[GAMBIT-UROPS-summon] [Gambit-games] Friday Games at GAMBIT: Lockpicking Workshop

[Clara Fernandez]

This Friday Games will help you level up your lockpicking skills in real
life. Schuyler Towne will talk about the basics of how locks work, how they
can inspire game mechanics, and why most lockpicking puzzles in videogames
are not very good. For those of us who love puzzles, this is a great chance
to learn how actual lock and key puzzles work!

The long description of the workshop:

"Locks are ubiquitous and all but invisible to the average person. Few ever
notice them except for when they fail, and fewer still take the time to
learn how they work and why they work the way they do. In this 3 hour
workshop Schuyler will explain myriad locking concepts in use around the
world. From Pin Tumbler and Wafer locks to Lever and Disc Detainers.

With each new locking concept we'll explain their basic function, then do a
vulnerability assessment to figure out how we could open them. Each new
lock you come across is a closed system, but there are a number of ways you
can cleverly poke or prod at them to establish what's inside, then use that
information to dig deeper, relying on past experiences and new information
to determine the best method of attack. We'll discuss how vulnerability
assessment can be used as a game mechanic, and, on a much more specific
note, how much I dislike most representations of lockpicking in video
games."

Schuyler Towne toes a strict ethical line when it comes to lockpicking, but
lives a rich fantasy life where he is a lockpicking rogue stealing from the
mansions of rich Italians and giving their valuables to the poor. By day he
is a socialite who often helps the local constable solve crimes, but by
night he is the man who robs the robber barons! This is all much more
glamorous than reality, where Schuyler spends most of his days getting
giddy about 19th century lock patents and annoying his friends by fondling
their keys.

Come join us at 4pm in the lounge and join us in this workshop.If your
can't make it, you can watch our <a href="http://gambit.mit.edu/live
">livestream</a>.




-- 
Clara Fernández-Vara, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Researcher
Singapore-MIT GAMBIT Game Lab

77 Massachusetts Ave
Bldng NE25 Room 379
Cambridge, MA 02139
Office: (+01) 617-324-9115

Twitter: clarafv
http://gambit.mit.edu
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