TICKETS ON SALE NOW!

Mark your calendars: The third annual Hand Eye Society Ball is happening Saturday, September 24th! Check out our recap of last year’s event with photos and video. We have been invited back to the gorgeous Masonic Temple on Yonge Street, and a second event there means we’ll have all the logistics (lines and otherwise) well sorted. Those of you who didn’t get a chance to visit the elegantly spooky Red Room last time will have another chance to experience its weird glory, and of course there will be a fresh, shiny line-up of videogames from Toronto and all over. Ticket sales will be announced first on our blog and newsletter, so subscribe and stay tuned.

With four months to go, there’s still lots of ways to get involved:

Sponsor the Event

Perhaps you run or work for a company that would like to increase its profile or give back to the community? Sponsoring our annual fancy videogame party fundraiser gets you in front of game enthusiasts and talented collaborators, and supports our videogame arts not-for-profit organization. Give our one-sheet a read for the facts and figures and shoot us an email at sponsorship@handeyesociety.com to get the conversation started! We’re also keen to chat about in-kind sponsorships — donated/discounted alcohol/food or other services you may have to offer.

Sponsoring this event does not prohibit you from submitting your game for possible inclusion (see below), but it does not merit special consideration.

Submit Games

Each year we have an all-new curated selection of local and international games for you to enjoy. If you know of a game that you think would be suitable to the event — easy to pick up, short rounds, and aesthetically engaging games that are as much fun to watch as to play — please suggest it using this form! It can be a game you love, a game you made, or a game you heard of but isn’t out yet — we always have a couple of those on tap. Check out this post and this one for last year’s titles, which included Toronto-made games like N++, Runbow, Lovers in a Dangerous Space Time and SSMP, as well as international and unreleased titles like Mushroom 11 and Donut County (featuring a custom hole-based controller by Australia-based game designer Louis Roots). As you can see, there’s a wide variety including cooperative and competitive multiplayer, surreal one-player experiences, VR, and physical movement-based games, so please don’t hesitate to suggest anything!

You might also choose to submit a special build of your game that’s more suited to the party atmosphere of the event, or design a new, experimental way of playing an old favourite. All ideas are welcome, and artist fees will be paid to those whose games are selected for showcasing at the Ball.

Get Involved

Last year most of our volunteers were running the bar — this year the venue’s handling that. So this year we’re looking to get people involved in roles such as:

• unique peripherals/alternative controllers manager
• poster/booklet graphic designer
• marketing
• tech lead assistant
• food vendor coordinator
• audio/visual documentation
• people with theatre/performance experience
• game attendants

All of them include a free ticket to the event, and more involved roles include membership to the Hand Eye Society. If any of these appeal to you, please email our Volunteer Coordinator at volunteer@handeyesociety.com with specifics or fill out this handy form and check off “Hand Eye Society Ball” under the initiatives section.