IRDC 2016-usa

The International Roguelike Development Conference 2016. A unique opportunity for roguelike developers and enthusiasts to network and discuss their genre in depth. Attendance is free and open to all, whether developer, fan, enthusiast, academic, journalist, or wandering vagrant. This page is for the USA conference. There will be a separate page for the European conference.

Feel free to sign up for the email list!

Venue

NYU Game Center in Brooklyn. KawaiiDragoness is host.

Address: 5 MetroTech Center, Brooklyn, NY 11201.

Dates

August 6-7, 2016

Code of Conduct

TBD, but expect it to be a lot like the Ada Intiative's template. Long story short, come as you are, don't harrass your fellow roguelike folks, and if you do You Will Want Your Possessions Identified.

Participants

Registration is not necessary, but it helps to know how many people will come. Put your details below with a note on when you're around. (See also the Presentations and Demonstrations section.)

Mark Johnson (Ultima Ratio Regum developer). I'll be in NY from late 5th to late 8th, possibly longer if a few meetings with people I'm trying to schedule around the same time come through.
Squirrel Eiserloh (Dallas-based game developer): 90% likely

Presentations and Demonstrations

Presenting a game, giving a developer talk, or interesting in doing something else? Put the details below! (Also please email Kawa: kawaii.dragoness@gmail.com)

Procedural Dialect Generation (Mark Johnson). An overview of the procedural dialect (and in turn, procedural speech) generation system in URR, and the billions of culturally- and religiously-influenced sentences that can be generated.
AI of Qud and Sproggiwood Engines (Brian Bucklew)
The Only Shadow That the Desert Knows (Jeremiah Reid) - presentation and/or demo tentative
Dijkstra Map Applications in Roguelikes (Brett Gildersleeve) - presentation tentative
Persistence of Memory (Adam Boyd) - presentation and/or demo tentative
Billiard Dungeon (Patrick Kenney) - presentation and/or demo tentative
Writing Better Code; ArtemisRL Demo (Thom Robertson)
TBD (Jason Grinblat)

NYC General Information

Getting In/Out of NYC

Your airport options are JFK, LGA (LaGuardia), and EWR (Newark).

EWR is probably the cheapest, but also requires the most effort in terms of transit to/from NYC, as it's actually in New Jersey. LGA has buses that will take you to fairly convenient subway lines (see the "Travel Within NYC" section), though it's also terribly crowded and just a very unpleasant place. JFK is honestly a gorgeous airport, but is also fairly large, and a little less convenient - the buses that go there go to less convenient subways, or you can take AirTrain, which costs more. Disregard the travel issues if you're planning to take cabs the whole time, though that adds up fast too.

For those of you not flying, Amtrak goes into Penn Station, and Greyhound stops at Port Authority Bus Terminal. There's also the super-cheap Chinatown buses and Megabus, if you're willing to take those risks.

Travel Within NYC

I don't recommend driving in NYC unless you're okay with a LOT of traffic and weird construction nonsense, plus very narrow roads and odd parking rules (or paying out the nose for parking garage space).

Subway/bus service is all through the MTA, which for all the complaining New Yorkers do is actually relatively reasonable: you can get basically anywhere for $2.75, plus a one time $1 fee for a card (and you can refill the card at any subway station). If you're staying for a while, the unlimited cards (7 or 30 day) can be worth it. MetroTech (the complex that contains NYU Game Center) is close to tons and tons of different stations (most notably Jay St Metrotech on the A/C/F/R, but also not far from Borough Hall on the 2/3/4/5). The MTA's own "Trip Planner Plus" is actually remarkably good at giving directions, as is Google Maps during weekdays (it's less reliable on weekends), but if you have any questions don't be afraid to ask.

Both Lyft and Uber are very common and reliable here, though prices are high relative to other places. All Lyft/Uber rides I've had are actually part of commercial liveries, so it's actually quite safe! There are also hailable cabs - yellow in Manhattan and green everywhere else - but Lyft/Uber are more reasonable in price. If you haven't used these services yet, consider using my discount codes.

The vast vast majority of New York is very walkable, especially in midsummer. Bring good shoes and sunscreen!

Accommodations

Every major hotel chain has an outpost in NYC or two. AirBNB is pretty common here too. As a native, this is something I (Kawa) know less about, so if anyone has suggestions or rooms to offer, feel free to add to this!

Mr David - Don't forget New Jersey as an alternative option, Try to get something near the Path Train which has stops in Jersey City Journal Sq and Newark. The Path Train runs to Manhattan and you can transfer to main subway transit to Brooklyn once in Manhattan