December 2010

For those who missed part 1, here you go. Now, time for…

The Opening (continued)

I unfortunately was not able to bring in my usual ace photo guy, Earl Z. Madness, to record the proceedings as he’s done for each of my previous Babycastles affairs. Thankfully Michael Rougeau, a reporter whom I first met at PAX East while doing a story about the future of video game journalism in print and whom I became pals with, was on-hand to file a story about the space and was kind enough to lend stuff captured with his very spiffy camera. Thanks Mike!

So here’s how Flatlands works: two players choose a board by looking through all black boxes that contain them, officially referred to as “the archive”, and place it on the table. They then each grab three cards from the two stacks? one contains an adjective on each one, the other a noun?. any combination. The player’s goal is to create a statement using whatever words they have that reflects their game board. It’s then up to the judge to decide it it’s valid or not. The player can choose to state their case if he or she feels like it, and the judge can ultimately go by any criteria to base their decisions. If the statement is indeed valid, that player captures that board, which is essentially a point. If the player is not successful, it’s the next one’s turn. The game ends with the first player to capture three boards.

As previously noted, I had serious concerns that a board game would be too intimidating and dense for easy pick up and play, which is fairly necessary in any arcade setting, let alone Babycastles. Which is not a knock against the fine skills of Eric and Nathalie, but the fact of the matter is is, non-digital games inherently require more commitment than your average video game (generally speaking), along with an environment that’s conducive to interacting with one another (i.e. simply being able to hear the other person speak). And I had serious doubts any of that would be possible, given how very loud and chaotic the place tends to be. Though I was still very much gung-ho about giving it a shot nonetheless! But in the end, as the final product demonstrated not just that night but the entirety of its stay, Flatlands took all those considerations into account to become something that was immediately inviting and extremely accessible. First off, who doesn’t want to dig around and check out all the awesome looking boards that are hidden about? Ultimately it’s all about the art of conversation? as well as bullshitting. And isn’t that the best part of any board game, the infighting that happens between players? Though the most important thing was if the game was hella fun to play, and it most certainly was!

I had the honor of being the judge for its first public play session! Here we have the always awesome Matt Timms as one of the very first players as well. It’s hard to tell, but here he is building a case around a vintage WWF wrestling board game board?

A closer look at the wall that details the instructions. Everyone agreed that Rachel‘s graphic design skills were simply impeccable…

The game was played non-stop the entire evening, and my original assumption that Eric and Nathalie would hit it out of the park were completely validated. A belief that only the artists themselves had doubts about during development; pretty much everyone at Babycastles was in the dark as to how it would play, but given Zimmerman’s body of work, there was never any doubt that the final product would rock, hence the excitement for his involvement in the space in the first place. Actually, I think Eric was somewhat annoyed during one of the mid development meetings when I was rather flippant with my “oh, I’m not worried, it’ll be brilliant, it’ll be awesome” since things were far from perfect on his end at that moment behind the scenes! Which of course, would eventually come to together to everyone’s delight…

The assortment of gameLab’s past works also proved to be quite popular…

Here’s Travis playing Arcadia, in which you play four games at once! It’s as tricky as it sounds…

I’ll admit it; the inclusion of Diner Dash was not my idea but Syed’s. I wanted to keep the selection to strictly unheard of masterpieces, but he insisted that the one casual game to rule them be present, whether it be for purely historical purposes, or simply cuz it’s a damn fun game to play. In the end, it was a smart choice, and simply proved why it’s made a billion dollars and spawned so many sequels and imitators…

Myself and the gf, by my side as usual…

And Eric and Nathalie, soaking in the glory…

Turnout was somewhat modest, yet still very strong. Again, the evening was not promoted as aggressively as I had hoped due to various extraneous circumstances, with the already mentioned Thanksgiving weekend that preceded the event being a prime culprit. The weather was also shitty, but certainly not a deal-breaker. As anticipated, it was a totally different kind of crowd; instead of a bunch of kids ready to dance their assess off to chiptunes, you had a gaggle of game design aficionados, most of whom are notable working professionals from the NYC scene. Like former student/good pal Dave Gilbert here, with wife Janet enjoying Diner Dash…

Here’s Rachel, mid-argument during a particular heated game…

The featured entertainment that evening was Foci+Loci, that duo that creates improvised soundscapes via Halo 3 and LittleBigPlanet, remember? Unfortunately, all pics of the performance were hard to make out…

? One possible reason is that the projected images were being generated from standard RCA outputs. Which unfortunately was the best that could be done; the big downer of the evening was how the original audio/visual set-up, which largely involved HDMI cables, flat out did not work even though they should have, leading to a very intense technical troubleshooting session. The end result were not up to Chris and Tamara’s standards, but the crowd was captivated nonetheless…

Time for a group shot!

… Unfortunately, I lack the necessary Photoshop skills to reduce that spotlight on me/add lighting to the rest of the crew. Rather embarrassing. If anyone can help out, it would be appreciated.

