Building Game Communities Offline in Toronto
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Gaming communities are popping up all over Toronto.
While industry giants such as Rockstar Toronto and Ubisoft Toronto have set up shop; we have seen a growing movement in the GTA from the bottom up over the last few years, with a strong push from video game players, not just the programmers. Face to face gaming communities in Toronto have grown and show no signs of stopping.
A community refers to a social unit which share common values and social cohesion, and this is no different when being used to describe gaming communities. It’s no wonder that communities play such a large role in any gamer’s life. Social interaction only makes games more fun and expands the amount of gamers that you’re involved with while playing your favorite game. No matter where you are in the world, chances are if there is access to games, you have a gaming community. These communities come in all shapes and sizes; it can be a small community of just you and your friends who enjoy the same games and have a passion for challenging yourself while being entertained. Or, it could be a very large community where everyone has different likes and dislikes but all that enjoy the aspect and love for gaming.
For years, players have been interacting with one another in online communities, but now we are seeing this take shape in a unique way at a local level. Toronto, Canada has developed quite a large gaming community over the past couple of years. Some have been developed by such visionaries as Hand Eye Society and Bento Miso, and have paved the way for Toronto based gamers to collaborate and meet. While some initiatives have focused on game development, others are geared towards game play, but either way, they allow Torontonians to interact with one another while sharing and enjoying their passion for gaming.
Hand Eye Society for example, is a not-for-profit coalition of projects and people who support Toronto’s video game communities. They hold social events and foster a great environment to meet people in the industry and bolster creativity and encourage positive aspects of gaming. One of their projects, TOJam, took place over the course of three days earlier in the year and showed tremendous progress in encouraging Indie Games and bringing awareness to the Indie developers.
Bento Miso is a collaborative workspace designed specifically for Web and Game makers. They are encouraging like minded people to work in a shared space where they can bounce ideas off each other and be productive in a work space while being surrounded by a diverse group of people; all while working on their projects. Whether you are a freelancer, project manager, designer, or developing games on a platform, you are perfect for their community.
These are just two of many encouraging areas in Toronto who you can find gaming communities that help promote social interaction and the love for games to meld into one. There are many ways to become involved in these communities, all you need is a passion for games.
How about a Gaming Community that earns you good karma? Check out what Extra-Life.org is up to, partnering up with Children’s Miracle Network. By signing up and encouraging your friends and family to help sponsor you as you play for 24 hours, you join a community around the world who have raised over 2 million dollars for kids in need.
Looking to reminisce about the good old games and feel nostalgic for couch co-op? You are sure to make new friends when you can check out places around the city such as A&C World. This gaming zone brings back the nostalgia by allowing customers to play video games such as old arcade machines, retro systems, new consoles and hosts monthly tournaments.
Or perhaps you’re interested in gaming AND music? Check out Nerd Noise Night later this month at the El Mocambo for your nerdy music fix.
These communities are around every the corner- you don’t have to look very far these days to find a group who shares your passion for this growing gaming industry. Go mingle! Think of it like a game in itself.
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[...] growth and has seen many success stories come out of Canada and into the international sphere. In a previous post, I mentioned a collaborative workspace that was designed to be a hub specifically for Web and Game [...]