ESG January Roundup!
And so the world turns, and with it, another busy month at East Side Games. January ushered in the new year with a bang, and we hit the ground running. Our studio continued to push out content on a weekly basis while attending events around the world and hosting some of our own. Let’s take a look, shall we?
First off, we want to thank everyone who tuned into our charity stream, Marathon for Meals II. With your help, we raised over $4000 for the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. We were live for a full 24 hours playing games, goofin’ around, and taking donations. This year's guests absolutely killed it, too. Thanks to Kate Stark, Guy Judge, Artren, Hot Head Games, Jessie Turner, and Power Up Audio for bringing a slew of entertaining segments to our viewers. If you want to see what it was all about, check out the videos on our Twitch channel. Just be ready for a heavy dose of shenanigans…
Our globe-trotting CEO made a trip across the pond in January. Josh Nilson found himself in London for Pocket Gamer Connects. Between copious amounts of tea and harassing The Queen’s dorgis, Josh found himself at The Brewery, spreading the good word of mobile games. Just kidding, he was almost entirely at The Brewery. After mingling with every game dev in sight, he also attended the panel: How To Make Great Games Without Crunch / Mental Health Problems In The Games Industry. Thanks to anyone who stopped by for the talk.
After Pocket Gamer wrapped up in London, we attended The Mid Island Business Initiative meetup here in Vancouver. Our very own Design Director, Jack Kelley, gave a talk from the mezzanine like a gosh darn ninja turtle villain. Aside from theatrics, there was also a selection of great food and drink. Thanks for having us, gang!
Later in the month, a few of us had the privilege of attending YWCA’s Escape Poverty Challenge. Escape Poverty is an interactive experience that emulates the struggles of a single mother living in poverty in the Downtown Eastside. Being placed in the shoes of a single mother, making hard decisions with harsh consequences was eye-opening. The women volunteering at this event were enlightening and welcoming. We thank everyone who put together this one of a kind experience.
Last but not least, we attended this year’s Global Game Jam out at VFS. This is definitely one of our favourite events of the year. Seeing the plethora of diverse talent each year is stunning. Past Game Jams have been a smorgasbord of weird, unique, and intriguing games, and this year was no exception. Be sure to check out a TON of games that were made this year on their webpage. Also, a few of our own employees made something nifty too! Play it now!
It was a busy month, and we can’t wait to see what the rest of February will bring us. It’s months like these that remind us how great the gaming community is here in Vancouver and across the world.