Back to my crappy camera; the official end time for the shindig was 11pm, but the game was still raging well past then. Again, lots of notable names from the local game dev/educational scene were present, having the best time ever. Here’s Nik Mikros from Tiny Mantis with Nick Fortugno, formerly of gameLab and Rebel Monkey fame, and currently involved in Playmatics…

When I left for the evening, Eric was in the middle of the game, as one of the two players. Without a doubt, the evening, along with the game as a whole, was a raging success!

Bonus pics time: here’s a few snapshots from the closing event, from this past Saturday, the 11th…

The Closing

Again, the sheer variety and subject matter that the game boards encompassed were literally mind-blowing. Though perhaps none more so than this one?

… It’s called Darkies In The Melon Patch, and yes, it’s very much racist. It’s hard to tell from the snapshots, but all over the board were racist depictions of blacks, circa the turn of the 19th/20th century. It’s a facsimile of an actual racist board game, no doubt from the south, though certain elements I’m told are off, and it might just be an approximation or amalgamation of a racist board game from those times. Who it’s for is anyone’s guess; as a board game collector, Eric simply had to have it part of his catalogue, despite the subject matter (or perhaps because of it, again for sheer historical significance alone). Here’s a close up look at the pieces that come with it…

Yet another game, one of countless that evening, in session, with Frank officiating (he was advertised as the “celebrity judge” for the evening). Much like at the opening, there was literally a waiting list to play! I know Jason who came out for the opening never even got the chance to play, the wait was so long…

Here’s Eric and Nathalie talking about the game, its evolution, the philosophies behind it…

… I really wish I had taken notes, but I was too busy taking pictures. Though I know Syed recorded the talk with his iPhone, so as soon as there’s a YouTube link, it’ll be here!

UPDATE: Oh, so I almost totally forgot the highlight of the entire evening, i.e. when six drunken guido Santas tried to make their way inside. As I would discover only afterward, SantaCon took place earlier in the day, which helped to explain the large abundance of passed out douchebags dressed as jolly St. Nick with vomit in their beards on the way there. Anyhow, they immediately spelled potential trouble, but thankfully it was all avoided thanks to Joe who skillfully intercepted and deflected them (he was helping to run the door anyway).

Apparently the gaggle of full-blooded Italians all sensed that Joe was one of their “people”, though I didn’t witness the exchange and thusly can’t say if I detected any change in his voice or the like. Their representative basically asked “Yo, is there any pussy here?”, and when Joe explained that there was in fact none (mind you, there was a plenty of females in attendance, but certainly not their type), it was their cue to scram. They all then thanked Joe for his intel via fist-bumps and other manly forms of affections; I suppose this would be an excellent opportunity to make some gay/Italian joke, but I’m already on thin ice with those pics of the racist against black people game board from above, so I’ll pass. Really wish I could have captured the moment, but we all know how well that would have been received. Though I did ask Mia if she could possibly illustrate the scene, but alas, she’s too busy with finals at SVA.

Moving on, some more game boards that I simply stumbled upon?

Eric and Brandon in the background of a heated contest between Zack Gage and his girlfriend, which was easily my favorite session of the evening. The vigor she demonstrated while justifying her statement made as it related to a Terminator 2: Judgment Day board was simply a spectacle to behold?

Last shot of the night, the happy couple of a game well done!

Naturally, I need to thank each and every person who came out to both evenings! Along with anyone who has lent their support towards Flatlands; it’s meant so much to myself, Eric and Nathalie, the large number of individuals that have lent their time, energy, talent and advice towards its development, along with Babycastles of course. We are all so supremely pleased that this grand experiment proved to be such a massive success, despite any inkling of doubts and the rocky road on the way towards the final game. I suppose the most important thing to emphasize one more time is how, between the opening and closing festivities, Flatlands still found an audience during regular hours of operation at Babycastles. Another big regret was how I was not able to stop by the space on a random evening to witness it in the wild as much as I’d hoped (for reasons I might be touching upon in my next entry), but was told that the regular crowd enjoyed the game as much as everyone else. The only real issue was there being enough participants, but the Babycastles staff was more than happy to fill in the role of judge whenever one was needed.

Guess that’s officially a wrap? So much for my fourth and (perhaps) final event at Babycastles! An amazing final note on an amazing year. Here’s to 2011!

1 comment

I know I say the same thing over and over again, but it’s been a wacky past couple of days and weeks, hence the lack of updates. Trust me, there’s plenty to talk about, which I’ll get to in a bit. But right now, it’s time to dive head first into?

The Flatlands show at Babycastles was a fairly significant happening on a number of levels. First and foremost, and for the folks out there who haven’t been keeping track, it was my fourth collaboration with the indie gaming outfit in just under a year. Actually a few days or a week short of me first meeting Kunal and Syed, the two dudes who founded the little arcade that could, in the basement of some DIY music space in Queens.

Sorry for the lack of modesty, but I’d like to believe that the shindigs I’ve thrown since have helped to not only thrust Babycastles under the spotlight, but also prove that New Yorkers do indeed care about games. Anyone whose familiar with my M.O. is well aware of how I’ve long lamented about the lack of game culture in the Big Apple, despite the fact that virtually every other industry and art form is well represented here. I’d also like to think that I’ve managed to cover all the bases though the sheer variety of my events, which has progressively gotten bigger and bolder. The first was a modest little zine release party that also featured various titles I’ve been involved in, both the good and not so much, the second was a showcase of games that I simply dug a lot, most of which have are fairly obscure even among diehard gamers, with some game related peeps of mine thrown into the mix for good measure, while the third was a full blast celebration of game culture under the Attract Mode banner, aided by my good pal Adam naturally, whose spearheaded similar gatherings in LA, and was again joined by some truly awesome (and crazy talented) pals.

