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Dare ProtoPlay starts next Friday!!
6th August 2009
Be the first to see the best new video games stars in action at Dare ProtoPlay!
- Play the games from future BAFTA nominees and vote for your winner
- Learn more about how computer games are made
- Find out how computer game technology is used in cancer research and tackling crime
As part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Dare ProtoPlay is a fun, free, family day out like no other. Held on the 14th-16th August at EICC (Edinburgh International Conference Centre), video game fans of all ages can be among the first to play newly designed game prototypes from some of the best new talent in the gaming world.
Help a die-hard rock music fan save the world from pop music, take the ultimate co-ordination challenge with jumping blocks, test out your nature (and nurture) skills when you take the task of raising two newly hatched eagle chicks, or how about helping a not-so-scary scarecrow restore order to his farm. If none of these take you fancy then there are ten other games to try out and a variety of interactive activities.
Organised and promoted by the University of Abertay Dundee and powered by Intel, Dare to be Digital sees teams of talented students and graduates from universities and art colleges from around the world, competing against each other to be in the final 14. Apart from some home-grown young talent, this year teams have come from as far as Ireland and Northern Ireland, China, India, Canada and Norway.
The finalists will meet for a final showdown at Dare Protoplay where they will face the public vote and have their game prototypes judged by industry experts.The top three teams will be the sole finalists for the highly coveted BAFTA Video Games ‘Ones to Watch’ award later this year.
This year’s Dare ProtoPlay will also see Denki, a Dundee-based video games company putting an exclusive preview of the world premiere of Quarrel, the brand new Xbox Live Arcade game. Participants are invited to come and play and help shape the final development stages of the game.
Among all the exciting programmes, Dare ProtoPlay will also feature a music workshop by Yann Seznec, who will use Wacom tablets to create musical instruments; Abertay PhD research programmes based on video games technology; a Dare iPhone game launch in association with Digital Goldfish; a special Career Workshop in association with BAFTA targeted for teenagers and many many more.
More than 3000 visitors are expected at the event which in addition to being able to play and rate the finalists’ games, offers the opportunity to find out more about how video games are made and how computer game technology is used in a wide variety of fields such as medical research, policing and city planning. Visitors can also find out more about employment opportunities in the video games industry.
Minister for Culture Mike Russell, will be among the visitors to see the new talent firsthand. Mr Russell will meet the teams and try out some of the games on Friday 14th August.
Dare ProtoPlay celebrates the strengths of the international games business, but also highlights the prominent role of the Scottish computer games sector as a key part of the global industry. The event is taking place shortly before Abertay University launches its new Institute for Arts, Media and Computer Games next month, which will be the UK’s first national university centre of excellence for computer games education.
Elaine Russell, Dare Project Manager, said “Dare to be Digital is frequently hailed as the best new talent spotting competition in the UK and also the best model for video games education. Over 80% of Dare participants go onto employment within the industry.
“Dare ProtoPlay has grown stronger and better every year. It has gained many loyal followers and is the video games event to watch in the North.”
Entry is free for the event which is open 10am – 6pm Friday 14th to Sunday 16th August at EICC.