Students from the School of Computing and Creative Media (SCCM) at the University of Wollongong Malaysia (UOWM) recently achieved remarkable success at the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) Levelup KL SEA Game Awards 2024. On 2 October 2024, Team Scribble Squad, composed of six students, won the Best Student Game Award for their project Paper Pal. This accolade was awarded amidst fierce competition from student developers across Southeast Asia, including Singapore, Australia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia.

The winning team—Kenny Yeow Kai Jie, Chuan Wei Yin, Crystal Poon Hui Hua, Stefanus Hanson, Khairil Azmyr, and Sam Lee Chong Wei—celebrated their victory, marking another achievement after recently securing 1st Runner-Up at the Airasia Redgames Jam.

In addition to Paper Pal, UOW Malaysia’s Team Nocturnal was a finalist with their project Ghost Flower, highlighting the university’s commitment to cultivating talent in the game development sector.

In another achievement, in September 2024, alumni Justin Oon and Lim Jun Jie bagged RM5,000 for the best game in the MDEC SEA Game Jam 2024. The competition featured 17 teams, each tasked with developing a game in just 48 hours. The event brought together game developers from Malaysia, Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

These achievements not only demonstrate the passion and skill of UOW Malaysia’s students but also signal a bright future for the Malaysian gaming industry.

Paper Pal invites players on a delightful adventure as a paper doll in a kindergarten, tasked with finding a way back into a backpack atop a shelf while navigating a vibrant world filled with quirky sentient toys. The game is available to play for free at itch.io.