Our journey with Sony Talent League has come to a close (at least, until we meet again in Spain!), and we’d like to take this moment to share our reflections on this experience. Before we get into it, we’d first like to extend our congratulations to Team Djossi for their well-deserved victory, as well as to the other finalists. All of you have inspired and motivated us throughout this journey with your talent and hard work. We look forward to being continuously inspired by you and we can’t wait to meet you in Barcelona. 

 

It’s hard to encapsulate this ten week experience into one succinct post. The journey consisted of a lot of trial and error and moments where the feeling of anxiety persisted, but there was also a lot of learning, a lot of growth, and a lot of friendship. 

 

Interestingly, I first learned about Sony Talent League a year ago. At the time, I had never thought about applying because it was outside of my comfort zone. Flash forward to a year later, and I had just returned home after working abroad at a VFX studio in Montreal. I wasn’t sure what was next for me, but I recall a conversation I had with the lady sitting next to me on the plane ride home. She’s retired now, but her career had many twists and turns, and she advised me to be excited rather than anxious about what was to come. With that mindset, I wanted to be open to new opportunities and I wanted to learn as much as possible. Seeing Sony Talent League pop up in my emails felt like a sign, and I remember calling Ephan and saying, “Hey, would it be crazy if we applied for this?” 

 

We began our journey with Sony Talent League with open minds, ready to absorb as much knowledge as we could about games and the games industry, and we hoped to use that knowledge in order to better ourselves as artists and as people. Our game, as many of you know, was inspired by my parents and my desire to connect with them on a deeper level. Throughout the mentorship, we wanted to create a game that would best deliver this experience, not just for me and my parents, but to other people who also struggle with language barriers. I believe the most challenging part of our journey was figuring out the game mechanics which went through many, many rounds of changes and iterations. Looking back, if we were to do things differently, I think we would spend a good amount of time in the beginning discussing our games’ core values, drafting the game design document, and essentially, just building a solid foundation for our game. I’d also say taking more time in the UX aspect of the game would have been beneficial, for instance doing more UX research and figuring out the user (gameplay) experience in more detail from the get-go. 

 

Our mentors were fantastic and we’re so, so thankful for them. They gave us advice, guided us, were patient with us, and reassured us. Andrew, Kevin, Sonja, Harvey, and Daryl–thank you all so much for your time and the guidance you’ve given us. We’re so appreciative of you all, and we look up to you all so much. We hope that one day our paths will cross again!

Sony Talent League was an unforgettable experience and it has been amazing to be a part of such a supportive and welcoming community. We wanted to create an experience that will help bring people together in a fun way. It’s what Don Don represents, and I think our game managed to capture that pretty well. Towards the end of this project, my parents entered retirement, and a part of their time will now be spent playing Don Don haha. I also want to say how proud I am of Ephan. His commitment and dedication to our game is something I’ll never forget. Though he’s not a programmer, he developed our game and it looks pretty darn good if I say so myself! It’s time to sign off now, but it’s not a goodbye, but a “see you later”. We look forward to seeing everyone in Barcelona. Until next time!

 

P.S.: The game’s name “Don Don” is my Chinese nickname. It’s what my Dad calls me. My Chinese name is 安安 (translates to peace) and is pronounced “On On” similar to how “On” or “We” is pronounced in French, as in “On y va!” So, on that note, I’d like to close this post with: 

 

On y va, Don Don! 

加油, Don Don!

Let’s go, Don Don!