Shawnee Ohio State University Game Design

GDEX & ORIGINS Together!

SEP 30 - OCT 3, 2021 | EXPO: OCT 1 - 3

GREATER COLUMBUS CONVENTION CENTER

We are so excited to be back for GDEX 2021.

This year we're going big and we're partnering with Origins Game Fair to solidify Columbus as the new home for gaming in the Midwest. This year will be filled with so much stuff to do, and we are excited to get back to an in-person event.

What Will The Event Have?

Tons of games to play including Video Games, Board Games, Tabletop & Miniatures, and lots more.

Speaking and Workshop sessions all weekend long from industry pros and gaming celebs
Tournaments and Free play throughout the weekend, including cash and other parties
Virtual and Augmented Reality experiences
One of a kind Merch from this show only!

Lots of art and collectibles to buy so bring your cash!

This year will be bigger than ever, but make sure you get your tickets soon since space is going to be very limited and tickets will go fast!

What is Origins?

Origins Game Fair (#originsgamefair) is the annual tabletop gaming convention held each year in June in Columbus, OH.

On top of the 6,000+ gaming events scheduled throughout the week, we also offer a wide variety of other activities like cosplay, a robust Film Festival, a full schedule of Anime Programming, and even Comedy and Music Shows!

It's also our teams favorite Tabletop/Board Game event every year and many of us attend and have a great time.

What Are The Important Dates?

Expo: Oct 1-3, 2021

Tournaments: Oct 1-3, 2021

Stay Tuned For Our Event List & App Download Information

GDEX 2021 Schedule

GDEX Underworld & Gamejam

GDEX Underworld

GDEX Underworld is one of the largest and most fun gaming events/tournaments you can be a part of. Listed below are all the events at GDEX Underworld this year and best yet, they're all free to enter as long as you have your GDEX 2021 pass.

SCHEDULE

Friday - Tabletop and In-person Among Us

12:00pm ET: Pick-up Mario Kart and VR open

5:00pm ET: In-person Among Us on mobile

Saturday - Smash Ultimate Doubles & Singles and VR

11:00am ET: Doubles tournament starts

2:00pm ET: Singles tournament wave A&B Pools start

4:00pm ET: Singles tournament wave C&D Pools start

6:00pm ET: Ultimate singles top 32 bracket starts

11:30pm ET: Tournament games scheduled to end

Sunday - Mario Kart tournament and VR

11:00am ET: Mario Kart tournament starts

2:00pm ET: AllMid raffle drawing from all attendees

4:00pm ET: Mario Kart tournament ends, free play rest of day

6:00pm ET: Games end, tear down

ACTIVITY DESCRIPTIONS

In-person Among Us - You've seen it, you've played it, but have you ever experienced it in person? This year, GDEX has a designated in-person Among Us area for anybody to play on mobile. Swing by and see if you can spot the imposter!

Tabletop - Need some more room to play tabletop? Swing by and play some of your favorite tabletop games surrounded by a gaming atmosphere.

Smash Ultimate Doubles tournament - Smash Ultimate is back at GDEX with a community doubles tournament. The top 3 teams will receive GDEX 2022 passes.

$2,000 Smash Ultimate Singles tournament - Smash Ultimate is back at GDEX with a $2,000 community singles tournament. The top 8 winners receive:

1st - $800 + GDEX trophy

2nd - $400 + GDEX trophy

3rd - $300 + GDEX trophy

4th - $200 + GDEX trophy

5th - $100

6th - $100

7th - $50

8th - $50

Mario Kart 8 Tournament - GDEX continues the tradition of its Mario Kart tournament as the primary Sunday activity. Winners will receive GDEX 2022 passes. Pick-up Mario Kart games are also open during Friday, October 1, 2021.

VR - Swing by the gaming room to play some beat saber and other VR games. VR is open on Friday from 12pm - 6pm, Saturday from 10am - 11:00pm, Sunday from 10am - 6pm.

Bill's crib vr

Propagation VR Co-op

Combiningsurvival horror and static wave shooting, Propagation VR will get your adrenaline pumping as you try to survive a zombie apocalypse.

Format: Highest score achieved in 15 minutes, scored 4pm Sunday, multiple entries permitted

Ticket: $20/player

Who: Single player or teams of 2

When: Friday and Sunday, 2 slots available every 15 minutes all day long.

