By Alex Villafania
INQUIRER.net
A GAMER at heart, Marenza Dangla is a Computer Science student at the De La Salle University who aims to become a part of the game development community in the future.
Dangla, known as “Em” among her peers, last year put up the Game Development Society (GDS), perhaps the first school-based game development student organization in the Philippines. She said she got the idea from one of her professors who indicated that having such a group would be interesting.
Already, the group has a website featuring its upcoming activities that include forums on character design, storytelling, and mobile game development.
“There was interest in game development in DLSU, especially since we have tracks (subjects) related to game development so that gave me the idea of putting up this group,” Dangla said.
When the group started about 40 students who joined but now it has about 100 members, some of whom are graduates already. She said that GDS has split its responsibilities according to the specific interests of students, some of whom want to get into game design; others into story, programming and arts.
In fact, Dangla said some of their members have undergone on-the-job training with game development firms, with the hopes that some of their members will go on to join the local game development industry.
While GDS is still an organization under DLSU’s College of Computer Studies, Dangla hopes the group will be recognized as a university-wide organization by the coming school year.
Dangla said the organization is not just limited to students in IT fields, stressing that anyone with the interest and passion for the gaming industry is most welcome.
4 Feedbacks on "Student puts up game development society in DLSU"
anon
I hope this game dev society would last or at least be more serious. Because after looking at their upcoming events, most of it are just “game development-kuno” events focusing more on fandom rather than actual useful industry knowledge which they could use when they graduate. Back in college we called societies like this a “pa-pormahan” group, where members join to just show off their fandom. One such society was Freehands art society in CSB, now defunct due to lack of goal and poor handling i.e. everyone were just there to talk about their love of anime and anime art and give useless “expert” advice.
And this game dev society is already starting to smell like that. The first two events just lecture on how to do fan art. And based on their art samples lacking proper lay outing, anatomy, expression, perspective, and other tricks in the art industry, the lecturers are amateurs. I’m starting to pity the students who’ll eat off the palm of their hands but then again what would college students know about proper industry acceptable art?
If they are going to lecture about art, they should get a speaker who’s from the comic industry. The ones who are working as contractuals for Marvel and DC here in the Philippines since they’ve been tried and tested by numerous editors. Not some cosplayer who knows how to do fan art.
Andrew
true indeed. well said.
Andrew
although as followup, i have personally conducted a few game programming seminars (even though i am yet a game programming hobbyist, without real game programming work background), it is quite true on what the GDS should deliver. indeed the bearing of the Game Development Society title holds such expectations to the group.
although i am much of agreeing to your statements, — “I’m starting to pity the students who’ll eat off the palm of their hands but then again what would college students know about proper industry acceptable art?” goes far beyond. i do not care of your professional status, but discriminating people’s skills based on their status is merely unprofessional on itself, i might think of the same think about you.
Andrew
typo: should be–
i might think of the same ‘thing’ about you.
peace and cheers.
hopefully GDS will be a true game development organization for aspirants and hobbyists like myself could dwell into and learn much of real life game dev’t.
Please Leave a Comment!