Niara's GDC Part 2 2019

Post date: Apr 05, 2019 5:23:2 AM

This year I attended the Game Developer's Conference again for the second time. However this trip had some different takeaways. One being the VR focus for entertainment growing steadily since last year. Though games and VR go hand in hand. Companies have started to target more casual consumers with wireless headsets. They focused more on using VR as another TV than a gaming system. I thought this was a great way to introduce the public more to the technology in a more comfortable way. The wireless systems allowed for easier set up. A game that has managed to make VR a feature and not a requirement is Trover saves the Universe. Te game can be played with a screen or headset giving their audience more flexibility. When it comes to VR, I thought this was a great step for the technology. 

Technology took a larger part of GDC than ever before. Most of the talks centered around new features and technical workarounds. It was a great time for Engineers and Technical Artists. Even the expo floor had tech demos around every corner. Amazon, Google, and Intel being the biggest giants for this on the floor. It seemed like there weren't as many art talks as last year for the expo pass. Going to the Intel Student Competition made me realize how much other schools focus on the technical side. Though most game were visually appealing their groups were large and allowed for art to be made quickly. Ringing was one of the two groups which had only two members. It made me appreciate the skills Ringling taught me. However the other titles had interesting mechanics which made me want to play them again and again.

This year I came to this gathering with a different goal, make friends! My first GDC I was worried about internships ,but coming into my second year changing this mindset changed everything. I stumbled into conversations with developers with a better attitude and understanding. Allowing yourself to relax makes you more approachable. I recommend only going to GDC if your looking for jobs and networking. In my travels across the floor, I saw many students in recruitment lines for jobs getting to the front and asking about internships. You could feel the enthusiasm drop from the recruiter as he began to tell them that they're looking for hires.  This has been a problem at GDC for students looking for internships. Companies never focus on that when coming to GDC, instead focusing on hires. But interns are needed for this industry to continue. I think that companies should create internship lines that are separate from recruitment. This way recruiters can focus specifically on searching for candidates with the same shared goal. This would draw more students to the conference and allow for companies to gradually build their talent fro the ground up. In the end this was my favorite visit to GDC. I hope the underclassmen find their journey into expo floor just as successful.