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Q: What is the "Game-Making Deathmatch"
competition?
A: “Game-making Death Match” is a game programming competition
organized by the U of T Game Programming Club, and sponsored by Microsoft
and SAC. Given some constraints (i.e. time limit and specific game type),
the objective is to create a game that will be superior to other games
partaking in the competition.
Q: Who can participate?
A: The competition is open to all members of the U of T Game Programming
Club, and to all University of Toronto students.
Q: How can I join the competition?
A: Please fill out and submit the registration form, which is available
to download on the web site, or can be picked up in person during GPC
meetings. You may also contact us via e-mail: game_programming@hotmail.com
for further information.
Q: Is there a registration fee?
A: Yes, there is a $10 registration fee for each team. This is a non-profit
event; all proceeds go towards prizes ?.
Q: What is the latest time I can join?
A: The registration form is to be completed and the $10 fee paid, before
the start date of the competition (last day: November 9). Applications
will not be accepted on the or after the start day. *Special circumstances
may apply.
Q: Do I have to join the club in order
to participate?
A: No. Although we encourage you to join GPC, it is not a requirement
for partaking in the competition.
Q: Do we have to work in teams?
A: You may work either in individual teams or teams of two. Although we
encourage teamwork, since students have a lot to learn from each other,
we understand the difficulties of it. If you prefer to work individually,
or if you cannot find a partner with common view for a game design, or
same preference for development tools, you have an option of working individually.
We have reduced the complexity of the game to be made, and restricted
the maximum number of participants per team to two to allow for equal
chances of success for everyone.
Q: Once I subscribe, what do I have to
do?
A: Make the game!
Q: When are the games due? Is there a
deadline?
A: The deadline for submission of your game is November 30, 2004 at 3
p.m.
Q: What development tools I am allowed to
use?
A: You can use almost any programming language: C, C++, C#, Java, Python,
Flash etc. You are NOT allowed to use any 3D engines and game makers available
online. You ARE allowed to use OpenGl, DirectX, SDL as graphic libraries.
(OpenGL extensions, Managed DirectX, or the old DOS libraries are also
accepted). If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate
to contact us.
Q: Am I restricted to a certain platform,
like Windows or Unix?
A: No! We support a large variety of platforms, from GBA and Palm to desktops
running Windows, and Unix. As long as it uses a CPU, and it's not a board
game, you should be fine! Once again, if you are unsure, please ask us.
Q: What kind of game do I have to make?
Are there any restrictions?
A: Yes, there will be restrictions. The actual task will not be announced
until November 10th, the start day of the competition to ensure that all
participants have equal time span for the making of the game. However,
instead of being told what type of game to make, you can expect to be
given a concept for the game. We strongly promote creativity, thus instead
of asking you to make, for example, a "pong" game, we will ask
you to make a game "with a ball and a paddle". From there on,
it's up to you if you decide to make it 2d, 3d, text-mode or something
else (like Britney’s Dance Beat). The sky is the limit!
Q: What about cheating? How will you make
sure that no one downloads a game of the net and claims it as their own?
A: Everyone has access to the Internet, and it is likely that most people
will do at least some research online when developing their game. Thus
code stolen from the net, will be easily detected and cheaters will be
caught quickly. Secondly, one of the things we award for is creativity.
Thus, if, for example, the theme is “a ball and a paddle,”
and somebody gets a “nice looking pong” off the net, even
if not caught for cheating, the participant will nevertheless receive
a mark of zero for creativity of the game, and his chances of winning
will be greatly reduced. Last but not least, participants may be asked
to show their code and explain random parts of it...
Q: What if you are caught cheating? What
happens?
A: You will be disqualified, your money will not be refunded, and you
will not be allowed to participate in future competitions. On top of that,
you will be remebered by your fellow students for trying to cheat them.
Q: How will the games be marked?
A: The final marking scheme is as follows:
Fun: 25 points
Creativity and adherence to theme: 25 points
Graphics: 7 points
Sound: 7 points
Replay value: 15 points
Bugs: -5 points
Paper Submission: 5 points
Q: What is the “paper submission”?
A: The paper submission is your chance to contact the jury and explain
to them, why you think you deserve more marks. The paper submission is
not the same for everybody. All participants are unique, and everyone
goes through different circumstances. The paper submission should reflect
your team, your game and your situation. Ideally you want to promote your
game, and make it look special.
(For example, if your game is unfinished, you describe what you had in
mind and how you thought that was technically achievable in 3 weeks, and
if the jury agrees that your idea could have been possible and sounds
captivating, you will get some extra marks. If you are in your first year,
and you’ve used a very complex and advanced method or technology,
the paper is your chance to point this out. The paper could also be a
simple manual to your game, describing all the special moves, or the 44
levels and the final boss, which the judges may not be able to see in
the first few minutes of play). However the paper submission should not
be more than 1 page in length, single spaced, one side only, size 12 font.
Q: Who will be marking the games?
A: There will be a jury composed of 2-4, NON-participating individuals.
These will either be students from U of T or GPC members. If anyone wishes
to be part of the jury, please contact us. We will ensure that the jury
is fair, that is there won't be a case where everybody on the jury is
a friend of person X who is a participant.
Q: If I win, when will I get my prize?
A: Ideally, the jury will finish marking the games on Tuesday, November
30th, 2004. They will not be allowed to speak to each other, and the marking
will be kept private. The winner will be announced the following day,
December 1st, during the GPC meeting, and the prizes will be distributed
then.
Q: What are the prizes again?
A: Although the prizes have not been divided between the finalists, they
will include a game console, 7 XBox &PS2 & GameCube games , software,
and programming books.
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Nintendo DS or Microsoft Xbox |
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Burnout 3 Takedown |
PS2 |
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SSX3 |
XBOX |
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NHL 2005 |
PS2 |
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DefJam FIGHT for NY |
PS2 |
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Madden 2005 |
PS2 |
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Madden 2005 |
XBOX |
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SSX3 |
PS2 |
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NBA Live 2005 |
GC |
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Halo (x2) |
PC |
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Windows XP (x2) |
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Office 2003 (Student & Teacher Edition) (x2) |
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Book - DirectX 9 Programmable Graphics Pipeline |
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Asp.NET programming with Microsoft Basic .NET |
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The exact way of how will the above prizes be distributed, will be posted
here as soon as we get a good approximation of how many people there will
be in the competition. In addition to the finalists (and any other position
we may decide to award) there will be a separate "Microsoft Award"
for the best game developed using Microsoft tools. I would also like to
mention that Electronic Arts is interested in the TOP 3 finalists. So
GOOD LUCK everyone!
Q: For the first place prize, what exactly does
the “or” mean? Does it mean that it hasn’t been decided
yet, or that you will ask me which one I want and then buy it for me?
A: The 1st place prize will be based on the winner’s selection in
his/her registration form. The winning team will receive only one of the
two options.
Q: Is Electronic Arts sponsoring this
event?
A: Yes! All the games offered in prizes are courtesy of EA GAMES. Over
the next year they are looking forward to hiring 80% of their programmers,
right out of university. They are very interested in young talent, and
Game-Making DEATHMATCH is one place to find it.
Q: Is Microsoft sponsoring this event?
A: Yes! Through Microsoft Student Ambassador, Microsoft has sponsored
the club with software and books that we can now give out as prizes. For
more information on Microsoft Events (and not only), please check www.thespoke.net.
Q: Is SAC also a sponsor?
A: Yes! The University of Toronto Student Administrative Council once
again made it possible for students at U of T to have fun, while learning.
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