On Tuesday, June 30, 2015, in the auditorium and conference hall of the Lodz University of Technology, the 7th final of the Team Game Development Competition was organized by the IT Institution of the Faculty of Technical Physics, Computer Science and Applied Mathematics. Games designed by students were evaluated by representatives of leading Polish PC game production companies and employees of academic centers who run majors and specializations related to computer games.
This year, the competition was for the first time a nationwide one. Two 6-person teams competed in two categories: 8 teams in Game Development (consisting in creating a game from scratch), and 10 teams in Game Design (in which teams used the ready-made game engine - Unity3D). The teams were represented by the following academic centers: University of Silesia and its Faculty of Information Technology and Materials Science, PWSZ in Skierniewice, the Faculty of Natural and Technical Sciences, Lodz University of Technology and its Faculty of Technical Physics, Computer Science and Applied Mathematics.
Students had 15 weeks to complete their games. During that time, ready-made demos of games were developed, which included: plot, sketches, 3D models, textures, animations, user interface, game engine and gameplay.
The competition already enjoyed a certain recognition in Poland, which once again is strongly emphasized by the support from nearly all Polish companies from the computer games industry who make up the jury of the competition. The main technology partner was Microsoft, and the strategic sponsors of the competition were: ATGames, Techland, Teyon, The Farm 51, Vivid Games, with other sponsors being: 11 bit studios, CD Projekt RED, Vescom, Westland Interactive and SUPERHOT. In addition, the jury was was made up of the representatives of the following companies: Incuvo, Plastic, Efektpol, Spidor, UNIT9 and the University of Silesia, PWSZ in Skierniewice, the Institute of Information Technology of the Lodz University of Technology, the University of Lodz and the Academy of Fine Arts.
The competition was under the patronage of the Rector of the Lodz University of Technology, Prof. Stanisław Bielecki, the Preseident of the City of Łódź, Mrs. Hanna Zdanowska, the Marshal of the Lodz Province, Mr. Witold Stępnia and Łódzki Klaster GameDev.
Three prizes (first place and two distinctions) were awarded in each of the two competition categories.
The first place in the Game Development category went to "The Hunt" and the 50 shaders of gray team composed of: Łukasz Nizik, Łukasz Spierewka, Konrad Piechota, Marta Stelmaszewska and Rafał Woźniak.
"The Hunt" is a FPS computer game. The player takes on the character of a lonely bounty hunter who traverses the planet Voluntis, an abandoned human metropolis. His goal is to hunt the mechanical titans called the Apostles. At the end of the road, he must face the most powerful opponent.
"The Hunt" - 50 shaders of gray
A distinction award for creativeness was given to the Raisin? team for their game "Cyber20". Team members: Barłomiej Dobrowolski, Jakub Dziedzic, Patrycja Grad, Kamil Lorenc, Marcin Stańczak and Jan Wojciechowski. The game is held in an electrifying, cyberpunk tone, presented in an isometric view. The player takes on the hacker Samantha, and with the help of the rebellious AI named Theo, hacks around using the proprietary command language, restoring destroyed generators, bypassing and destroying the defense systems of the corporation that privatizes oxygen. In doing so, the talented female programmer wants to take revenge on a corporation that contributed to the disappearance of her father. A bond is formed between Samantha and Theo, which can turn out to be lethal.
"Cyber20" - Raisin'
A distinction award for gameplay went to the group Szesciu Muszkieterow for their game ?Za Sterem?. Team members: Roman Chomik, Jakub Dziworski, Emil Magnuski, Michał Niedomagała, Igor Siciński.
?Za Sterem? is a racing game with action elements, taking place on the sea in-between islands. The player controls a pirate ship and battles his enemies. He may also try and get rid of the competition or reduce their chances of reaching the goal. The most terrible of this treacherous archipelago?s island is the Capital of the Pirates, where even the smallest piece of information about a treasure is worth gold and quickly spreads between pirates, leading to ship races for treasures and battles with cargo ships. You have to decide what tactics to take and how to upgrade your ship in order to always be the first to reach the treasure or be the only one left in the waters. Among the islands of the archipelago, navigation and shipping skills can?t be done without, while winds and waves do not always help your circumstances. Other crews are merciless and will not hesitate to use all kinds of weapons against us, but we aren?t indifferent to their presence either?
"Za Sterem" - Sześciu Muszkieterów
All the teams represented the IT Institute of the Lodz University of Technology.
In the Game Design competition category, the jury picked one winner and awarded two distinction awards.
The prime spot went to the Ship Crew group for the game "Ship in Five". The group was composed of: Bartłomiej Dobrowolski, Katarzyna Marchwacka, Łukasz Nizik, Konrad Piechota, Łukasz Spierewka, and Anna Walasek.
?Ship In Five? is a 3D game with an isometric camera view, in which two players are trying to deliver a mysterious cargo to the planet Lamaria, at the same time ensuring they get there in one piece. During the game, various problems arise on the ship, such as bugs to be repaired before they burn, maneuvering during the asteroid raid. As the game moves on, it becomes more difficult. The closer to the goal you are, the more desperate are the cosmic pirates who will force the players to share their responsibilities to increase efficiency and cooperation.
"Ship in Five" - Ship Crew
The distinction award for game engineering was received by the EXEcutoners group consisting of: Krzysztof Fudro, Adam Kowal, Mateusz Mowel, Artur Nowicki, Daria Rytelewska, Magdalena Tatarczany, representing the University of Silesia and its Faculty of Information Technology and Materials Science, for the game "Kingdom Beyond the Clouds"
"Kingdom Beyond the Clouds" is a game belonging to the genre hack n 'slash, whose main goal is to discover an extended world full of dangers, battling enemies attacking us and learning about beautiful elements of the surroundings inspired by traditional Japanese culture. The protagonist of the game is Amatea - a brave queen, determined to regain the throne taken away from her by her evil twin sister, currently wreaking havoc in the Kingdom Beyond the Clouds. She is assisted in the mission by her companion who may be optionally directed by another player.
"Kingdom Beyond the Cloud" - EXEcutoners
The team Stowarzyszenie Elokwentnych Troglodytów was awarded for the creativity of their idea. The team presented the game "Rewind? and its members were: Roman Chomik, Jakub Dziworski, Jonathan Gostyński, Mateusz Lewandowski, Kacper Madejak, and Filip Wiechowski.
"Rewind? is a game that combines the features of a stealth and logic game with a third-person perspective. The protagonist becomes the owner of a personal time vehicle. During the time travel, the player stays in place and his past version recreates previously performed actions, which allows an effective existence simultaneously in several places.
"Rewind" - Stowarzyszenie Elokwentnych Troglodytów
This year's edition of the Competition brought together the largest number of participants so far. We hosted 18 teams and a vast number of companies from the computer games industry, which raised the rank of the contest with their presence and participation in the jury. We hope that the growing interest of students and the ever-stronger cooperation with specialists in the computer games industry will contribute to an ever better outcome of subsequent editions. We invite each and every one of you to take part in the upcoming editions!
