By Belladonna Bennett
What comes to mind when you think of ‘Polar Opposites’? That was the question posed to our Senseis in our latest Sensei Game Jam. Our Senseis had one month to put together a game using the theme ‘Polar Opposites’ to impress our judges. We had all sorts of takes from arctic animals and magnetizing puzzles to rocket-powered snails!
Who are our Senseis? Code Ninjas is built upon the idea of “A World Where Kids Write the Code,” and it is our Senseis who guide them on their journey. Our Senseis are incredibly skilled when it comes to programming and game design, and we take every opportunity to showcase their abilities and push them even further.
“Explaining programming concepts to others has made me a much more methodical coder,” says Ange-Evry Abate, Sensei from Blackheath, UK and developer of the first place MakeCode Arcade winner ‘Ivar’. “This game jam in particular really helped me to develop my creative and design skills.”
Our Senseis were given the opportunity to compete in one of two categories. One for MakeCode Arcade and the other for Unity, Godot, or Unreal. First, second, and third place winners in each category received a cash prize and a commemorative t-shirt went to all winners, runners-up, and the Judge’s Choice.
Guest judges Eden Trujillo (Narrative Designer, Blizzard Entertainment) and Marc Straight (Creative Director, Audio Director, 80HD Games) selected the winners, playing each game and offering the developers feedback. Each judge also selected their own “Judge’s Choice” winner for the game jam.
The winners from each category will be showcased in their own article, but until then here are the Judge’s Choice winners.
Eden’s Choice: Parallel Collapse – Thomas Kimball from Reno, NV
Chosen by Eden Trujillo we have ‘Parallel Collapse‘ by Thomas Kimball, from Reno NV. Built in Unity, this puzzle game has the player swap between parallel worlds in order to find the clues required to solve each puzzle.
“SUCH a blast to play. I was immediately intrigued by the setting and the puzzles. As an escape the room, I think with some polish this would be something I’d love to see more.” – Eden Trujillo
Marc’s Choice: Coalescence – Ben Tiw from Burlington, ON
Chosen by Marc Straight we have ‘Coalescence‘ by Ben Tiw, from Burlington, ON. Also built in Unity, this puzzle-platformer has the player phase between ‘light’ and ‘dark’ while performing tricky jumps to reach the end of each level.
“An interesting and well-designed experience. It has a really great approach to puzzle games and is extremely refreshing as an experience. I hope the game continues to be developed and I am excited for the developer’s future!” – Marc Straight
Congratulations to our Judge’s Choice winners and a big thank you to our guest judges!
