Only a Game

The Virtues of Cyborg Players

Pleased to announce that I will be presenting at LCAD's Big Bend campus on Monday 25th March, 5-7pm on The Virtues of Cyborg Players.

I'm a visiting professor at LCAD, which boasts one of the top ranking Masters courses in games development, and it's always a pleasure to visit the campus there, not to mention meet up with my students whom I normally only get to interact with via the internet - a classic example of cyborg relationships today!

Here's the blurb and the address:

We need to learn to be good cyborgs - and game designer and philosopher Dr Chris Bateman suggests one way to discover how is to learn from the cyborg players of videogames. For almost forty years, players have been tested by their cyborg relationships with digital games, and while there are certainly some cases where matters have gone awry - the Pokémon GO player who steps out into traffic, for instance - the world of videogames abounds with cases where videogame players show how we might learn to be good cyborgs.

Laguna College of Art + Design
Big Bend Campus, Studios 13+14 (BB13+14)
2825 Laguna Canyon Road
Laguna Beach, CA 92651

If you're in or around California, I'd love to see you there!

Coming Soon: A Hundred Cyborgs Returns

There's been a hiatus on A Hundred Cyborgs while I've been working on the Kickstarter and GDC trip for our new games developer, which has completely dominated the last few months. However, I hope to get back to the cyberethics serial in April or thereabouts. I already have a few pieces drafted, but I have not had the time to do any serious blogging this year as of yet. I'd like to reach #50 before Discordian New Year (5th May) and that should be an achievable goal.

Watch this space!

Silk Kickstarter Live!

Silk is an innovative sandbox RPG and adventure game using a lo-fi visual aesthetic and a lightweight interface to deliver endless engaging decisions. Rise into glory by running your caravan from the Roman Empire to war-torn Three Kingdoms China. Defend yourself from bandits, sandstorms, and rebellions by hiring Advisors skilled in everything from battle to wayfinding. Fall in love with your own unique party of Advisors and the enchanting world of the Ancient Silk Road in 200 AD.

 

“The djinn are fighting in the deserts of Takla Makan,” your guide informs you. “We must turn back to Kashgar!” But your head guard looks less convinced... “Forget these foolish superstitions,” she says, “let us upend the wagons — we can shelter from the storm here.” What do you choose?

Kickstarter now live!

Cross-posted from ihobo.com

 

Silk Kickstarter Launches Thursday

After months of hard work from the team, we are now ready to show our new sandbox RPG and adventure game Silk to the world – and to ask for your help in finishing it. We’re excited to announce that on Thursday 28th February, at 7 am GMT, the Silk Kickstarter commences!

This project started out as a tribute to Mike Singleton’s classic game The Lords of Midnight, and the game uses a rendering engine with the same ‘landscaping’ algorithm as Mike’s groundbreaking strategy-adventure. Also like its inspiration, Silk offers many ways to play – as an exploration adventure, a caravan trading sim, or a siege battle game. Another key influence is King of Dragon Pass, specifically the Clan ring, which inspired the Advisor system that forms the centre of the wilderness adventures of Silk.

We are asking for all friends of International Hobo to help us promote the Kickstarter and the game. It’s vital that we hit the ground running on Thursday, as early momentum is the key to success in every crowdfunding campaign. Please retweet and share everything you see about Silk over the next week – and especially on Thursday.

If you want to back us, take advantage of Early Bird offers and get first pick of one of the special rewards on offer, please do so as soon as you can on Thursday. Day One is going to be our most important day – thank you all in advance for all your support!

Check the list below to find the launch time for your part of the world:

• 7 am Thursday 28th February for the United Kingdom
• 8 am Thursday for Europe
• 11 am Thursday for Dubai
• 1 pm Thursday for Mumbai
• 3 pm Thursday for Hong Kong
• 4 pm Thursday for Kyoto
• 6 pm Thursday for Melbourne
• 2 am Thursday for Philadelphia, PA (EST)
• 1 am Thursday for Nashville, TN (CST)
• Midnight Thursday for Billings, MT (MST)
• 11 pm Wednesday 27th February for Laguna Beach, CA (PST)

Cross-posted from ihobo.com

Coming Soon: Silk Kickstarter

Dear friends,
With a stomach-rattling cocktail of excitement and terror, I'm proud to announce our first Kickstarter. Silk, our lo-fi wilderness adventure, is seeking crowdfunding support to get the project over the hump - and we want your help to do it!

Firstly, we are seeking to appoint three Community Nazgûl to help build and maintain links with our fans and backers. If you love getting engaged with gamer communities and want to become an ihobo volunteer, email our Nazgul at ihobo.com address and indicate your primary social media platform (e.g. Twitter, Facebook) and your level of experience with Kickstarter.

Also, we are recruiting alpha testers for the Silk Kickstarter demo. If the game looks interesting to you, you qualify to apply - please email our alpha at ihobo.com address and include a sentence saying why Silk appeals to you.

We expect to launch the Kickstarter in the next month or so - I hope we can count on your support through this new adventure!

And whatever dream you are working towards - just keep going!

Chris.

PS: For updates and further announcements, please join our newsletter!

Cross-posted from ihobo.c0m.