Parallels 2021 Hero Image

Parallels: The Freeplay 2021 Showcase

Parallels highlights some of the most unique, experimental, and personal independent games made in Australia and beyond.

For over 17 years, Freeplay has been exploring these vital margins of games culture, uncovering emerging and exceptional makers, from bedroom coders, to artists pushing at the boundaries of the artform. Join us as our speakers demonstrate and play their creations on stage, and share their origin stories, creative inspirations and intimate journeys.

Parallels 2021 will be streamed via YouTube and free to attend at 7PM on 7th October. 2021 Visual Identity by Cole Williams.

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Trailer

Lineup

A Long Goodbye

A Long Goodbye

Dana McKay (she/her)

A Long Goodbye is a short narrative game centered around two old friends who have to say their final goodbye over a phone conversation. Play through multiple times to explore new topics and learn more about the characters, their shared history, estrangement, and the things left unsaid.

Monomyth

Monomyth

Billy Dent (he/they)

Experience a tale as old as time: the Hero’s Journey, told as literally as possible! Monomyth is a relaxed and surreal walker that pokes light fun at Joseph Campbell’s universal story and the grand language used to describe it.

Blueberry

Blueberry

Mel Taylor (she/her), Mellow Games

Go on a journey through a woman’s mind from birth to death in this emotional story platformer. Climb the Tower of Life and gather the pieces of Blueberry’s shattered memories, find the missing ones and unravel the mystery of her trauma.

An Altogether Different River

An Altogether Different River

Aaron Lim (he/him)

An Altogether Different River is a tabletop storytelling and roleplaying game. You collaboratively create a fictional town and play out together how it changes through the lens of those who left and returned, and those who stayed throughout.

Soup Pot

Soup Pot

Gwendelyn Foster (she/he/they), Chikon Club

Cook freely with in the kitchen Soup Pot! Make food with a wide range of locally sourced or supermarket ingredients in traditional kitchens. Discover and learn about more than 100 recipes while streaming your cooking on Cookbook, the social media.

Where The Snow Settles

Where the Snow Settles

Alisha Stone (she/her), Myriad Games Studio

Where the Snow Settles is a game about loss, growth, and the supernatural. As the world around her crumbles, Aurelia searches for her sister, unraveling mysteries and wonder along the way.

Cult of the Lamb

Cult of the Lamb

Julian Wilton (he/him), Massive Monster

Start your own cult in a land of false prophets, venturing out into diverse and mysterious regions to build a loyal community of woodland worshippers and spread your Word to become the one true cult.

The Freeplay ZONE — The Capitol

Experience Parallels 2021 in the Freeplay ZONE, an online social space by Jae Stuart & Cecile Richard.
Parallels 2019 at The Capitol

Latest News

Meet 2018’s Programme Committee

Meet 2018’s Programme Committee

We have some sweet news to share with you really soon, but before we do we wanted to introduce you to our fantastic 2018 Programme Committee. Built up of creatives from intersecting disciplines, these lovely folks will help shape the series of talks and panels that will take place at Freeplay this year, ensuring the discussions and conversations are relevant to contemporary games culture discourse.

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Announcing 2018 Freeplay Awards & Festival Dates

Announcing 2018 Freeplay Awards & Festival Dates

A huge hello and welcome to 2018 from the Freeplay family! We have lots of exciting things to share with you this year. First on our list is the 2018 festival dates. We’re happy to announce that we have a six-day festival planned for this year, from May 22nd to May 27th. We’re also happy to announce that submissions for the 2018 Freeplay Awards are now open!

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Announcing the Freeplay 2018 Festival Team

Announcing the Freeplay 2018 Festival Team

Hello! We wanted to give you a quick update before ending 2017. After a completely sold out Parallels 2017 showcase during Melbourne International Games Week in October, Freeplay is now gearing up towards its 2018 festival, and we can’t wait to share all the exciting things we have planned!

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Memory Lane

creative victoria

Freeplay acknowledges the Wurundjeri & Boon Wurrung people of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Custodians of the Lands upon which the festival takes place.
We pay respect to their Elders past and present, and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the wider community and beyond.
Sovereignty was never ceded, and this always was and always will be Aboriginal land.