Nordic Game Jam 2018

Posted on March 15th, 2018

The prestigious Nordic Game Jam is back to Copenhagen in all its glory with the 13th edition from 13th April through 16th April. This year’s NGJ is being held as part of Games Week Denmark, a program meant to set the spotlight on Danish games. Nordic Game Jam is one of the largest game jams in the world with a history of over 12 years. In case you don’t know about NGJ, here is a brief introduction of the game jam for you:

The first edition of Nordic Game Jam was held in 2006 by Gorm Lai, a game designer, in association with the International Game Developers Association, Denmark. In the game jam, the participants were divided into teams and given a theme to create a game. With 40 participants creating 8 games in just 48 hours, NGJ created a buzz in the game industry and since then, it’s been held every year in Copenhagen, the capital city of Denmark. Year over year, NGJ witnesses a flood of enthusiastic game designers, developers, artists, and graphic designers showing up to take part in the challenge. Given the huge response from indies and startups, Nordic Game Jam 2018 introduces an additional conference day.

The first day of NGJ ‘18 i.e. 13th April features Developer Conference where the attendees can listen to inspirational stories, learn about new tools and best game design practices. This event includes several programs like workshops, roundtables, talk sessions and mentor cafe. During the weekend i.e., on 14th and 15th April, you see unresting developers, designers, artists, sound engineers, and graphic designers working neck-deep to mold ideas into games. In the last edition of NGJ, around 700 participants created 148 games in a weekend. And this year, the number of game freaks are anticipated for the game jam.

For wannabe entrepreneurs, NGJ’s Startup Conference is a good source of knowledge. The full day of 16th April focuses on publishing games and establishing new businesses with extensive talk sessions and workshops. Nordic Game Discovery Contest is partnering with NGJ to find new games with a potential to set new trends in the industry. At the end of the day, the whole conference is a meeting point for creators, publishers, and investors, opening doors for new partnerships and companies.

Nordic Game Jam is different from any other game event around the globe at its core. You should get ready to face challenges in turning abstract ideas into wonderful games. Historic film studio Nordisk Films, together with Interactive Denmark, A-maze, and Product Foreningen, is active in shaping up the fresh edition of Nordic Game Jam. And what about you?