I was a bit bleak last year because I had to attend Playtopia by myself due to Mr John being out of town. I was bleak because he plays games every single day, while I leaving my gaming to long haul flights and childhood memories.
Thank goodness, Playtopia is FAR more than just gaming and anyone who likes digital media or art will have a great time. In fact, last year I attended after our end of year work function so I wasn’t exactly up for a big party, but this year I will definitely make more of an effort to hang around because it was really engaging.
What to Expect at Playtopia 2019
Apart from an epic venue (the Castle), there’s also digital and interactive artworks, live music and an arcade – perfect for those of us who think we don’t game (but are on level 500 of Candy Crush) to get our feet wet without too much know how.
PLAYTOPIA and MAKE GAMES AFRICA (MGA) have joined forces to make one ecstatic 3-day event where attendees can revel in local and international indie games, eye melting interactive and digital art and a killer music line-up!
- 40+ Indie Games, digital adventures & interactive experiments!
- Super Friendship Arcade exhibition of multiplayer games & DIY controllers
- Immersive arts exhibition with SA’s top tech artists!
- Playtopia Talks: “The Art Of Games” (Playtopia and MGA delegate ticket holders only)
- MGA B2B Talks with international and African speakers (MGA delegate ticket holders only)
- 3 nights of awesome music and visuals!
- Beer garden!
- Food trucks!
- Hours and hours of playful fun!
There will be two conferencing streams available to delegates this year, the MGA Business To Business Conference and the Playtopia Talks aimed at delegates interested in the creative side of game development.
Playtopia delegates are invited to attend talks, panels and workshops hosted by both international and local industry experts in the field of Indie Game development and the MGA talks are aimed at business development of gaming within the African context, tickets are very limited and booking is essential.
Playtopia 2018
As mentioned, I popped in last year and really enjoyed what I saw and experienced. This included the awesome venue at the Cape Town Castle on a balmy Saturday afternoon as well as…
Interactive Art Installations
Electronic or Robotic Art Galleries
Interactive Art Galleries
I really enjoyed this GIF gallery. It was described as, “GIF are the prefect combination of elements: more than a still image but not as long as video. They capture perfect moments and allow so uch to be said, in such a small amount of time.” I use them to respond to as many communication queries as I can in real life so this was one of my favourite galleries.
Super Friendship Arcade
Super Friendship Arcade is an ever-growing collective of friends using games to hack The Planet. Creating pop-up arcades in unexpected spaces, SFA breaks down the typical “gamer” stereotype, celebrating games that are welcoming, easy to pick up, and most importantly, shared experiences that bring people together.
Of course, there were more arcade spaces, interactive artwork and electronic rooms and places where people who know what they’re talking about could hang out. There were also live bands, DJs, food and bars! This year’s lineup includes Thor Rixon, Tommy Gun, Markus Wormstorm, Julia Robert and Sassquatch. So it’s more than just a gaming conference.
PLAYTOPIA SPEAKERS (for conference ticket holders):
PLAYTOPIA speakers includes the likes of Mitu Khandaker (USA), Kamina Vincent (Australia), Johan Gjestland (Norway), Nicole He (USA), Evan Greenwood (Creative Director Freelives), Robin Baumgarten (Germany), Ingrid Kopp (Electric South), Hanna Fogelberg (Sweden) and many more!
PLAYTOPIA MGA: Indie Games & Immersive Arts Festival
Date: 5 December 2019 – 7 December 2019
Times: Thursday 10:00 – 00:00 / Friday 10:00 – 01:00 / Sunday 10:00 – 01:00
Venue: Castle of Good Hope, Cape Town
Tickets: R180 – R5000 available on Quicket | (Depends on the access you choose.)
Facebook Event:
NB: Due to the content of the games, this event is a strictly 18+.
