Beer & Pixels is a monthly event in Sydney that allows those working in or wanting to break into the games industry to network, show off prototypes and demos, and get feedback from their peers.
According to Mitch, one of the event’s current organisers, Beer & Pixels has been running for around 15 years now, with both newbies and veterans from the local industry frequenting the event to see what’s blooming from Sydney’s game dev community. The general consensus with the community seems to be that getting an industry job in the industry in Sydney can be pretty tough, so events like Beer & Pixels have allowed devs to come together and learn from one another.
Quite a few Aussie-made games that we know and love have had their starts at beer & Pixels, including Boomerang Fu, Wildfire, and the upcoming title Bits & Bops. Even Cult of the Lamb developer Massive Monster had their launch party for The Adventure Pals in collaboration with Beer & Pixels.
Considering there aren’t a huge amount of events dedicated to Sydney-made games (although I hope that will change with time), I decided to have a looksie for myself last night. It was a bit of a quieter night, which was understandable as not only was it Valentine’s evening, but it was also pissing down rain. That being said, there were still a number of developers, both solo and team, who had prototypes to show off. It was a really neat experience as well as a good indicator of what goes into making a game.
This one was Which Way Up, an adorable multiplayer title where players would rattle through an array of different mini-games in a best-of-four type situation. One member of the team mentioned that this was the fourth time they’d shown off the prototype at Beer & Pixels, with each visit bringing a new version of the game after the team received feedback.
On the other hand, Machine Gun Duck Hunt was a first-timer at the event, and was a neat little ode to Duck Hunt (it’s in the name).
Then there was Rabbit Flick, a title that was born out of this year’s Global Game Jam. In it, you’re tasked with keeping pesky rabbits away from your farm by furiously tapping on them as well as collecting any powerups for maximum effect. You can actually give this one a try for yourself here.
Similarly, Beatroots is another title that was made for this year’s Global Game Jam. It’s a Dance Dance Revolution-like rhythm game where you are a beetroot DJ. This game is hard. Not only are you working with arrows, but the odd letter will show up on the screen to throw you off as well. You can try this one out too right here.
Desktop Animi was a cute little bonus as well. You’ve got multiple little pixel-art creatures that roam your desktop, with the jellyfish, in particular, being a personal favourite of mine. I’ve never played fetch with a jellyfish before!
All in all, it was a really great night despite the rain, and I was stoked to try out a bunch of really neat little ideas by local developers. From the sounds of it, it seems like healthy discussion and feedback regarding ideas were being thrown around too, which you love to see.
If you’re in Sydney and are wanting to get some feedback on a game you’re working on, connect with other people in or around the industry, or even just check out some prototypes and demos so you can exist in the realm of “I tried this before it was big”, Beer & Pixels happens every second Tuesday of the month. You can check out future events and locations on their Meetups page.
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