What Game Happens! is really about

I tried to write this post so many times, but it never felt good enough.
The biggest problem I’ve faced is that Game Happens! Right Now was awesome, so awesome that I can’t find any effective way to describe it even in Italian, my native language.
But I’ll give it a try… 🙂

Hosted in Villa Durazzo Bombrini (Genoa), the showcase area of Game Happens! Right Now had some of the best games of the indie scene and all the talks were super-interesting and inspiringly: the links between arts and games, narrative design, personal journey, controversial game mechanics, the use of our senses to play, the reloading of history with videogames (no, not COD and BF), videogame criticism and VR.

Game Happens! Right Now was also the #BleepBleepNight, the first chiptune party in Genoa, with Kenobit and – for the first time in Italy – chipzel. They were amazing, the location (Teatro Altrove) was pretty cool too and we danced all night long.

But Game Happens! – as an event format – is so much more.
Game Happens! is all about people.
Game Happens! is all about nice, kind, lovely, incredible people.
Game Happens! is all about nice, kind, lovely, incredible people who are making amazing stuff.
Game Happens! is all about nice, kind, lovely, incredible people who are making amazing stuff and who are a source of inspiration.

So thanks to Marina, our unstoppable event curator, and to Federico: you are an amazing couple, great hosts and I am grateful to the internet gods that so many years ago made our paths cross on Twitter (or was it FriendFeed?).
I’m humbled + grateful (yeah, that’s a quote 🙂 ) to have you as friends. <3
See you soon in London, right?

Thank you Alessandra: you’ve promised me a SingStar night. Now I have another reason to come back to Genoa soon 🙂

Thanks to Claudia e Matteo: we didn’t had any real chance to talk a lot or at least to say a proper goodbye! But we “will meet again”, right?

Thanks to Mata and Jo, Karen, Niki, Auriea and Michaël: it was awesome to visit the aquarium with (some of) you, having lunch, dinner, beers and drinks all together, wandering around town and never ever stop talking. Thank you for all the energy, good vibes and inspiration you gave me.

Thank you Vlad: you are one of the nicest and friendly people I’ve ever met. Thanks for all your help and for your impossible tiny drone (now I have video-proof that I have some muscle in my body and I can carry stuffs too!).

Thanks to Marco and Mattia: you’re some of the best professionals I’ve worked with!

Thanks to Fabio and Niamh for making us dance to your 8bit awesome music. I hope I’ll have the chance to see you again soon (and next time I’ll find the courage to talk a little bit more with you!)

Thanks to Lara, Andrea and all the other awesome devs: keep up with the good work. You guys rock!

Last but not least, thanks to Esther, Elisa, Claire, Dimos, Walter, Jacopo, Emanuele, Mirko, Francesco and all the nice peeps of the volunteers team: working and spending time with you was incredible!

So: let’s keep in touch, let’s meet around the world and… can we repeat Game Happens! again and again?

Love you all, Lorenzo

PS: I hope I had not forget anyone. You know, my memory is quite limited and these days filled all the space available in my 3.5” floppy drive and I’m so so sorry about that. In case: I’ll find a way to make you forgive me. 🙂