Prizes: Highest score: 200 | Second: 50 | Third: 20

Superhot VR

Experience bullet-time like never before in this innovative VR title wheretime only moves when you do. Alternate between frenzied action and composed deliberation as you fight off waves of attackers. Great for newcomers.

Format: Highest score achieved in 15 minutes, scored 4pm Sunday, multiple entries permitted

Ticket: $20/player

Who: Single player

When: Friday and Sunday, 2 slots available every 15 minutes all day long.

Prizes: Highest score: 200 | Second: 50 | Third: 20

BlastOn! VR

Duck, dodge & weave like Neo in this fiercely competitive 1v1 tournament

Format: Double elimination, 2 minute match timer, best of 3 wins the set.

Time: There are 8 slots for new contenders in each "wave"

Wave's start Saturday

11:00, 11:30, 12:00, 12:30, 1:30, 2:00, 2:30, 3:00

Grand finals will be Saturday at 5pm
Entree fee: $20

Prizes: 1st: 200 | 2nd: 50 | 3rd: 20 | 4th: 20

GAMES DONE LEGIT

Think your job could use a little more gaming? Games Done Legit offers team-building and corporate fun using interactive technology -- from classic '80s videogames to today's highest-end VR.

Pass our website along to your HR department or manager, or just reach out so we can learn what might be fresh, fun, and unique entertainment ideas best fit you! We travel anywhere, to your office or event space, serving small teams to Fortune 500 companies since 2014. No matter the meeting or event, Make It Fun with Games Done Legit!

At GDEX Underworld, chill out in our freeplay area and enjoy your favorite '80s and '90s Nintendo and SEGA games, or relive the arcade glory days with classic fighting games. No emulators!

-NES (Duck Hunt, Dr. Mario, Tecmo Super Bowl, etc.)

-SNES (Tetris vs. Dr. Mario, NBA Jam 2K17, Super Mario World, etc.)

-Genesis (NBA Jam 4P, Sonic 2, NHL '94 4P, etc.)

-N64 (Goldeneye, Mario Kart 64, Smash Bros., etc.)

-Super Street Fighter II Turbo (Arcade board, arcade sticks)

-Marvel vs. Capcom 2 (Dreamcast, arcade sticks)

-Smash Bros. Melee (Gamecube)

-And more!

GDEX is a Weekend Celebration of Games that attracts fans, students and developers from across the country. GDEX is the Industry Event of the Region, offering more to do, see, and learn than any other Gaming and Creative Technology expo in the Midwest.

FEATURING

SPECIAL GUESTS

Renee Gittins

Executive Director | International Game Developer Association (IGDA)

Renee is the Executive Director of the IGDA, and a multi-disciplinary leader with expertise in software engineering and creative direction. She is a passionate advocate and connector for developers and diversity in the game industry, with a background that spans across engineering, design, and production. She is outspoken about initiatives to increase diversity both within the game industry and gaming overall to help the game industry grow and improve for everyone.

Susan Magnani

Founder | Emblazon Games

Susan Magnani has been enthralled by computers since she remembers. Bold, straightforward, and a brilliant thinker and innovator; she grew up in a household where she was fortunate to have both a mother and father who were successful engineers. She attributes much of her success to the visibility, mentorship, and sponsorship of other female engineers - most especially, her mother. Her work prior to graduating college included running her own video game company, Emblazon Games (games.emblazon.industries); as well as extensive internship and corporate experience while still attending school. After graduating with her B.Sc. in Computer Science from Bowling Green State University, she began her career as a Full-Stack Developer at Avanade - a software consulting firm which is a joint venture between Microsoft and Accenture. There, she worked her way up in under 2 years from junior level roles into a lead developer. She was responsible for getting one of the most pivotal software Ideas Accenture had off the ground - a cutting edge, full-stack application meant to streamline workloads for DevOps teams. Her work on this app was crucial in closing nearly half a billion dollars in sales for Accenture. She currently works for Logicworks - a managed cloud services company - where she is an AWS Platform Engineer.

Austin Yarger

Professor | University of Michigan: College of Engineering

Austin is a Lecturer of Game Development in the University of Michigan's College of Engineering, Co-Founder of the International Game Developers Association (Ann Arbor Chapter), and President of Arbor Interactive, a Midwestern game and software development firm (https://www.arborinteractive.com).

