In anticipation of the new digital game design course next semester, WCC’s creative media committee invites all students, particularly those interested in gaming and app development, to attend a free game developer showcase on Thursday, May 5 from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at Hale La’akea.
“Students who attend the game developer showcase will get an inside look on what the daily life is like in the career of a games industry professional from both new and veteran designers and artists,” said Gabriel Yanagihara, WCC’s gaming curriculum developer.
Students will have the opportunity to meet professional game developers who’ve worked on popular games like Assasin’s Creed, Tetris, and games for Xbox, PC and Playstation 4.
The showcase will also preview some of the tools, art styles and skills that will be taught in current and new courses at WCC, which support a pathway to bachelor’s degrees in creative media at both UH West O‘ahu and UH Mānoa.
Hawaiʻi’s gaming, tech and creative media industries are growing. The state’s High Technology Development Corp. has set a goal of creating 80,000 new tech and innovation jobs earning $80,000 or more within the next 15 years.
“For both those who’ve always wanted to work in video game since they were young and those who are just picking up games recently on the mobile markets, game design and video games are everywhere, and the industry is growing with every new console, phone and PC,” Yanagihara said. “Studying game design and development will put people on a fast track to creating amazing games for the whole world, while under the support of their peers and instructors.”
Presenters at the May showcase will include Yanagihara, who in addition to developing WCC’s gaming curriculum runs a local crowd-sourced animation company; International Game Developers Association Honolulu president Peter Justeson; independent computer games professional Kalei Lee; and freelance photographer Dallas Nagata.
For more information about the showcase, contact Renee Arakaki, WCC’s campus representative for creative media, at reneea@hawaii.edu or 235-7481.
by Ka ‘Ohana, News Staff