Winner announced for the ACMI + RMIT Games Prize

Chloe Kilroy has won the 2022-23 ACMI + RMIT Games Prize for on her work on Bell’s Beach, a “silly exploration platformer where fishing is taken to its illogical extreme.”

We spoke to Chloe about the inspiration for the game, how it feels to have won this award and what she’s been up to since graduating from the Bachelor of Design (Games) last year.

Congratulations Chloe! How does it feel to have won the ACMI + RMIT Games Prize?

My ten-year-old self is incredibly proud of me, never would have thought the drawings in my textbooks would have evolved into something more than scribbles. It feels amazing, feels like validation that I am indeed trying my best. But most importantly, my Mum is proud of me, so what more could I say.

You’re looking to use the prize to develop a new project. What’s the project and how will the prize help you in your pursuit?

'The Wine Mums' and I are currently working on an absurdist comedy-adventure game called 'Weird House'. It's a 'not quite right' coming of age story portrayed by a queer Australian University student.

Weird House centres around the idea of unapologetically taking control of your life, regardless of how others perceive you. Sometimes you just gotta take control of your own fate and stand up to corrupted power, even when you're stuck in a strange world surrounded by idiosyncratic creatures. You know… Normal stuff.

The ACMI + RMIT games prize is supporting us in getting the ball rolling. Our goals of developing an awesome prototype are now a lot more obtainable. I cannot put into words how thankful I am for the support with our endeavours. I’m incredibly excited, ready to rumble!

What was the inspiration for Bell’s Beach?

I wouldn't say Bell's Beach was a game driven by one source of inspiration, but a mashup of shared nostalgic moments the team and I shared throughout our childhoods. There's something there from everyone who's worked on it, it's a love letter to those Australian summers spent at our grandparents’, or the nearest coastal town. Together, our inspirations come into the final product we have today. We hope you find it as classically and also concurrently Australian as we do.

The opening screen of the game Bell's Beach, with the title in front of the main playable character holding a fishing rod.

'Bell’s Beach’ is an exploration platformer game that takes the player through a vibrant coastal town, where they can chat with eccentric locals and search for fishing spots.

What was your role in the Bell’s Beach group project?

I was responsible for Art Direction, 3D Character Art, UI Art and Concept art for the project Bell's Beach. Creating art under 'working titles' has always been strange for me; from a more personal approach, I was the team's general artist.

I dipped my toes into many different sectors, but decided to push myself out of my comfort zone of 2D art and create 3D characters. It was terrifying, but the team were all there to hold my hand through it. Big thanks to them for giving me incredible amounts of creative freedom and encouraging my brainworms.

How would you describe your time at RMIT? Do you think your degree has helped prepare you for work in the games industry?

My cohort and I were COVID babies, so our time at RMIT wasn't considered 'typical'. Despite this, the RMIT Games Design staff worked tirelessly to give us a killer education. I would like to thank them for not only preparing us to work in the games industry, but for also encouraging us to create work we are genuinely passionate about. Having people support your crazy rambles about featherless owls in space is a great feeling, I miss it dearly.

What are you up to now since graduating?

Since graduating, I’ve had my head stuck in my personal work; developing Weird House and exploring my own artistic identity with the confidence I've gained over the course of my time at RMIT. It feels good to be actively working on something I've dreamed of doing, now that I've got the toolset for it. 

Bell’s Beach was created in created in collaboration with Billy Dent, Zac Vincent, Riley Baker, Tan Jin Feng, and Will Mitchell, with music composed by Oscar Jenkins and Julian Smith-Gard.

Find out more about the ACMI + RMIT Games Prize and previous recipients.

RMIT is Major Research Partner of ACMI, Australia’s national museum of screen culture.

06 July 2023

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06 July 2023

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Winner announced for the ACMI + RMIT Games Prize