Earlier this year, Crytek launched a creative competition for students in association with the British Library and GameCity. The Off the Map challenge invites students from participating universities and colleges to draw inspiration from a selection of British Library maps and then turn that inspiration into interactive environments using our free CryENGINE 3 SDK.
Among the participants is the Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies. Based in Nottingham, Confetti is a dynamic and progressive learning institute offering real industry vocational and degree training in games technology, music technology, and film and television. It is part of the Confetti Media Group, a family of companies committed to developing creativity and to driving new and innovative approaches to business and education.
Confetti has four different teams of second-year students working on Off the Map: The Old Robots, The Sleepwalking Robots, Project Stigma, and Team Nameless. Each team has 3 or 4 members, all enrolled in the Foundation Degree in Games Technology.
Victoria Husted from Team Nameless displays her take on the Stonehenge in Wiltshire.
FdSc Games Technology course leader at Confetti, Rob Hoare, says the project is extremely beneficial to his students. “I am continuously looking for opportunities for our students to engage with the industry, and to put their skills into action. The parameters of a set brief and feedback from industry professionals are vital in preparing our students for a career in the games industry. The fact that it is set by both Crytek and GameCity – both with bases in Nottingham – makes it a perfect match for Confetti.”
Participants in Off the Map must choose between one of three maps as their source of inspiration; the Pyramids of Giza, Wiltshire’s Stonehenge, or London around the time of the Great Fire in 1666. “The students all seemed to focus on Stonehenge as a starting point,” says Rob. “This allowed them to explore their imagination in considering how the surrounding environment has evolved over time and how it could have looked in the past or even in the future. With CryENGINE’s sophisticated way of creating environments and quick results, it has been the obvious choice for most students. The Old Robots chose London so that they could focus more on creating architecture.”
Using the state-of-the-art CryENGINE to recreate these maps and scenarios is a natural extension of Confetti’s gaming course according to Rob. “The first year of the course covers a variety of areas including design, 3D, and audio. The CryENGINE 3 is introduced as one of the areas of study in this year, and as a result the Off the Map project directly ties in with students’ development of their skills in their second year. A number of students also look to use CryENGINE in their final course assessment, which is perfect for realizing their ideas. Many have a keen interest to further develop their skills once they graduate.”
Work by Ross Fielding from Confetti's Sleepwalking Robots team.
This overlap and the fact that Confetti’s teams are all highly motivated to deliver great results is a combination which constitutes a successful participation in Off the Map. “Alongside giving the students a clear focus to develop and refine their skills, the project also allows students to gain the very valuable experience of working within a team,” says Rob. “The development of students’ communication, organization, and time management skills has proven to be an additional factor in making this a worthwhile experience for all involved.”
Confetti had even more success this week with the Nottingham Young Creative Awards 2013; three students won in the category Animation and Digital Media, 19 - 24.
To find out more about our CryENGINE 3 SDK and download it for free, please visit www.mycryengine.com.
Top image displays work from Joshua Mace from Confetti's Old Robots team.
