Over 1000 gamers crowded Microsoft NERD at this year’s 4thannual PAX ‘Made In MA’ Party! From developers, to students – this year’s party really demonstrates the amazing gaming community and how it continues to thrive in
Massachusetts.
30+ exhibitors had tables on both the first and eleventh
floor showcasing their latest and greatest. Companies included Brass Monkey, Funkitron, Proletariat,
Fire Hose Games, and Stomp Games… just to name a few. Not only did the top gaming companies in MA
attend, but the transformer, Bumblebee made an appearance!
Erika Poole and Tom Hopcroft from MassTLC, Chris Bowen from
Microsoft and Steve Charkoudian from Goodwin Proctor all said a few words to get
the party started and welcome all attendees to the event.
What was the most exciting? Our new Student Showcase! 5 Student
groups from Universities in MA showcased their game for a chance to win a
monetary prize. Two teams from Becker College, two teams from WPI and one team
from Tufts University all brought their games for attendees to play and see in
action. All attendees were given the chance to text to vote for their favorite
game.
The winning team was a group from WPI named Lifespan. Six seniors, led by Michael Grossfield, a senior majoring in Interactive Media and Game Development, created the game Lifespan,
a 3-D first person puzzle game where the user can control an object in its
environment using time.
Michael is joined by Will Stockinger, lead environmental
artist; Matt Tomson, Co-Producer; Michael Pelissari, lead sound designer; Colin
Ogren, lead level editor engineer; and Nick Silvia, head of art.
