altogether.

I do not expect to win, nor do I care one way or the other about winning (honestly!). There were a ton of really interesting, innovative entries this year -- there always are, but the sheer volume of entries means that there were just more -- and I'm honored to be counted among them, competition or no. So... thanks, peers!

(And, obviously, "winning" Game Chef is... well, it's a thing that happens, sure, but simply entering -- sticking to the constraints and finishing a game by the deadline -- is where it's at. It's about learning and refining your skills, not scoring accolades.)

Right on the heels of Game Chef's conclusion comes another Game Fu competition! There hasn't been one of these in over two years, so it's cool that it's starting up again. The ingredients are interesting without being too limiting (which is good or bad, depending on your point of view), and from the time I saw it'd been announced I just assumed that I'd submit something.

But y'know... Game Chef just ended, and I have, like, paid game-design work to do*, not to mention music to write and games to plan, so I really do think I'll do the responsible thing and sit this one out. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't enter, if you're so inclined. Check out the ingredients and get something together by next Wednesday. It'll be fun, and you'll be glad you did it. I speak from experience!


*#humblebrag