Toronto Games Week 2024: A Gathering for Indie Game Developers – Indie Game Reviewer – The Best Indie Games
Toronto Games Week (June 13-19, 2024) is an independently organized series of events by various organizations, curators, companies, creators, and communities. This week-long festival offers a range of activities aimed at indie game developers and enthusiasts.
The city of Toronto in Ontario, Canada, has this way of slowly building up a scene, and then, kaboom, it races around the world. The ’90s music scene was legendary. Later, bands and artists like RUSH, Drake, Barenaked Ladies, The Weeknd (Scarborough), Nelly Furtado, and all that.
Toronto is also the source of some of the world’s most-used VFX and 3D software, as well as technologies like IMAX, Christie Projectors, Houdini and Maya software, and well many more than you might believe.
But over the past decade-plus the city and province have been steadily pumping out games that have caused an equal level of ruckus. See the list at the bottom for an idea of that noise. Bolstered by government funding support and organizations like Interactive Ontario, the ecosystem is healthier than ever.
Notable Indie Games from Toronto
Several notable indie games have emerged from Ontario’s vibrant game development scene:
- Cuphead: Studio MDHR’s massive breakout hit featuring painstakingly crafted Fleischer-style animation and hard-core boss fights.
- Nobody Saves the World: An action RPG from DrinkBox Studios, known for its humor and gameplay variety, where players can transform into various forms, each with unique abilities.
- Guacamelee: Another title from DrinkBox Studios, this Metroidvania-style platformer combines Mexican folklore with lucha libre wrestling, featuring vibrant art and challenging gameplay.
- Grindstone: A favorite of ours from Capybara games, this RPG-like match-3 style game is mad addictive.
- Broken Spectre: A cosmic horror adventure game from Games by Stitch that won the Experience of the Year at the VR Awards in 2023
- Knight in the Attic: A puzzle-adventure game by Mighty Yell, creators of The Big Con, combining whimsical storytelling with clever puzzles.
and many more.
A Week For Game Devs
TGW aims to provide a platform for indie game developers to connect, learn, and showcase their work. Developers, gamers, and fans of indie games will find numerous opportunities to engage and participate in this vibrant event.
Events at Toronto Games Week 2024
The events scheduled for Toronto Games Week 2024 cater to a wide range of interests within the indie game development community:
- Flickering Forest Pop-Up Arcade: An arcade event set in a forest, providing a unique gaming experience after dark.
- Open Source Game Tools Workshop: Workshops focusing on open-source game development tools, offering insights and skills for developers.
- Women & Femme Speedrunning Event: A speedrunning event that highlights and supports women and femme gamers.
- Tea Party in the Park: A relaxing tea party event where attendees can brew their own blends and take a break from the digital world.
- Working Class Sci-Fi Movies and Games Discussion: Discussions comparing the portrayal of working-class themes in sci-fi movies and games.
- Gameboy Cartridge Installation Workshop: A hands-on workshop where participants can install their games on a Gameboy cartridge.
Special Guests
Toronto Games Week 2024 will kick off with XP Summit, a two-day industry event that brings together international and local game development talent to learn from each other. Special guests include:
- Trey Smith: Veteran creative director from Vancouver, known for Hardspace: Shipbreaker and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3.
- Xalavier Nelson Jr.: BAFTA-nominated narrative designer from El Paso, Texas, known for Stranger Things VR and Hypnospace Outlaw.
- Phil Salvador: Library director from San Francisco, representing the Video Game History Foundation.
Check it out at Toronto Games Week official site
