The National Media Museum in Bradford is preparing for the first Yorkshire Games Festival, which looks to provide attendees with unrivalled insight from the industry’s highest profile names and celebrate the nation and region’s strength in game development and design.
With Doom, Wolfenstein 3D, and Quake co-creator John Romero to take part in an on-stage interview with EDGE magazine to reflect on his career to date, and Wizardry and Jagged Alliance lead designer Brenda Romero to deliver a keynote session on ‘a lifetime in games,’ the festival looks to attract visitors with a diverse schedule.
Such high-profile names only continue with award-winning games scriptwriter and story designer Rhianna Pratchett, Supermassive Games game director Gary Napper, and industry legend Warren Spector to take part in panel discussions hosted by The Guardian’s games writers Keith Stuart and Jordan Erica Webber.
With Bradford College as its Principal Sponsor and the University of Bradford as its Education Partner, the festival will take a closer look at games developers in their home county.
That will include a 21st-anniversary celebration of Worms with Team17’s creative director Kevin Carthew, Sumo Digital creative director Sean Millard and designer Sebastiaan Liese exploring their new title Snake Pass, Broken Sword series creator Charles Cecil sharing his experience in developing adventure games, and Creative Assembly brand director Rob Bartholomew discussing how to promote new games – a topic that will be specifically aimed at start-ups and small games developers on limited budgets.
An audio-visual culture clash is promised in DJ Yoda Goes to the Arcades: A History of Gaming, an evening event that will chart the best-loved games from the early 80’s right through to present day. The night will be dominated by game music, original soundtracks, gameplay footage and old TV ads, promising new exclusive content created in collaboration with GamerDisco.
Nintendo will have a presence in a dedicated zone that provides visitors with the chance to celebrate the Year of Pokémon as part of the festival’s Family Weekend activities. Pikachu will make an appearance and a variety of Pokémon games will be playable, as well as the new Nintendo Classic Mini: Nintendo Entertainment System. You can win prizes in Super Smash Bros. tournaments, and, as with any event, this will be another StreetPass opportunity.
Yogscast presenters Hannah, Caff, and HeyChrissa will also host a live session, answering questions, playing games, and meeting any fans in attendance. Minecraft events are also planned, as well as the chance to play ‘weird and wonderful’ titles in the Yorkshire Games Showcase.
The Yorkshire Games Festival will take place Wednesday 9th – Sunday 13th November 2016, with passes and tickets to be on sale from Wednesday 14th September.
