Visitors to Toronto’s Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) got early access to the future of gaming at the beloved annual event’s opening day.

Brock University’s Interactive Arts and Science (IASC) and GAME Design graduates took over CNE’s Gaming Garage, an innovation hub of all things tech and gaming, on Friday, Aug. 15.

The Gaming Garage invites CNE visitors to share their passion for video games and play games from developers, indie game creators and aspiring game design students.

Brock graduate Sava Beric (BA ’23), co-founder of Fenyx Digital alongside graduate Ahamed Inhaam (BSc ’24), showcased their very first release, Lotus: Lost Memories.

Beric described the game as a two-dimensional pixel art visual novel blended with turn-based combat, offering players a mix of story-driven emotion and strategic gameplay.

Seeing the public playing their game for the first time was a game-changing experience for the duo.

“Not only was the exposure as a CNE exhibitor beneficial, but a lot of value came from watching the players experience our game. You see how different people approach challenges, what makes them smile, and where they might get stuck,” Beric said.

He added that feedback from players not only helped his team refine their game but helped shape how they think about future projects.

“Sometimes players will play in ways you never even imagined during development,” he said.

Beric credited Brock’s GAME program with giving students the technical skills to produce games as well as a realistic taste of what it’s like to operate an indie game studio.

“Our capstone projects felt like a miniature version of the real industry; it even put us in situations where we had to present our work publicly, which made stepping into the CNE far less intimidating and helped us avoiding the pitfalls that trip up new studios because we had already gone through the motions,” he said.

In addition to Fenyx Digital, other Brock exhibitors included Adam Henderson (BA ’20) and Agusia Krzywinska (BSc ’20), the creative minds behind Adjective Noun Studios, and industry professionals Ericka Evans and Dave Evans, award-winning local game developers and creators of The Vale.

Two GAME Design graduate teams also showcased their games Green Thing from the Planet Jupiter and Unnatural Selection.

Digital Humanities Associate Professor Alexander Christie said any experiences for recent graduates to connect their project-based work to public audiences is impactful.

“The sheer number and diversity of attendees at the CNE made the day extra special. No two people will play a game in the same way or ask the same questions about our programs,” he said.

For Christie, the best part of the day was seeing families and children “having a blast” while playing Brock graduates’ award-winning games.

“When our graduates take their work to public and we see the big smiles, that’s when we know we have a hit.”