Video game developers and passionate video game enthusiasts of Central Massachusetts can finally find solace in a game development organization unique to the Worcester area. The Worcester Game Pile, a collaborative of game development studios in Central Massachusetts, seeks to encourage growth and camaraderie in the Massachusetts game industry while offering a haven for video game fanatics to indulge in their love of all things gaming.

The Worcester Game Pile, affectionately known as the Woo! Game Pile, was founded by three former Becker College students – Nick Mundry, Michael Flood and Jacob Peltola. The goal of this organization is simple: to create a Worcester-based community for local video game developers to thrive in while gaining valuable industry experience and exposure.

As for the actual inspiration for the Worcester Game Pile, Flood said it was a matter of convenience more than anything else. “We went to Boston meetups all the time for a lot of events, and traveling from Worcester can be annoying. So we were like, ‘It’d be really cool if they had something like this in the area.’” Sharing a joint passion for video games and game development, the three former students of video game design sought out the means to build a similar community in Worcester. Having founded the game development club at Becker, Flood and Peltola had a knack for community building.

This sense of community is fostered through the various events that the Worcester Game Pile hosts every month.
Notably, natural promotion of developers’ games through sharing and support yields an environment where people are comfortable and want to show off their projects. “It’s a very natural form of promotion,” said Flood. “It ends up building the community more and more.”

Additionally, the founders stress the importance of having an all-inclusive organization. “It’s very open; there is no enrollment process; we don’t hire people; it’s not an interview thing,” said Flood. “All it takes is to show up.” These words resonate with the spirit of each Worcester Game Pile event. During what are called “lightning showcases,” developers are given 5-10 minutes to give an elevator pitch of their games. After, they are wholeheartedly encouraged to receive constructive feedback from fellow developers in attendance.

The generosity of the Worcester Game Pile is felt every month, as turnouts for events range from 60-80 people, all eagerly awaiting the next video game presentation as they huddle into Worcester Game Pile headquarters, Running Start. In collaboration with Amherst’s Pioneer Valley Games, these Worcester meetups boast a local crowd, as well as an array of up and coming developers from Amherst and the surrounding area.

Showcases are a vital part of the Worcester Game Pile’s mission, yet the group also hosts game demo nights and game jams that produce community feedback. These are opportunities for developers to show off their games, network and even make games in collaboration with other like-minded individuals. Overall, the emphasis is on teamwork and helping others make the best game possible.

While Worcester may not be as large of a video game development hub as Boston, there is a bright future in store for the Central Massachusetts scene.

“It’s definitely growing,” said Mundry. “With the way developers have been supported as a group and as a community, the growth is exponential.”

For more information, visit gamepile.org.