THE Department of Information and Communication (DICT) is stepping up its efforts to further boost game development, one of the emerging sectors of information and technology-business process management (IT-BPM) industry, particularly in the countryside.
DICT’s DigitalPH project staff Markus Operiano, who spoke at the opening ceremonies of the four-day Negros Island Game Festival 2016 at the SM City Bacolod on Thursday, said the agency has recognized the potential of game developers in the regions.
In the past three years, Operiano said, there are already small and medium enterprises, which are into developing games, sprouting in areas outside of Metro Manila.
“We have this Game Festival to give emphasis to the talents in the countryside, who could also develop game applications even though they are outside Manila,” he added.
DICT collaborated with the Game Developers Association of the Philippines (GDAP), the organizer of the festival.
Sixteen developers from Negros Occidental through their exhibit-booths are showcasing their respective product-games.
Other activities include Game Jam and Wacom Speed Drawing competitions, game development workshops, and lectures on various topics like careers in creative industry.
On Sunday, the last day of the festival, a group of game developers in Negros Oriental will also hold an exhibit in Dumaguete City.
Aardvark Play co-founder Brent Andrew Chua said the activity is an opportunity for them to help the games community further improve by means of sharing their expertise especially to aspiring game developers.
“Not just for the sake of our games industry, but the entertainment industry in general, we have to reach out to the community by conducting talks and workshops,” he said.
The academe sector, for its part, has considered this as a means of increasing awareness, especially to Negrense students, on the growing game sector.
Cristina Orbecido, vocational school administrator of the Negros Occidental Language and Information Technology Center (NOLITC), said the event is beneficial as it exposes students to the current trends in the industry.
NOLITC, a member of GDAP- Region 18, offers courses like 2D Animations and Visual Graphics Design.
Governor Alfredo Marañon Jr., who led the opening rites, emphasized the need to really push for the growth of the talent development in the province for the IT-BPM sector.