Author: Christian Facey, Founder & CEO, AudioMob
Here at AudioMob we’ve been running a game jam with a difference, based on the audio ad format we’ve created.
We wanted creative, innovative teams to explore what was possible with our audio ad format. We asked the teams to design great, interesting and engrossing games, of course - but the focus was on integrating or immersing audio ads into mobile games in ways that complimented the user experience, without interrupting gameplay. And we had support from Ukie, with the brilliant Grace Shin stepping up to support us as a judge. Thanks Grace!
To say we’re delighted with the games made in the jam is something of an understatement. There are so many good ideas across the titles
Most importantly, the winner of the AudioMob Resonate game jam is Yup Studios, with their brilliant, entertaining and polished getaway driving game Dirty Drifters. Huge congratulations to team members Christopher Luu and Ben Tomczyk!
Dirty Drifters is a truly impressive game, and full of smart ideas throughout. We were blown away by the aesthetic and the tone. But it was the audio ad integration into both the gameplay and narrative setting that impressed us most. The gameplay focuses on outrunning the police at the conclusion of a bank robbery, viewed via the perspective of news crews. However, the pursuing police abandon their chase when the news cuts to the adverts, giving the player a chance to recoup and regroup; and making the idea of ad breaks integral to the gameplay, while perhaps poking fun at Dirty Drifter’s antagonists. With the police’s attention escaped, players can listen to an audio ad while playing a safe cracking game - with a dial that alludes to the radio as the audio plays on.
You can see Dirty Drifters in action here:
The game - made by a pair of computer science students - also has an abundance of character and playful charm; in short, it was a fun game to play, and a fun place to spend time.
And an honourable mention to the runners up - Thomas The Dev who came second, who takes $200 for their driving game Roadtrip, Toby Atkinson in third place, who receives $100 for a delightful agricultural title Air Drop Farm, and the fourth placed Valancosta Games, who take home asset vouchers for their insect autorunner Save the Bees.
Here at AudioMob we’ve always had a firm belief in the vast potential of our audio ad format; that’s the reason we’ve put so much effort into growing our company, technology and presence in the industry. But now, thanks to our brilliant jammers, we have even more reasons to know AudioAds can be a profoundly positive part of creative, innovative games.
And if you provide a technology or service for game makers, we can’t recommend running a game jam enough. It can be a lot of work, but there are so many gains, and we’ve learned a great deal about how developers interact with us as a company, our technology, and the support we provide. We’ve established a wonderful community, seen some ideas we’d not considered before, and got the game jam bug!