My GDC experience 2015 Chapter: 01

This year, I was granted the opportunity to attend the game developers conference (GDC) in San Francisco: a week long, inspiring, possibly life changing event. Not only was I going to an Event where developers of all different focuses, levels of experience, from all around the world were congregating, I was going to be working the event as one of the "ask me I can help" neon shirted conference associates (CA), which only added to this possibly once in a lifetime experience.

First and foremost, this was my first time going to California, my first time going to the city of San Francisco, my first GDC, My first time staying in a hostel, my first of many things. It was a Process, one in which I took a single step at at time.

Checking my carry on into luggage because I was on a full fight flight, it was time for the adventure to begin.

My flight itinerary included a layover in atlanta Georgia, and as the plane passed over the sprawling landscape of the world below, I looked out of the window to see foreign grey masses of trees reaching up to the heavens. What types of trees were these, I asked myself, as we descended closer. They blanketed the georgia landscape with such consistency, yet none could be seen while in Florida.
It was only while landing that I came to realize, my two years living in Florida had made me forget that being as I was traveling at the end of february, it was still winter in most places, and what I was staring at puzzled was the barren trunks and branches of leafless trees.
Florida spoils its residences.

From Atlanta to San Francisco I was looking at a five hour plus flight, but luckily a selection of in flight movies were available, so I spent the Time charging my phone, napping, and watching the movies birdman, 21 jumpstreet, and 22 jumpstreet. I am now more versed in pop culture references. Thank you in flight movies.


So now the fun would be beginning. I was officially a stranger in a strange land. Waiting for my bag to come around on the luggage pick up, is always a scary experience, because if your bag doesn't come around the bend, you get to spend time away from home wearing only one set of clothing, hoping you don't smell too bad as you run out of creative methods to re-ware a single pair of undergarments, while all the clothes you painstakingly packed into the tiniest spaces imaginable, go on an adventure themselves. With every passing second, and every bag I saw go past me to its rightful owner, this seemed like the more feasible reality, until with a wave of relief I saw my bag come violently down the chute.
Grasping the handle to my bag, I left the airport with some fellow travelers from school, where we hopped onto a shuttle, from lorries shuttle service, and were whisked off into the evening night air, of San Francisco.


The hills are real.
Don't go to San Francisco with a good pair of walking shoes. If you know nothing else, know this. The famous hills of San Francisco are a reality. You will walk up and down 30 degree hills that extend of hundreds of feet. This is not something just made up for sonic games and animated films.

After unpacking, in a mostly empty hostel, I went for a walk to go find food with the earlier mentioned fellow travelers from school. We found a nice sushi place, not too far away, where we didn't order any sushi at all. We ate, laughed, paid for our food and went back to our various hotels. The next day would be my first experience with Moscone Center- the place where GDC would happen.



So me and my fellow hostel dwellers traveled out early on Sunday morning to register for the event. The hostel lifestyle truly wasn't too bad. Initially I was frightened, especially when the man below my bunk, proceeded to violently play the butt trumpet as I was unpacking my bags, but I slept well, and then found that in the morning, rather than traveling alone I was able to travel with a dozen other CAs all going to the same place. We were immediately bonded, and could call each other at the very least associates, if not friends, simply from being in the same situation. As well, spending only 250 dollars for a week long stay in San Francisco wasn't too bad at all.

So on Sunday, as CAs, we would register for our Conference badges, and some of my fellow CAs would bag stuff. I personally would not. I spent my day becoming acquainted with the layout of the rather massive Moscone center- a three building, three floored center, that would house the game developers for the next 5 days.
After getting my badge in moscone north, I then went back to the CA lounge in moscone west (remember three buildings) where I began some networking.




Networking may sound like a scary term, but in this case it meant playing card games, and basically being the geek I already am. For anyone who has never played a card game called Boss Monster, I say you should give it a try. It's pretty fun. Though I also came no where near winning.
If games like Boss monster seem scary, just touch up your skills in a little game known as Cards against humanity, since I also spent a good deal of time getting to know people's darker sides through that game.



After a few rounds of card games, a pit stop a a chipotle, literally acrossed the street from the event, and getting milkshakes at a wonderful dinner, named mel's, it was time for CA, orientation. For anyone just attending the conference, not working it, this would be pretty boring for me to explain, but For those luckily enough to have been granted the title of conference associate, this was the beginning of being welcomed into a new family, that you never knew you were missing, but struggle to imagine a life without.
This involved a run down of the key players making this event possible,  discussing what was expected of us as people working the event, success stories of prior CAs in the industry,  and basic training on job related tasks, including but not limited to using scanners, and various badge types.  Most importantly there was a guide on how to hug. Because hugs can be important, but must be done right.
From here I played my first round of witch hunt (I am not a witch) which would become a running theme through my nights as a CA, and then went to bed eager to start my time as a CA, and ready to attend GDC.