GameHorizon's 'I Love Games' Encourages Youth Pursuing Game Industry

Author: by Beth A.

More than 50 schoolchildren and sixth-form students from the North East of England found out what life would be like working in the world of video games development in mid-February – as part of an initiative to sow the seeds for the next generation of talented North Eastern game makers. During Codeworks GameHorizon’s "I Love Games" on Valentine’s Day at Northumbria University, a group of 14-18-year-olds found out about life in the games industry directly from some of the North East’s leading developers – the makers of games such as The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, the Driver series, and Big Mutha Truckers. The event included employer presentations from Eutechnyx, Reflections and Venom Games, as well as three workshops during which the students found out about how a video game is made, and the pros and cons of working in the industry. The workshops also gave them the chance to try their hand at creating their own games. The students came from a number of schools and sixth-form colleges throughout Tyneside: Royal Grammar School in Jesmond, Gosforth High, Tyne Metropolitan, Kenton College and Whitburn School. At the close of the event, Northumbria University and Codeworks GameHorizon unveiled details of the ‘Rising Star’ game design competition for 14-18 year olds, which will reward the best games ideas with a prize donated by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE).