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Thursday, 31 March 2005 | senay
Parsons School of Design Partners with Atari
For 'Retro Redux' 24-hour Video Game Jam
On April 2-3, Parsons School of Design, a division of New School University, will present its first 24-hour game design event, "Retro Redux", in collaboration with Atari, Inc.
Teams of students from New York-area colleges and universities will compete to see if they have what it takes to design a game that withstands the test of time based on the original Atari 2600 technology, which gave rise to such classic games as Asteroids, Missile Command, Pong and Centipede. The resulting games will be judged in the categories of top overall game, most innovative game design, best sound, and best visuals, with the top overall game to be featured in the an upcoming version of the Atari Flashback™ Game Console. Awards will be presented at a ceremony to be held on Monday, April 4 at 5 p.m. at the Theresa Lang Student Center, 55 West 13th Street, New York.
"Retro Redux provides students with the opportunity to test their creativity and design skills by re-inventing classic games from the birth of the video game era," said Katie Salen, the director of the MFA Design and Technology Program at Parsons and a professional game designer. "By bringing together students from the leading university game design programs in the New York area, Parsons will showcase the tremendous talent to be found in the region."
New York is home to a vibrant game design community, from industry-leading game companies such as Atari to numerous institutions offering programs in game development education including New York University, Renssaeler Polytechnic Institute, Mercy College, and the School of Visual Arts. Approximately 10 teams of five students each from these schools will participate in the Retro Redux Game Jam.
Atari, the company that started the gaming revolution when it introduced Pong to the world, has proven that great games never go out of style with last year's successful launch of the Atari Flashback Game Console. A plug-and-play system, the Atari Flashback offers gamers the chance to go back in time and see where it all started. "Our partnership with Parsons for its first 24-hour game jam underscores Atari's commitment in inspiring and supporting future game designers," said Erik Gerson, senior vice president of Marketing for Atari. "Game design is the fastest-growing sector in the new media industry, and through educational programs such as those offered by Parsons, students receive the training and support they need to succeed in this exciting field."
"At Parsons, students learn to think critically about the role technology plays in the design, production, dissemination, and use of games," said Colleen Macklin, Chair of the Design and Technology Program at Parsons. "The tremendous success of our MFA-level concentration in game design made it clear to us that there was a demand for academic training at the undergraduate level as well. To meet this demand, we are launching a game design concentration at the BFA level this coming fall."
For more information about Retro Redux, visit http://retroredux.parsons.edu .
For more information about game design at Parsons, visit http://games.parsons.edu/games.html .
More information on the Atari Flashback Game Console can be found online at http://www.atari.com .
About Atari, Inc.
New York-based Atari, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATAR) develops interactive games for all platforms and is one of the largest third-party publishers of interactive entertainment software in the U.S. The company's 1,000-plus titles include hard-core, genre-defining games such as DRIV3R™, Enter the Matrix™, Neverwinter Nights™, Stuntman™, Test Drive, Unreal Tournament 2004, and Unreal Championship; and mass-market and children's games such as Backyard Sports™, Nickelodeon's Blue's Clues™ and Dora the
Explorer™, Dragon Ball Z and RollerCoaster Tycoon.
About Parsons School of Design
Located in the heart of New York City, Parsons School of Design, a division of New School University, is one of the largest degree-granting colleges of art and design in the nation, with more than 3,000 students in degreed programs, and 2,500 non-degree students from all 50 states and approximately 60 countries. The School's Dean is Paul Goldberger, the Pulitzer-prize winning design critic and writer. Parsons has been a forerunner in the field of art and design since its founding in 1896. Internationalism has always been an essential ingredient of Parsons' success, with affiliate schools in Paris; Kanazawa, Japan; Seoul, South Korea; and Altos de Chavon in the Dominican Republic. Parsons' rigorous programs and distinguished faculty embrace curricular innovation, pioneer new uses of technology, and instill in students a global perspective in design. Areas of study include Architecture, Communication Design, Critical Studies, Design and Management, Design and Technology, Fashion Design, Fine Arts, the History of Decorative Arts, Illustration, Integrated Design, Interior Design, Lighting Design,
Photography, and Product Design. For more information, visit http://www.parsons.edu .
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