Pause carousel
Play carousel
Dare Academy 2019 Shortlist has been announced!
Dare Academy 2019 is beginning to hot up after the shortlisted teams were announced on Friday 3 May.
A panel of judges from Abertay’s School of Design and Informatics were given the unenviable task of selecting which teams and projects would make it through to the interview and pitching stage of the competition, held on Friday 17 May.
Nine teams will now be required to pitch their game in front of an expert panel of academic staff and industry professionals in a bid to become one of this year’s six Dare Academy finalists.
The finalists will be announced on Friday 24 May.
Team North Sea - Aurora
Explore a frozen ruin shrouded in mystery, in which you encounter a hapless spirit who will aid you in delving into the depths of a forgotten world. Upon freeing the titular Aurora, a series of events forces the player to plunge into a lost civilization which seems to be ominously centered on their new companion. Strengthen your bond as you and Aurora progress, and work together to unlock the lost secrets of Aurora’s world, as well as the dangers which lie buried within.
Blindside – King of the Drills
King of the Drills is a turn-based tactical VR game featuring clans of hyper-intelligent moles battling for domination. The moles have peaked in their technological ventures and strive to increase their intelligence even further by acquiring new territory from their enemies. Each clan is ruled by a King Mole, a respected leader who commands their troops from above the battlefield in their command vehicle.
Skwaurq – Knights of the Cutlery
The world takes place in an abandoned house, where once, the Knights of the Cutlery guarded over the realm of The Kitchen Kingdom, keeping the forces of the great outdoors at bay. One day the house went quiet, darkness took the kingdom and the knights began to struggle against it, one by one they fell. You (the player) are the last Knight of the Cutlery (The Knight of the Shields), knowing the land can never be saved, it’s your final quest to retrieve the fallen Knight’s sacred cutlery to preserve their honour and memory.
Team Ghost Camp – Tales of Treachery
A local four-player party game where you traverse a modular narrative choose-your-own-adventure together, randomised via a variety of different events you come across as you play. The added twist is that at the beginning of each play-through one of the four players is secretly marked a traitor. Said traitor’s task is to secretly betray everyone in ways such as trying to convince them to vote for going down the wrong path, or deliberately playing poorly in simple mini-games (but not so poorly as to arouse suspicion).
Penrose Games – STATION
You play as the sole survivor of a station-wide catchphrase, armed only with your trusty grappling gun you must delve into the bowels of the station, solving puzzles and uncovering the mystery of how you came to be, the sole survivor. Game-play: The demo we are building starts in a very generic way and eases the player into the control scheme before concluding with a titbit of plot. We will expand on the plot element by feeding the player information at the end of sections. For Dare we have two additional sections currently planned.
Inner Circle Games – Spellcasters
A 2D fantasy platformer with a unique rhythm based magic combat system. Occupy the life of a student attending the once renowned Spellcasters Academy. Collect bounties from the local town’s bounty board, take out local outlaws, and help return Spellcasters from disrepair. Each bounty will bring the player to a unique location where there will be stages of combat followed by a boss fight. Collect spellbooks and unlock branches of magic based on branches of science. Spellcasters use masks to focus their magic, rare masks contain buffs. Players will be encouraged to search for and collect these throughout the game.
Cookie Jar Studios – Astoria
Astoria is an action RPG featuring multiple playable characters and a branching narrative. Inspired by superhero comics from Marvel and DC, each character comes with unique powers that the player can level up. Each one of the protagonists has their own story to tell, giving the player the chance to experience everything Astoria has to offer. Mixing the growing popularity of superheroes with the industry staple of RPGs; Astoria looks to bring the growing superhero popularity away from the beat em up genre, using episodic narrative and player choice to create dynamic gameplay and memorable experiences.
Jamhead Games – Sundown
Sundown is a narrative-driven adventure game featuring Cinder the Phoenix as the playable character. The game is set within three expansive levels, each with their own distinct style. The flying player is guided through these levels by following visual cues such as hoops and interesting landmarks. Along the way we will engage the player in cinematic moments inspired by games like Journey and Abzu. Sundown’s movement is designed to be intuitive and easy to control, so that anyone can play it. We decided not to have a failstate in Sundown, to challenge the existing norms of the industry.
Painted Selkie – Forgotten Earth
A third person narrative exploration game on PC, set in the distant future after humans have abandoned Earth. Through the view of fixed and dynamic cameras, players will take control of a chirpy optimistic recon-bot who has come off its core programming and developed a new perspective on life.
