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 livestream.