A long-time indie developer, Austin got his taste of AAA game engineering with the release of The Sims 4, followed by stops at EA Mobile and Facebook. His University of Michigan students have achieved positions at Santa Monica Studio, Unity, 343 Industries, Epic Games, Riot Games, NetherRealm Studios, Deep Silver Volition, and Schell Games among many others. (https://ayarger.com)

Ross Hersemann

President | Loading Law

Ross is the Founder of Loading Law, a Chicago-based law practice, and provides legal counsel to video game developers and entrepreneurs in the tech sector. Ross is also the Organizer of the Chicago Video Game Law Summit and an Adjunct Professor of Video Game Law at DePaul University. He speaks frequently on hot topics in law and technology. Ross also serves as the Chair of IGDA Chicago, Chair of the CBA YLS Creative Arts Committee, and Vice Chair of the ABA IPL Digital Games and New Media Committee.

Chris Totten

Assistant Professor | Kent State University

Christopher Totten is an Assistant Professor and lead faculty for Kent State University's Animation Game Design program. He is also the founder of Pie For Breakfast Studios, an award-winning Northeast Ohio-area indie game company. He has done work as an artist, animator, level designer, and project manager in the game industry. He holds a Masters Degree in Architecture with a concentration in digital media from the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC. Chris is an organizer for the Smithsonian American Art Museum Indie Arcade and lifetime member of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA).

He is the author of An Architectural Approach to Level Design, published with CRC Press/AK Peters in 2014 (2nd edition published in 2019) and Game Character Creation in Blender and Unity, released by Wiley Publishing in 2012. He is also the editor of the collected volume, Level Design: Processes and Experiences. His current game project is the successfully crowdfunded Little Nemo and the Nightmare Fiends.

Michelle Lega

Michelle Lega has been in marketing and communications for 5+ years and she currently works as the producer and marketer at indie game publishing company The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild. She has an MFA in Game Design from DePaul University and loves working with first time and small indie devs to help them develop successful marketing strategies. She also moonlights as a narrative designer/writer focusing on character-based storytelling and sweet and cute experiences. In her free time, she likes to sing, paint, play video games (duh), and take care of her growing house plant collection.

Kellye Blosser

Kellye is a game designer and digital storyteller, currently working on Tom Clancy's XDefiant at Ubisoft San Francisco. Her career has spanned numerous storytelling mediums, including theater, film, and interactive design. She has a BFA in Theater and an MFA in Communication Media Arts from Ohio University, where she studied the role games and storytelling play in social activism.

Tasha Penwell

Tasha Penwell is the Computer Science Program Manager at Hocking College. She is passionate about exploring AWS technology specifically with the use of VUI and AR technologies. She is also an AWS Academy Accredited Educator and works with high schools to bring AWS to their classrooms.

As an entrepreneur, Tasha owns and operates Pretty Nerdy Social Media Marketing with a customer base of small businesses in Southeastern Ohio. She specializes in building interactive experiences on Snapchat, Facebook, and Instagram platforms.

Kyle Yonut

I am a Columbus native with a passion for gaming in the Midwest. I have been a part of the GDEX community for the last 5 years. I am a Columbus State University alum with an associates in video game art and animation. I recently graduated from Shawnee State with a bachelor's in video game art and digital simulation. I have been working as a freelance artist and animator for the past 5 years. My dream is to work full time in video games.

Sam Swicegood

CEO | GIB Games

Sam Swicegood is the CEO of VR Gaming studio GIB Games. Sam has been involved in game design for over 15 years, and has focused on developing and innovating the VR gaming market. Sam is also an award-winning science fiction and fantasy author, blogger, and podaster.

George V. Landon, Ph.D

Professor | Cedarville University

George Landon is a Professor of Computer Science at Cedarville University where he teaches and coordinates the curriculum track in Video Game Engineering. He has performed research in 3D Scanning, Material Acquisition and Rendering, Games, and Machine Learning with funding from the National Science Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and, most recently, the Air Force Institute of Technology.