So how does one top all that? Easy: do something completely different. Another thing about my most recent Babycastles event that I’m particularly proud of is how it marked my long awaited chance to work with Eric Zimmerman, easily one of the most noteworthy figures of the local game development scene, as well as the modern indie game scene period. The man helped to make Diner Dash after-all. The last opportunity I had (actually, not really) is when his former company gameLab had talks with mine now long defunct mobile entrainment production company, Pixel Jump, when they were interested in getting involved in the cell phone space.

As of late he’s been doing physical games, with architect Nathalie Pozzi, so when I got the email from him about doing something together for the yet to debut Babycastles Manhattan space, I immediately envisioned something along the lines of their previous collaborations (most notably Sixteen Tons, which I had played already at NYU and which was making waves across the game design spectrum). Something similar in the sense that I was also interested in a non-digital game, one that was very much pristine, almost regal. Basically the opposite of anything Babycastles and myself have presented. Funny enough, I’d also discover after all and said and done that the end result was something that Eric had wanted to do for many years as well, since it tapped into his love for board games?

Pre-Show

Much like for ATTRACT MODE X BABYCASTLES, set-up time was virtually nonexistent. The real issue in this particular case, and why I had even less time to properly promote than that one, was how Thanksgiving weekend immediately preceded set-up, which created several complications related to available resources, or the lack thereof to be specific. I personally could not be on-hand to oversea and lend a hand as much as I had wanted or hoped due to a situation at my daytime gig at that time, which was frustrating to say the least. In the end, it was just Eric and Nathalie, prepping the space almost single-handed, along with help from Rachel Morris, the game’s graphic designer, plus a small assortment of students from Eric’s NYU class.

I’ll be completely honest; as excited as I was about the idea of a gigantic board game involving boards from other board games, I was still worried about how it would ultimately be received. Once again, it’s like nothing Babycastles had ever presented, so it therefore impossible to predict how the Babycastles/Showpaper regulars, never-mind the general public, would react to something so foreign. The venue itself was a cause for concern; much like a traditional arcade, it can get very noisy, but when you also factor in all the live shows that also take place at the space? one can somewhat play a video game amongst such distractions, just pick up a controller and hit all the buttons to hope for the best. But a board game, which requires far more concentration, along with the need to communicate with each other? The fact that one can mess around with a game for a few seconds here and there, whereas a board game needs serious commitment.

Another cause for concern was the game itself. For the most part, I was unaware of the game’s mechanics due to the fact that it was constantly changing and evolving. Early pics of the game, via Eric’s Twitter feed, made me feel rather nervous and anxious; what I saw just seemed so complicated and almost unplayable, at least for the environment I just described. Funny thing was, my hunch were somewhat correct; Eric revealed in the end that the game went through about 30-40 different iterations! Hence the importance of playtesting; over time Eric realized that initial plans were indeed too cumbersome and decided to strip things down to its rawest essential. Eventually it was discovered that a game that’s simply about esthetics and interactions with the board, as well as other players, were the best coarse of action. And as noted in a previous entry, I’m rather proud to have been in one of the playtesters (along with Frank Lantz) when it hit that crucial corner!

Anyhow, here’s some pics from the final 48 hours till showtime; the first thing you’ll immediately notice are a bunch of black boxes, which comprises most of the game’s space. Each one was designed by Nathalie and assembled by hand…

Each was designed to accommodate a game board. How many were there btw? I actually forget the exact number? I believe a couple hundred at the very least. Half the fun was checking out the wild variety of board games that was on-hand, all of which are from Eric’s personal collection…

You had all the staples like Monopoly and Life, along with far more obscure ones, mostly based upon old television shows, cartoons, political dogma, even video games!

Eric and Nathalie, crunching numbers…

? Without getting into too many messy details, original plans as they pertained to the layout of the game, which pretty much took up the entirety of Babycastles’ allotted space, had to be changed almost last minute. And that was jarring to say the least! But in the end, it helped to bring about a change that worked in the game’s favor, so all was well in the end.

Here we have the wall elements being prepped…

Despite things getting kinda hairy near the end, Eric always had a chipper attitude!

Eventually, it was December 2nd, 7pm aka showtime. Flatlands was finally live?

The Opening

In the back were a selection of classic gameLab games in the patented Babycastles custom arcade cabinets?

? Blix was easily my fave of the bunch, with Junkbot coming in at a very close second. Unfortunately, the one I was hoping to have playable the most, Loop, which I wasted God knows how many hours playing while at Ubi Soft (much to the chagrin of my superiors) is simply so out of date that it was impossible to get up and running under Windows 7 according to the Babycastles tech team. Major bummer.

That’s it for part 1! Get ready for part 2.

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