Organizing an International Urban Games Festival as part of the European Capital of Culture? Challenge accepted! But let’s start from the beginning…

The European Capital of Culture (ECoC) is a title awarded each year to one or two European cities, but in 2024, three cities were chosen: Tartu (Estonia), Bad Ischl (Austria), and Bodø (Norway). We had the opportunity to collaborate with the city of Tartu, which thrilled us, as it is an academic city with an interesting location, unique architecture, and a rich history. The Interspaces Festival was a project that took us to Estonia three times – in June 2023 and September 2024. Additionally, thanks to the hospitality of the Tartu 2024 Foundation, Zosia and Joanna participated in the accompanying events of the ECoC opening, including those at the Estonian National Museum – it was truly a beautiful experience!

Through an open call, many game creators applied to collaborate, not only from Europe but also from the USA and East Asia. Ultimately, we invited 10 teams and 16 creators to co-create the festival. Over the three-day event, participants had the chance to play 15 different games! The atmosphere was colorful, loud, sometimes serious, sometimes scary – in short, highly diverse. We got to witness some of the best urban game designers in action; many of them we had met at various events we attended over the years. Some we had previously encountered while organizing the Fusion Festival or during our own Łódź-based Raban festival, and we were impressed by their growth and endless creativity. Even more exciting was the fact that we attracted new participants from outside our familiar network who were eager to collaborate and expand their game-related connections.

The Interspaces Festival was attended by over 250 people, with some players returning repeatedly to participate in multiple games. We were especially delighted that many players stayed behind after their sessions just to chat with us, share their impressions, and give feedback. This energized us and reinforced our belief that what we do truly matters.

Bonus Round – A week before the main festival, we organized two special games designed exclusively for the Polish community living in Tartu. One of these games was aimed at younger players, but based on feedback, everyone—regardless of age—found something enjoyable in it. The second game targeted an older audience and focused on urban exploration with a supernatural twist… ghosts were involved! Everything seemed to work in our favor when organizing this event – from the beautiful Estonian autumn weather to the amazing people. A huge shoutout to Marcin, whose help, enthusiasm, and dedication (also during the main festival) were absolutely off the charts!

In summary – Of course, not everything went according to plan, but with experience, the chaos factor decreased. We managed to eat nutritious breakfasts, and we even had time for sightseeing! Despite our exhaustion, we left Estonia with the feeling that this was time well spent. Once again, this festival demonstrated the huge potential of urban games, how they engage and immerse people of all backgrounds, and how they truly bring together individuals from different communities and cultures. When we create games, we are also creating relationships and networks of connections that are strong – some of them have been in place for over a decade. One of the designers even remarked that Department of Games is one of the oldest teams in Europe (sic!) that still actively creates urban games under the same name.

At this point, we want to express our deep gratitude to everyone who was there with us, stayed in touch remotely, worked behind the scenes, or rescued us from unexpected challenges – this wouldn’t have been possible without you! 😉 Thanks for everything so far – we hope the best is yet to come!