Media Production study program, Vocational Education Program, Universitas Indonesia (UI) in collaboration with Extra Life Entertainment, which is one of Indonesia’s game developers, participated in the Level Up KL 2023 event at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center (KLCC), on 27th-29th of September 2023 Then. This annual event organized by the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) aims to unite local and international game developers in the Southeast Asia region. Level Up KL also provides a platform for players in the gaming industry to interact, learn, and share knowledge, as well as bringing business, technical insights, and future gaming industry trends from highly competent practitioners.
Head of the Media Production Study Program, Ngurah Rangga Wiwesa, M.I.Kom., said that Extra Life Entertainment is one of the Media Production cooperation partners in gaming entities. “Level Up KL is a prestigious annual event in the gaming world which will continue to be participated in by Media Production with Extra Life Entertainment. We jointly developed the game entity at Media Production and Universitas Indonesia. This event is also an opportunity for Media Production to go global and students to gain experience at international events,” said Rangga.
One of the UI Media Production study program students, Rifki Raditya Dewangga, was a delegate from UI and Extra Life Entertainment to attend this prestigious event. He had the opportunity to meet various stakeholders in the gaming industry and become a stand guide at the One Last Journey game booth as part of the exhibition. Rifki also had the opportunity to try various games at the exhibition. According to him, this provided a lot of insight regarding games that are being designed by game developers today.
Currently, Rifki is doing an internship through the Merdeka Belajar Kampus Merdeka (MBKM) program as a Game Designer at Extra Life Entertainment. On this occasion, Rifki was accompanied by Duray Philip Rompas, M.T., Co-Founder and Game Designer of Extra Life Entertainment, who is also a lecturer in the Media Production study program. “I create game designs, starting from the map, the mechanics in the game, the characters, to the user interface that players can see later. I will create all of these things based on the story ideas that have been determined, as well as our ability as a team in working on projects to make things easier for game artists and game programmers. The project currently being worked on is making a game that will tell the background of the emergence of the Reog Ponorogo culture using a pixel game model,” said Rifki.
He further said that this internship activity provided many opportunities for him to see the gaming industry in Indonesia as well as providing the fastest possible access to reach the gaming industry more widely. He also hopes that this internship can increase his hard skills and help him create game products that are not just played, but also have commercial value in the industry.
Director of the UI Vocational Education Program, Padang Wicaksono, S.E., Ph.D, welcomed the opportunity given by Extra Life Entertainment as a UI Vocational collaboration partner to invite students to this international level event. “This proves that the curriculum built by the UI Vocational program by prioritizing practical skills and making internships an obligation for students has proven successful. The collaboration with various partners at national and international levels is able to bring students to learn and compete globally,” said Padang.
