Talks: Making Games and Minecraft Mods

Hazel Bradshaw, Malcom Geddes and Chris Geddes are the developers behind ShakerMod – the new Minecraft Mod developed in partnership between Te Papa and The Earthquake Commission (EQC).

Over an hour they will be discussing what went in to creating the mod, challenges they faced and how they got around them.

Hazel will discuss what went in to designing the gameplay and narrative of the Mod and how gamification can be used to enhance educational experiences.

Malcom and Chris will then take the audience through development of the game mechanics and how real earthquake data was used to create Minecraft earthquakes.

Malcom will also discuss on how he got involved with the modding/gaming community as a developer and offer suggestions on how to get started within the industry.

To conclude the talk, participants will have an opportunity to ask questions about Minecraft, developing Mods and games in general, and how to gain access to this ever evolving and creative industry.

Where: Te Marae, Level 4, Te Papa Museum, Cable Street, Wellington

When: Monday 14^th May, 12- 1pm

Cost: FREE entry

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Dr Hazel Bradshaw

Dr. Hazel Bradshaw is an academic and game designer specialising in engaging design approaches for games, interactives and technologies. She is currently based in Wellington, applying her game design skills within LabPlus, an R&D team undertaking innovative service design at the heart of government. Hazel’s mission is to combine gameplay and technology to create more playfulness and meaning to our everyday interactions.

Hazel holds a PhD in Human Interface Technology specialising in game design practise and is the founder of Driedfrog Ltd, a gameplay consultancy and design studio. Hazel draws upon a background in visual arts and design innovation, and has held international academic positions lecturing in game design, creative technology and game art.

Malcolm Geddes

Malcolm trained as a physicist and has worked as a geophysicist and a software engineer.  He has since worked for a number of years in the Minecraft mod community developing mods. One of his very successful mods is also known as Pixelmon.  His interest in mixing physics, maths and programming and modding in Minecraft has influenced his career to date.

Chris Geddes

Chris trained in both physics and music, and has worked as a freelance composer and senior demonstrator for the physics department of Otago University. He first got involved in minecraft modding when his brother Malcolm got him involved to write music for the ‘Pixelmon’ mod he was working on at the time. He then progressed to developing sound and animation for the Mod. Chris’ loves animation, because he describes it is a wonderful balance between creativity and science.

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