The Festival scores a mention in September’s Wired Magazine.

When was the last time you played in public?

When you were a kid, with a jump rope or a piece of chalk or just your imagination? Or maybe you’ve heard something about city-sized games before. Maybe you stumbled across a website with a bunch of people dressed as Pac-man, a newspaper article about GPS tag in England, a photo of a giant Parcheesi piece-shaped balloon on a city street.

In the last few years, there has been an explosion of street play, from mixed-reality games that combine the virtual and real to big games that transform cities into gameboards to the time-honored traditions of stickball and scavenger hunts. Collectively, we call these big games or street games, games that transform public spaces, games that you play in the real-world.

Too often, street games are only discovered after they’ve finished. Come Out & Play is an opportunity for you to experience these games for yourselves.

Come Out & Play is a festival dedicated to street games. It is three days of play, talks, and celebration, all focused on street games.

What

The Come Out & Play Festival is a street games fesitval dedicated to exploring new styles of games and play.The festival will feature games from the creators of I love bees, PacManhattan, Conqwest, Big Urban Game and more.From massive multi-player walk-in events to scavenger hunts to public play performances, the festival will give players and the public the chance to take part in a variety of different games. Come rediscover the city around you through play.Why street games? Why a street games festival, you ask? Fair questions. Well, we like innovative use of public space. We like games which make people interact in new ways. We like games that alter your perception of your surroundings. But most importantly, we think games are great way to have fun.

When

The Come Out & Play Festival will run from September 22-24, 2006. Games will occur throughout the day in locations around the city. The full festival schedule will be made available in July

Interested in playing? Sign up for updates about the festival and schedule.

Where

The festival will be hosted by the Eyebeam Art & Technology Center. Festival headquarters will be located at Eyebeam at 540 W. 21st Street, New York, NY. Visit the headquarters for information and to see game updates.

Who

The Come Out & Play Festival won’t be possible without help from the growing community of people interested in street games. We’d love to have your help in making the festival a success. If you are interested in making the festival a come to life you can volunteer.

What are you waiting for?

COME OUT & PLAY!