Dare Academy 2023
Winning Against the Odds
Introduction
For many years, Abertay University has hosted Dare Academy, a prestigious summer-long competition where students team up to develop a game pitch and showcase it at EGX London.
My teammate and I decided to take on the challenge—with nothing but a few animations and some slides. A two-person programming team was unheard of until that point, and I had just finished my second year, making us the clear underdogs.
But after confidently presenting our approach, we were accepted into the Dare Academy, becoming the only two-person team in the competition.
The Game – An Eldritch Monster-Collecting RPG
Our game is an Eldritch-inspired monster-collecting RPG, where the protagonist unwittingly unleashes a monster apocalypse upon the world.
As a two-person team, we had to divide roles strategically:
- I focused on production, audio, and coding.
- My teammate handled team leadership, visuals, and coding.
- We both worked on game design and balancing.
Despite the challenges, our teamwork and persistence paid off. Not every day was easy, but those difficult moments only made us stronger.
Showcasing at EGX London
At EGX London, we presented our game to players, industry professionals, and judges. The response was overwhelmingly positive, and to our amazement, we won all of the awards up for grabs — including Best Audio, which now proudly sits on my desk.
I was later told that I became the first second-year student to ever win Dare Academy in its then 20-year history.
Our game also caught the attention of VG247, which wrote a review about it:
Read the VG247 review
After the event, Eurogamer.net interviewed us about our development process and future plans:
Read our Eurogamer interview
Final Thoughts
This project remains one of the greatest achievements of my life so far. It not only proved what my teammate and I were capable of but also opened doors to new opportunities.
I’m incredibly excited to see where this experience will take me next.