We’re in the dog days of plastic seats sticking to our thighs and squinting at our 3DS screens while jay-walking across Queen St. W. Pretty soon, CP24 will foretell the return of the dread pirate Wind Chill, pumpkin spice is gonna be a thing again, and for those of us unfortunate enough not to be 2cool4school, we’ll be stuck in classrooms in a few more weeks.  So soak up as much of the blistering sun as possible over August with local game events and socials. And keep an eye on our handy Google calendar throughout the month for events to be added as they are announced.

WHERE TO JAUNT – TORONTO GAME EVENTS

Saturday, August 1 and Sunday, August 2

Maker Festival Toronto is having a whirlwind weekend at the Toronto Reference Library. It’s sure to have many interactive electronics that skirt the lines of gaming, but one surefire game is Stardoz, an Oculus Rift game by Adam Clare.

Sunday, August 9

Do a bit of tinkering and see into forever with Dames Making Games’ Infinity Mirror workshop! Infinity Mirrors are L.E.D. illusions that make your reflection worth some Narcissus-level staring, forever trapped in a Tron-themed purgatory. Participants will need Arduino know-how and some dough for the workshop fee.

If you’re into surreal glitchy art, we’re holding a Unity 3D workshop with Paloma Dawkins* with the Toronto Animated Image Society (TAIS)! Dawkins is a an old hand at the Hand, having gone through the HES/TAIS incubator in 2014. Participants will be guided through making glorious accidents and psychedelic landscapes through careful experimentation. Registration is limited to  participants and requires Unity 5.1.

 

WHERE TO FLAUNT (OR TAUNT, YOU DO YOU) – SOCIALS AND MEETUPS

Saturday, August 8

Toronto Gaymers: Board Game Night at Glad Day Bookshop, starts at 7 p.m.

Dames Making Games: August Speakers Social at Bento Miso, starts at 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, August 15

Toronto Gaymers: Video Game Social at The Marquis.

Sunday, August 16

Toronto Gaymers: Picnic at the Park, place and time to be announced.

August 26

Torontaru: Monthly Social at Get Well, starts at 8 p.m.

Friday, August 28

Toronto Gaymers: Board Game Night at Glad Day Bookshop, starts at 7 p.m.

(Special mention: I was loitering at Iceman Games and noticed a flyer for a new gaming meetup group, Level 25. They’ve been active, but no set August dates. Keep them saved!)

 

#ICYMI

#PlanetIndigenUS – Flappy Witch Bird took flight, ghost girls wandered, and Stone Giants were fought at “An Evening To Celebrate Indigenous Gaming And Comic Books” at Bento Miso on Thursday, July 30. As part of the Planet IndigenUS festival, the night was a showcase of videogames made by Indigenous developers and with Indigenous themes.

#SPACECACTUS – Shu’s Garden, the perfect Katamari-esque foliage frolicking for your younguns, was released on PC and Mac in late July.  This enhanced version comes with new graphics for your space cactus and a pay-what-you-can pricetag.

 

COMING ATTRACTIONS

The Wizards of Trinity Bellwoods has got me so excited to pick up after hipsters and defeat gentrification, one empty beer can at a time. Set in everyone’s favourite downtown Toronto park, players get a glimpse of the immigrant subculture of can collectors. For the price of a 12-pack of Pabst Blue Ribbon, you can fund Chris De Castro’s KickStarter and become a character!

Little Red Lie by Will O’Neill isn’t even out yet and it’s got everyone hyped. It’s a game about honesty that honestly sounds like it’s going to be a worthwhile exploration of two very different characters. Plus the game is set in Scarborough, for extra developer bonus points. If you’re looking for a game by O’Neill you can play sooner rather than later, his game Actual Sunlight is also set in Toronto and will be on the PS Vita on August 11.

 

PAPER TRAILS – GAMING IN THE MEDIA

N++ has been getting so much love. For Canadian coverage, there’s a review from the National Post and Dork Shelf’s newest podcast episode features the studio behind the legend, Metanet Software.

DrinkBox Studios, of Guacamelee fame, got some print with Endgadget on their upcoming game Severed, which will be missing its summer launch. The developers report they’ll need to delay release by a few months to add more “memes and dumb jokes”, which is a pretty worthwhile cause if you ask me.

 

MVP

David Fono is our MVP of the month. The interactive developer and all-around cool guy facilitated a full day of street games at the Harbourfront Centre with a grizzled crew of volunteers and several hardened New Yorkers. Highlights of the day included poking at spider cult ruins with the Adventure Society, murdering chivalry all over again with Joust, and literally Beating the Heat.

To see some pics from the day, check out our brand new Tumblr! We will be posting HES event coverage, reblogging local developer posts, and probably typing way too many emojis.

(I’m lying. The actual highlight of the day was discovering a mist machine backstage and pretending we were in Legend of Zelda’s Water Temple. Shh, don’t tell David. Be cool. Shh.)

 

A BREADWINNER IS YOU – JOBS AND GIG OPPORTUNITIES

Albedo Infomatics needs some hard-working Ontarians (you heard ’em, Trillium or bust) to apply for a 3D Generalist position. You can send your CV and portfolio over to careers@albedoinformatics.com

Spritebox is transforming what arcade machines are meant to do. It’s nice going down memory lane with retro arcades (with the exception of a certain Sandler abomination that shall not be named), but the classics can get stale. If you’re an indie game developer, Spritebox would love to hear your ideas for their cocktail style arcade cabinets, either for a pre-existing or new game for their system. You can message them at sprite.box.arcade@gmail.com or tweet @spriteboxarcade.

 

The words you just read were brought to you by the Hand Eye Society, the Hand Eye Society, a Toronto video game arts organization. You can become a member by volunteering over 10 hours or donating $7 a month. Perks include pretending you’re in a secret shadow organization whenever you whip out your membership card, one free game a month, discounts, and more. And if you like what you’ve read or want to see your game/event/initiative featured, let us know at calendar@handeyesociety.com or @handeyesociety!