On Thursday, Sept. 28, the Razorback Game Developers RSO and the professional organization Ozark Game Developers co-organized a Fireside Chat with Causeway Studios, an independent game studio in Northwest Arkansas. Causeway Studios was founded by U of A graduates Kjartan Kennedy, studio director; Greg Rogers, creative director; and Brianna Jenkins, art director.  

The talk was held at Brewer Family Entrepreneurship Hub, where attendees were able to sit down and talk with Kennedy, Rogers and Jenkins about their creative process, their day-to-day experience running a game studio and how they took their shared interest in game design from a hobby to a career.

Kennedy, Rogers and Jenkins shared a range of game development best practices, from workflows to world building to their favorite games. Causeway discussed their world-building approach to creating unique games and narrative experiences as an independent studio. 

"It's great that students can have access to and interact with a professional game studio in the area," said Allena Pennington, the president of the Razorback Game Developers RSO. "It is so important to learn from others in the field." 

The Razorback Game Developers RSO was recently founded and hosts monthly meetings and monthly events. The next event they will host is the Game Jam Spooktacular from noon to 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28. There will be pizza and snacks throughout the day, as well as prizes available. To join Razorback Game Developers, interested students should join through HogSync. 

In addition to the Razorback Game Devs RSO, there are options to study game design on campus through WLLC courses. Game Design I and II are both offered during the fall and spring semesters, respectively, in the WLLC department (WLLC 398-V: Special Topics). For more information about game design courses, contact professor David Fredrick at dfredric@uark.edu.