2023 RIT Student Game Showcase and Expo

IGM Presents Student Games Showcase & Expo 2023 Saturday April 15, 2023 Game Categories: Technical Excellence, Aesthetics, Game Feel, Game Impact, Best in Show

Overview

Presented by IGM, the annual RIT Student Game Showcase brings together students, faculty, alumni, and industry professionals to celebrate the achievements of RIT student-led game design teams. Games will be reviewed in a variety of categories by panels of academic & industry experts. Category winners & Best in Show will be announced during the live showcase on April 15th, 2023.

This year we will also be hosting an expo before the live showcase where students will be able to show off their projects to the public. The expo is open to all forms of interactive experiences from any RIT students are welcome at the expo! - analog, digital, VR, new media, prototypes, published, etc. The expo is not limited to only showcase submissions, however any submissions to the showcase will be expected to participate in the expo as well.

The Expo will run 12pm-3:30pm in MAGIC on April 15th, 2023. The Student Game Showcase Awards will follow in the Wegmans Theater 4-5pm.

Submissions for awards have closed- but you can still demo your projects by submitting to the Expo!

If you have any questions on the submission process please contact Ben Snyder by email bwsigm@rit.edu.

Watch last year's RIT Student Game Showcase and Expo on YouTube

Timeline

12/05/2022 - Awards Submission opens

2/6/2023 - Expo submission opens

3/13/2023 - Award submission form closes

4/3/2023 - Expo submission form closes

4/15/2023 - Live Showcase. Winners announced.

  • Expo - 12-3:30pm
  • Awards - 4-5pm

* Guest judges and prizes will be announced via social media throughout the submission period.

Submission Process

IGM SGS&E 2023 SHOWCASE Competition live award show to announce winners at 4pm (digital) games only student teams submit to various categories games reviewed by panel of guest judges (industry professionals, alumni, faculty) automatic submission to expo Submission deadline: 3/13 EXPO Exhibition/ Gallery 12pm - 3:30pm receive casual feedback or playtesting finished/unfinished games, analog games, new media projects, XR & prototypes Submit to only Expo Submission deadline: 4/3

Expo Submission Process

To enter the Expo, each team or individual will submit entries via the Expo submission form: https://forms.gle/1HAfZ9FZAmB9py4r5; 

All forms of interactive experiences from any RIT students are welcome at the expo! - Analog, digital, VR, prototypes, published, etc. 

Space permitting, everyone that submits will be assigned a time slot. If there are a large number of applicants, priority will be given to projects with clear objectives & organized submission materials. The goal is to showcase the breadth of creativity and skill of RIT students and to give students a chance to get feedback from a broader and more diverse audience. Students of ALL year levels are strongly encouraged to participate!

To be eligible to show your work at the expo:

  • At least 1 team member must be a current RIT student.
  • Someone must be available to show your work live, in-person, 12-3:30pm on 4/15/2023. (Time slots will be assigned later, but everyone needs to be available for the full 3.5 hours.)
  • The work must be far enough along to allow guests to interact with it. (Simple prototypes are fine, but these need to be more than pitches & technical demos.)

Submissions will be accepted through April 3rd, 2023.
Participants will be notified of their timeslot & location by April 10th, 2023.

Showcase Submission Process

Each team will submit 1 entry via the Showcase entry form: https://forms.gle/YBojMZf7Gt4cSvU16 

Before submitting your entry:

  1. Identify who will be the primary point of contact for the team for communications with the judges (this does not necessarily have to be the official team leader).
  2. Review the award category descriptions above and decide which you would like to be considered for (you must select at least one). For each, you’ll be asked:
    • To explain why you feel your work excels in this area and to give specific examples.
    • For links to any supporting materials relevant to the specific category (e.g. source code, additional videos, documentation, etc.)
  3. Collect the information and executables required for the judges to access and play your game and create and itch.io page:
    • A brief summary of the game (2-3 sentences).
    • A link to a web-playable or downloadable version of the game
    • Detailed instructions (or a link to instructions) about how to use the link above to access and play your game. Be specific about platform/technical requirements, etc.
    • How to Build an itch.io Page Workshop Video
  4. Provide at least 30 seconds of unedited gameplay with no voiceover, etc. that highlights the best aspects of your game.
  5. Produce a trailer video of your game.
    • How to Make a Game Trailer Workshop Video
    • The video will be 2 minutes MAXIMUM, uploaded to YouTube. Please make sure it is accessible to anyone with the link (Public or Unlisted). 
    • The video must be formatted as follows (2 minutes at most):

Start with an exciting clip of your game 

10 seconds

Bring in the game title

5 seconds

Introduce the team & your objectives

<45 seconds

Give a (quick) pitch that clearly defines the following: 

  • Style/Tone (dark, light-hearted, etc.)
  • Genre (RTS, RPG, FPS, etc.)
  • Player Role 
  • Overall Obstacle
  • Player Goal 

<45 seconds

Tell us why you believe your game is special

15 seconds

Tell us what the future of the game will be

15 seconds

 

Award Categories

Category

Judging Criteria

Technical Excellence

Nominations will be judged based on the level of technical achievement/advancement displayed in the development of the game. Unique or well-implemented game systems/subsystems, novel code implementations, and code optimization will all be considered for this category.

Aesthetics

Aesthetics will be judged based on how visuals, sound, narrative, and game spaces come together to evoke the desired emotional responses in the player when the player interacts with the game.

Game Feel

Game feel will be judged based upon the degree and quality of player immersion. Areas contributing to game feel are level design, feedback, animation, audio, and physics used to convey player agency.

Game Impact

Game Impact will be judged based on the game's potential to inspire individual or community change. 

Best in Show

Best in Show will be judged based on the overall quality, impressiveness and enjoyability of the Entered Game.

Restrictions

The showcase is open to any RIT student-led game. Teams can be of any size, however at least half of the team members must be RIT students.

The expo is open to all RIT students. Teams must include at least one RIT student to submit. All interactive experiences are welcome- including analog or digital games, unfinished projects, prototypes, XR experiences, new media projects, etc.

 

Past Showcase

A recording of last year’s Showcase can be found on YouTube.

2022 Winners

Best in Show: Paper Planet
Technical Excellence: The Shattering Swords
Game Feel: Project SP
Aesthetics: Vigorus
Game Impact: Boiling Over