Nidhogg by Messhof

Previously it has been announced that Mr. Brandon Boyer, founder of Offworld, contributing editor of Boing Boing & newly appointed IGF Chairman will be presenting at the imminent social in Toronto this Thursday, May 27th 2010 at Unit Bar. Since the initial announcement there have been rumblings that one or more out-of-town creators may attend and/or present some of their works, and at this juncture it seems appropriate to reveal the following:

Mark Essen Hoffman aka MESSHOF, a bona fide indie videogame rockstar & educator, will be rocking Unit Bar this Thursday alongside Mr. Boyer. You may be familiar with Messhof as the creator of the inimitable & mind-altering Flywrench (written up in The New York Times somewhere here) and other made-in-Gamemaker punk videogame marvels such as Randy Balma Municipal Abortionist & The Thrill of Combat, many of which have appeared in museums & galleries including Toronto’s own Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art. Messhof’s contributions have even earned him a spot in Vice & Intel’s ‘The Creators Project‘ alongside folks like director Spike Jonze & musician Richie Hawtin, Messhof being the only videogame creator to be recognized in this context.

On offer at Thursday’s social will be Messhof’s latest videogame creation. Commissioned by NYU’s Game Center & revealed at the No Quarter event just a few weeks ago, the peculiarly titled but absolutely kickass Nidhogg will be making its Canadian debut. Nidhogg is an action-heavy sword fighting videogame designed specifically for two players to play competitively in a social environment. It’s insanely fun & super stylish, a bit like Jordan Mechner’s original Prince of Persia by way of Body Movin’ era Beastie Boys. So yeah, a real inspiration!

Note: While Messhof’s videogames may seem raw at first glance, a more thorough examination of any his works will reveal a high level of audiovisual precision in the service of an unmistakeable & wholly fresh videogame creation sensibility. Many of the videogames are available for free and they are absolutely worth your time & attention. You may wish to peruse them all here.