How the A Maze Festival in Johannesburg showcased Africa’s indie game scene

Today is the last day of the A Maze festival in Johannesburg, a celebration of the international indie developer scene along with games by homegrown designers from all over Africa. This year is its sixth year, and it ran from September 13 to September 17.

Thorsten Wiedemann started A Maze in Berlin in 2008. The name is a riff on the words “amazing” and “labyrinth,” a combination that’s meant to be playful. His path to indie games has been an unorthodox one. The occupations he’s had include: ski jumper, programmer, radio show host, bartender, talk show host — and others. Last year, he spent 48 hours inside a virtual reality world as part of an art performance called Disconnected.