BitCrush is back at EKC Canterbury College

BitCrush is an annual social action and fundraising event run by the Music, Media and Performing Arts department at EKC Canterbury College.

The Music, Media, and Performing Arts departments are thrilled to host BitCrush, an exciting event open to both staff and students. Running from December 3 to December 5 in The Street, the event celebrates the students’ hard work while raising money for charity.

Attendees can enjoy live performances by our talented Music students while exploring a variety of unique stalls. These feature student-designed pin badges, retro gaming consoles, and action figures – perfect for finding a Christmas gift for the gaming enthusiast in your life!

The event also includes the BitCrush Arcade, where games created by Level 3 Games Design students will be available to play. Festival attendees are encouraged to try out these innovative creations by the designers of the future and share their feedback on gameplay.

Oliver Nelson Level 3 Game Design student and the technical programmer for ‘Time Flight’ told us: “Our game has been developed over 12 weeks; it’s an action flight stimulator. One person plays the pilot and the other plays the gunner, we drew inspiration from films like Top Gun.

“This is the first time our game will be played outside the classroom. I am really looking forward to it and being able to get feedback from the players.”

Dice and Destiny, a local games store, were in attendance today bringing along popular board games for students to play. There was a tense tournament of ButtChess, a game designed by local games designers Ralbru Games, in which students battled to beat their opponents.

Level 3 Games Design and Animation students helped Dice and Destiny to set up and teach the games to other students attending the Festival. Alto Dawkins was one of these helpers, they enjoyed playing the game Stomp the Plank.

Alto told us “I heard about BitCrush from a friend before I started at the College so I was really looking forward to being involved this year. It’s such a nice way to meet new people with the same interests and meet students from across the campus.

“I’m really looking forward to playing the games created by other students over the next few days. Hopefully next year I’ll have game ready to be played!”

The event raises money for Demelza; a charity which offers support to young people with serious and life-limiting health conditions, and their families. Since the event was first hosted in 2014, students have raised £28,117.68 for Demelza. That includes a whopping £3110.79 last year, collected across three days!

Make sure you don’t miss this incredible annual event showcasing the talented students across our College whilst raising money for an incredible cause.

UPDATE: This year we raised £3235.75 for Demelza over the three days of BitCrush! Congratulations to all those involved. What an incredible amount for a very worthy cause.

Do you want to be involved in next year’s BitCrush Festival? Explore our Media courses now.