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9:45am
Will Freeman Freelance Games Journalist9:45am - 10:45amRoom 1[email protected]: How Indie Devs Continue to Push the Envelope in Gaming
Tuesday 11th July9:45am - 10:45amRoom 1In this fireside chat, the Chris Charla, Senior Director of the ID@Xbox self-publishing program at Microsoft will discuss what makes indie games the most exciting content on the planet. During this chat, Charla will share how the [email protected] program empowers developers to find success that allows them to keep creating new games. The aim is to enable developers to make profitable, sustainable, creative, and fun games in the future.
Host: Will Freeman
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9:45am
Angie Smets PlayStation StudiosJan-Bart van Beek GuerrillaMichiel van der Leeuw Guerrilla9:45am - 10:45amRoom 1Guerrilla: To New Horizons
Wednesday 12th July9:45am - 10:45amRoom 1For over twenty years, Amsterdam-based Guerrilla has been making cutting-edge games. During this fireside chat, the leadership team of Angie Smets, Jan-Bart van Beek, and Michiel van der Leeuw will reflect on the studio’s journey - from the early days of Killzone to taking a creative risk and developing a brand-new IP with the Horizon franchise.
In this fireside chat Angie, Jan-Bart and Michiel will share insights into their development philosophy and how a mutually shared passion for creating incredible gameplay experiences that push the boundaries of technology has continued to guide the studio through its growth.
The trio will discuss challenges they faced with Horizon Forbidden West, the ambitious sequel to Horizon Zero Dawn, and where Aloy’s journey will take them next as they look to expand the world of Horizon. They’ll also share a glimpse into their future vision and what excites them creatively for the next chapter.
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10:00am
Jon Ingold inkle10:00am - 11:00amRoom 1Further Up and Further In: Making Richer Gameplay Narratives
Thursday 13th July10:00am - 11:00amRoom 1The late, great science-fiction writer Gene Wolfe said: “My definition of good literature is that which can be read by an educated reader and reread with increased pleasure.” But narrative games are traditionally designed to be disposable: single-play experiences that become purely clockwork things on a repeat playthrough.
However, the more responsive a game is and the broader its content, the more players will miss first time around. So how can we design our games to make replay-ability a core component without the story losing its integrity?
In this keynote, Jon Ingold will present a manifesto for re-playable narratives - games that deepen and enrich themselves every time a player returns to walk their halls. He’ll outline the strategies developed by inkle over a decade’s worth of work, from the “just write everything” approach of Sorcery! and 80 Days, to the re-contextualisation of Heaven’s Vault and the procedural systems of Pendragon and the upcoming A Highland Song.
Narrative is more than content, writing is more than output, and 100% complete is not the limit.
Session Takeaway
- An example-based overview of narratives that demand to be re-played
- Strategies to reduce the content-creation burden
