This year's "game" is a job, not a game

[IronicDeadBird]

What I found very surprising about this years is that it actually more accurately mirrors competitive events in the real world then any of the past games. Ever watch the world cup? Ever watch 3 year olds play soccer? In the real world there is no "curving", "blue shell", or "balancing mechanic." One of the issues the GDC has is that it needs a game that doesn't just shred teams that for whatever reason cannot design and build to the highest level. Its easier to inspire when you can step up to the field instead of being shoved off because you aren't competitive. When you add these training wheels to a game so everyone can participate then yes it might come off a bit dull.

But real talk for just a second.
Ask yourself what you find exciting about this experience.
Maybe its that you like the action provided by the game and the positive environment. Its colorful, its loud, its fun. You spent so much time working and now you can show off and flex a little.
Or maybe you do what I do. I go out on the field and I stare at this heap of metal, wires, and plastic that embodies all the work that was done by these students and I feel a rush because somehow, (mostly through mountain dew) we made it.
At the end of the day the game is what brought us to the location, but its the people that got the party started.