The Indie Game Magazine February 2015 | Issue 46 | Page 10

INTERVIEW

Boston Festival of Indie Games: Interview with
Dan Silvers and Aerjen Tamminga by Vinny Parisi

T

he Boston Festival of Indie Games takes place once per
year. The event is designed to showcase the upcoming projects in development coming out of the New
England and neighboring areas, creating an inclusive environment that intends to celebrate and honor hardworking
indie developers that wish to share their games with an eager audience. With each passing year, the FIG changes and
adapts to the current development climate. The most recent
event, which was held in September, was a major hit with
the community.
Shortly before the event took place, I got the chance to chat

Indie Game Magazine: Are there any significant changes to the
Festival this year as opposed to previous years?

with show runners Dan Silvers and Aerjen Tamminga. Silvers
is the founder of, and a game designer at, Lantana Games,
while Tamminga recently released his successfully crowdfunded card game, Pleasant Dreams. The reason I decided to
publish this interview now, despite the Festival having taken
place in September, is because we’re smack between a lot of
major indie events this month. With PAX South and the Global
Game Jam wrapping up just last week, and PAX East looming
on the horizon, it’s the perfect time to discuss indie-centric
events. With that in mind, I learned all about the duo’s plans
for future Festivals, as well as what makes indie conventions
such an important part of the industry.

Dan Silvers: The biggest change this year is that we are charging
for tickets, but we wanted to make sure that those tickets were
still very affordable. It’s $10 for a single ticket, or multiple tickets
for $7.50 apiece, and kids still get in free. Other changes come
from the cuts we’ve made, either due to space, time, money, or
how committed we felt to a feature. We knew early on that we
wanted to focus on the core strengths of the show: The games
and the education. While it’s bittersweet to see some of the old
features go, the additions and adjustments this year are making
for a stronger show overall.
Aerjen Tamminga: One of the unexpected advantages is that this
year we’ve been able to secure space for tabletop and digital in
the same building, so it’s easier to check out both the show floors.
IGM: The website mentions that “the festival seeks to support and

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