Game Development with Rick Kelly, creator of Heroes Guard (MD STEM Festival)

As part of the 2nd Maryland STEM Festival (http://marylandstemfestival.org), join CoderDojoDC for a presentation by Rick Kelly, professional game designer and creator of Heroes Guard!

Rick Kelly left a job at ZeniMax working on Elder Scrolls Online to start his own game company, UnderByte Studios (http://www.underbytestudios.com/heroes-guard/). He will be speaking to the club about his background in computer science, what it's like to start your own game company, and the creation of his game, Heroes Guard. According to GeekDad (https://geekdad.com/2016/06/independent-game-developer/), the game is "part interactive fiction, part digital card game, you play as a member of the Heroes Guard, a group of mages who use their special skills to protect the land. You fight orcs, play with magical rings, and explore the countryside (before your candle burns down!) as story melds with card game. It’s available on both iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/heroes-guard-the-journal/id968451126) and Google Play (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.underbytestudios.heroesguard.journal&hl=en)."

Important: Ages 7 to 17 are welcome, but children 12 and under MUST be accompanied by an adult for the entire meeting. Bringing a friend or two is fine, but please, no large groups.

Getting there:

The Thingstitute is located in downtown Rockville in the old red brick courthouse at 29 Courthouse Square. It's at the corner of Maryland and Courthouse Square with a large fountain out front.

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Enter via the front door. Walk down the hall and make a left at the elevator. We'll be on the second floor. An entrance without stairs is located in the rear of the building. Handicap parking is located next to the rear entrance. We'll have a sign with a number to call to get someone to open the rear door.

Parking: Street parking is free on Sundays, but may not be available. The parking lot at 11 N Washington St is free and less than a block away. It is on the corner of Courthouse Sq and Washington St with an entrance right after the traffic light on Courthouse Sq. A second option is the COB parking garage on E. Jefferson and Monroe which is larger and also free. See rockvilleparking.com (http://rockvilleparking.com/) for other parking lots.

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Metro: If you are coming by metro, exit the station to the left and take the pedestrian bridge over Rockville Pike. Walk straight for a little over a block and you'll be there.