Always fascinated by games as a story-telling medium, George loves introducing new technology to game developers in ways that make it accessible to the broadest audience possible. He received a PhD in Computer Science with a focus in Computer Vision and Computer Graphics from the University of Kentucky.

Adam Fligsten

For over a decade, composer/sound designer Adam Fligsten has been working in game audio. Before that, he worked as an electronic musician in New York. With work in AAA games, indie games and everything in between, Adam has a deep understanding of how game audio works on a fundamental level. Recently, he founded Silen Audio: a boutique, full service game audio studio offering full service audio for games.

Rob Cravens

Creative Director | Kindred Fates

Rob Cravens is the Co-creator, Creative Director, Lead Writer, and Music Co-Composer for Kindred Fates. Rob co-developed the Kickstarter campaign and trailer which landed Kindred Fates in the top 5 video game Kickstarters of 2020, raising $685K in one month. Prior to founding Skymill, Rob worked professionally as a software developer and QA tester for 5 years before before entering the games industry as a developer and game designer. After 2 years of game design and development on other projects, he co-founded Skymill Studios and developed Kindred Fates from May of 2019 until its Kickstarter launch in February of 2020.

Tori Wallace

Co-Creator | Kindred Fates

Tori Wallace is the Co-creator, Writer, and Lead Terrain Artist of Kindred Fates. A graduate of The Ohio State University, she combines her Environmental Science background with a creative flair to build a uniquely informed world for Kindred Fates, with a special love for its flora. She worked with Rob to create the game's Kickstarter campaign and trailer.

Dan Barringer

Co-Founder | VRADII

Dan has co-founded VRADII to combine the knowledge of architecture and game design to Virtual Reality Immersions. Through the combination of these two disciplines, Dan is transforming 2D virtual learning and understanding of science and technology into a 3D virtual reality allowing a great understanding by the participants.

With over 23 years as an NCARB registered architect, Dan Barringer has been involved in all aspects of architecture from assessments, surveys, program of requirements, design and space planning, construction documents and detailing, material selection and specifications, to construction administration. Dan's focus has always been on the use and development of computer-aided electronic media towards architectural design, presentation and the production of construction documentation.

Tom Allenbaugh

Technical Lead | VRADII & Multivarious

Tom has been the technical lead and primary developer of a video gaming and technology startup since 2014. He teaches the skills he has developed as an adjunct professor at Columbus State Community College since Autumn of 2018. Tom has deep knowledge in a wide variety of tools, languages, and general software development practices, with C# and game development engines as a primary focus. His past projects from the Columbus Zoo Augmented Reality Giraffes to creating VR (HTC Vive) applications for promoting therapeutic movement, has guided VRADII through its new endeavor.

STAY TUNED FOR MORE UPDATES!

showcase at gdex!

This year is going to be THREE DAYS of awesome games, sessions, tournaments, events and more!

We want to see all your great submissions, but make sure to get them in quickly because space is VERY limited this year due to everyone wanting to get back to doing live shows the Convention Center is really limited on space. Because of that, and our COVID safety procedures, we are going to be approving applications on a rolling basis to get everyone confirmed. We appreciate your flexibility and understanding.

EXHIBITORS

SPEAKERS

VOLUNTEERS

COVID HEALTH & SAFETY UPDATES

The health and safety of our guests is always our primary priority. We are working with the Greater Columbus Convention Center in collaboration with Columbus Public Health and Franklin County Public Health to constantly adjust and update our COVID-19 safety protocols. Please stay updated here with the latest requirements to keep our guests and neighbors safe.

Please vaccinate yourself to help protect yourself and those around you!

GDEX Guest COVID-19 Safety Protocols (Updated 8/11/21)

Masks will be required for all guests during the event regardless of vacation status
Maintain social distance (> 6 feet) as best as possible while attending the event
Regularly wash your hands throughout the day
Wash/bath daily to reduce the likelihood of transmitting to others
Use hand sanitizer and keep your personal items clean using wipes
- Sanitizing stations will be available throughout the Greater Columbus Convention Center
Limit physical contact with other guests as best as possible
STAY HOME IF YOU ARE FEELING UNWELL
- Experiencing lightheadedness, nausea, sore throat, or congestion
- Have a consistent temperature (generally above 99.5-100 degree F)
- Have been in contact with someone with a positive COVID-19 result within the last two weeks