This workshop introduces new game artists to the fundamentals of minimalist game design using accessible open-source tools like Bitsy, Twine, and Godot. Participants will learn to create simple games with free and open-source software, developing practical skills for game development with minimal technical barriers. No prior experience is needed. Please bring your own laptop (Windows, Mac) or smartphone.

Nico Valdivia Hennig (He/They) is an award-winning Chilean game artist, ludic activist, and cultural studies researcher with over a decade of experience in game design. They are a PhD candidate in Hispanic Studies at the University of California, Riverside, with a Designated Emphasis in Speculative Fiction. Their research focuses on ludic activism, game design, and game production in Latin America. Nico co-founded Niebla Games, which has launched both board and video games for PC and mobile platforms. In 2022, their studio was selected for Google’s Indie Games Accelerator program. Notable accolades include “Best Game Design” at EVA Córdoba 2019 in Argentina, “Best Chilean Studio of 2021”, and recent nominations for the Explorer Award at the AMaze/Berlin Festival of Experimental Game Art 2024, as well as for Best Social Matters Game and Best Diversity Game at the BIG Festival/Gamescom Latam 2024 in São Paulo, Brazil. Nico has extensive experience lecturing on game design and narrative within game development programs in Chile. They are also a co-founder of Río Junto, a Latin American cultural exchange collective, and a founding member of Ludicocrítica, the Chilean Critical Games Studies Network. Recently, Nico received and Barricelli Award for Interdisciplinary Research Disertation and became a fellow-in-residence of the Speculative Play and Just Futurities program at Indiana University, supported by the Mellon Foundation for September 2024.