The gaming world has a unending craving for new ideas and old ideas rebuilt differently from creators, developers and fans that pioneer novel and unique ideas of what the definition of a game mean. Even before the birth of their studio, Gigantic Mechanic, the concept of performance, crowd interaction and game design intertwined for unique games was given a stage during Come Out and Play; a 4-day festival of crowd-based gaming and events all across NY.
Gigantic Mechanic was founded by Greg Tefry and Mattia Romeo 2009 as a studio focused on interaction, both by the players and how those same players interacted with the world around them as the main focus of the games and events run by their studio. The goal was to make people more aware of not only new ways to play classics games with Tetragrams; a 15 person tetris mode with co-operative gameplay to form specific shapes, but as well to make them aware of the world they inhabit. They partnered with documentarian Marco Williams to create a game alongside his documentary focusing on immigrants crossing the Sonoran Desert and the border patrols the secure the area.
Since then they've created projects both for clients and the general public based around new and emerging technological innovations, finding a strong connection to mobile devices for use in many projects thanks largely to the ease of access for people and the ability to simplify game mechanics for pick up and play by passerbys and children. Come Out and Play was created with the intent to bring a multitude of game ideas into the public world and inspire crowd involvement around these new games. tapping into mobile, VR and other technologies to create experiences to be able to entertain children and adults alike with game designs built to open their minds to new ways of thinking what constitutes a game.
We'll look into a number of these game in the next few weeks but here's a highlight of one of their events during the Come Out and Play festival, After Dark; a evening of games in the middle of DUMBO, Brooklyn
The Adventure's Society, a live-action exploration theatrical production run by State of Play, a theatre community committed to creating a bridge between role-playing and crowd involved immersion. You take on the role of an adventurer in a loose chose-your-own-story with your trusty lantern and useless starchart, (Useful for swatting spiders) as you explore a mummy's tomb. The actors act out the many parts while you use smarts and said lantern to play out a short, fun adventure. It amazes me every time I see the Adventures' Society how fun they make having 6 sweaty people pretend to be mummies and stone pillars for folks who have never played before.
Next is The getaway, an adaption of Fox and the Hounds on bikes through the urban park of DUMBO. Brought over from Europe by its creators, you chase down the Man in White, acting together with the other players to get close enough to steal the tail of the back of his bike, winning. It was alittle cramped at the location in DUMBO, but this is definitely a game I would love to see in a big field with the ability to field a large force of players.
Last game to specify today was Duck Hunt Live! Something sneakily designed to get nerds running, it adapts Duck Hunt into a live-action game mode. One person is the Hunter and equipped with a single-shot nerf gun and ten rounds, the rest are given duck hats and are left on there own to survive for 15 minutes until the Sanctuary opens. A safe zone that the ducks must get to in order to in.
You can find out more of these games and future events that Gigantic Mechanic runs at their website here.
Earl Maldoun can be reached via Snails with Mail, a environmentally-safe mail method where to feed bits of lettuce to snails with your message on them and then they email me your questions. Or you can follow me here.