Networking

I’ll openly admit that I’m a little bit of an introvert. When it comes to networking events I prefer stuff like the Full Indie of Vancouver which has monthly meet-ups in a bar with guest lecturers. There’s some time for chatting with whichever random people you sit with to eat, and then some cool info that’s shared from the community.

I mentioned when discussing GDC, that I was not too keen on going to the after parties. I get that there’s extroverts out there and lots of people from around the world. Parties are necessary. People love them, and that’s an important part of life. But something to keep in mind is that at events like GDC, or at a company holiday party is that as these are industry shmoozing events they should not be conducted the same way that you might run a bachelor party.

There was some unfortunate confusion this GDC about the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) having hired racy dancers for their party. I didn’t attend either party, so admittedly I can’t fairly comment on them but it looks like there was a mix-up and people resigned from the IDGA over misinformation. Not cool. I made a very small comment (“stay classy”) on the IGDA LinkedIn group which sparked an interesting conversation.

One exchange in particular I thought was pretty cool, when one person asked “I’m a bit confused; I have never been to an IGDA function, but I plan to in the future. What is the true purpose of the dancers?” Corey Cole responded:

Back when the GDC was first starting to grow into a few hundred attendees, they had a wonderful “mixer” party to start off the event. The atmosphere was electric – a ballroom full of passionate game developers talking about how to improve their games and where to take them next. People joined into other conversations when they heard something that sparked their interest.

 

The following year, they partnered with a sound card manufacturer and decided that a party called for entertainment. So they cranked up the music, and nobody could hear anyone else talk. A number of developers complained to the committee, but nothing was done about the loud music.

 

I see this IGDA party as continuing the same trend, trying to “entertain” game developers at the cost of making the event useful. It wasn’t just inappropriate in objectifying women. It was inappropriate because – as Mike pointed out – the entertainment got in the way of people being able to meet and talk to each other. As GDC has gotten larger, it has become harder to meet new people and establish connections. For a few years, IGDA took over that role; now it seems to have “jumped the shark” as well.

An interesting insight from a developer who’s been around for a while and had a chance to see the industry form. As I mentioned up top, I really like how Vancouver’s Full Indie runs things, and I’d really like to see some industry events where people can come together and meet in person and exchange ideas. Which is why it was kind of cool to see this little bit of news yesterday concerning the future of IGDA events.