Last weekend in wintry Melbourne hundreds of indie game developers and enthusiasts donned their chunkiest cardigans and headed to the State library for the Freeplay Independent Games Festival.

Focusing on “the creative and artistic side of making games” Freeplay brings together developers, educators, programmers, designers and artists from across the independent games scene in Australia to share their tales of woe and success. Throughout the weekend there was a plethora of events to attend including panel discussions, workshops and a chance to get some hands on with the games everyone was talking about in Experimedia. The spirit of camaraderie and mutual admiration was undeniable with students and seasoned games industry veterans rubbing shoulders, sharing ideas and eventually getting drunk. It was the gaming equivalent of a folk festival but instead of acoustic guitars and bongos there were iPhones and laptops.

The festival had a three pronged event list to keep the punters happy.  The workshops upstairs were the most technical of the prongs with each session taking the participants through a range of common challenges for small developers covering everything from franchising to prototyping. In the main theaterette ran a series of of panel discussions from industry veterans, educators and local developers. Most of the panels I attended were an open and frank discourse between the audience and participants, discussing anything from non-euclidian space (don’t worry, I didn’t know either) to why red barrels must explode! And when your bum or brain began to numb from the back to back workshops and panel discussions the participants could stretch their legs in the library’s Experimedia space and play some of the games mentioned throughout the festival. It was also nice to see tutors from various universities in Experimedia on hand to discuss what game design courses were on offer in and around Melbourne for those thinking of stepping into a games development career.

By the end of the weekend the packed schedule was taking its toll and was wrapped up by a swift and friendly awards ceremony. Festival directors Paul Callaghan and Eve Penford-Dennis were cheered and heckled with much love and respect as the various nominees accepted their awards. As the participants filtered out into the cold it was clear that industry developers had reaffirmed why they do what they do and all the attending aspirational students were inspired and motivated to work hard and join the industry.

Freeplay’s success is evident, it facilitates a level of communication and networking in the industry that many similar conferences and festivals could only dream off. Participants left with not only a sense of pride for working with games but with a sense of community and support. I hope it continues to grow and bring the game developers of Australia the attention they deserve.

The 2010 Freeplay Award winners are listed below, to find out more about Freeplay visit www.Freeplay.net.au

Best Australian Game
Brawsome – Jolly Rover
Best International Game
Yellow Jam (Brazil) – Last Hope
Best Design in a Game
Sword Lady & The Viking – Up Down Ready
Best On-Paper Design
Timothy Ryan – iCrazy Man
Best Art in a Game
Farbs – Captain Forever(series)
Best Concept Art
Fiasco Studios – Exodus
Best Technical Innovation
Finn Morgan – Colourbind
Best Game Writing
PVI Collective – Transumer
Best Audio
The Voxel Agents – Train Conductor