Co-working? In my gaming community? It's more likely than you think!
Sheltered within the walls of an old bánh mì place in the heart of Collingwood, a small sect of gamemakers endeavoured to create a sanctuary for the creatives of Naarm (Melbourne). The result was Sabby - a self-proclaimed “gathering place for artists, game makers, crafters and zinesters”. Offering co-working hours, events of all kinds and, most of all, a loving community, Sabby has become synonymous with the Melbourne independent game making scene.
Founded in 2022 by makers Richard Adem, Maize Wallin and Kay-Lynn Cavanagh, Sabby offers free co-working and meeting spaces, zine workshops, showcases, and union organising for the community, all while hosting events such as Beyblade tournaments, makers markets, book clubs, movie nights, live performances, and private gatherings and parties. With a history of over 150 events under its belt, more than 200 days of free co-working and community assistance, and numerous Beyblades vanquished, it’s no wonder the space is such a staple to those in the know.
So what is Sabby, really? To Maize and Kay-Lynn, it’s “the future of the games industry”, and to those who spend their time there, it’s even more.
“Sabby offers this crucial space for game makers and artists to create and connect outside their commercial industries,” says member Duncan Corrigan who was working in the space when I visited.
Born of values such as shared success and sustainability it is an ever growing hub of experience exchange and the erasure of competitive attitudes within the industry - but those values are leading to a big change. Sabby is currently privately funded, and this simply does not reflect its’ core values anymore - it’s time for this home of the arts to go co-op.
By introducing a paid membership, Sabby is hoping to begin generating its own income, allowing for a major upgrade - new space, new events, new perks. But this decision comes at a cost - the lease on their current home is coming up, and if Sabby doesn’t have 100 pledged members by the 16th of August, they will be closing down.
“We’re creating the world we want to see,” says Kay-Lynn. “It’s a place where you can bring yourself as a whole person, not just parts of yourself.”
Lending hands to more than just games themselves, Sabby offers a Zine club run by Tegan Webb, who says “[Sabby] is adding to the wider Naarm arts ecosystem, and I couldn’t be prouder.”
Amongst numerous games that have come from the hallowed halls of Sabby’s coworking desks, Kay-Lynn and Maize belong to Weird Flex Studio, a game development company that Sabby has essentially built. Coming together on site for meetings and demos, their game Bee Major is a joyful love letter to Naarm, just like Sabby.
Fellow Weird Flex member Ben Koder said of Sabby “I cannot count how many doors have opened for me because of what Sabby provides, and through Sabby I can open doors for others too.”
From personal experience, both as a budding game developer in Naarm and as a general creative, just walking through the doors of Sabby brought me to such a level of calm that I could imagine myself working within the poster-covered walls of the co-working space, or curling up with a cup of warm tea in the cosy tech library and playing some retro games (and yes, I asked if they had heard of Snoopy’s Magic Show, my favourite GameBoy game that I have never played - If you don’t know what I’m talking about, check out our Instagram @sifterhq to see our This Week In Gaming History competition to find the greatest game of all time!)
I wish nothing but the best to our good friends Maize, Kay-Lynn and the rest of the team over at Sabby. If you’re eager to check them out, head over to 141 Victoria Parade, Collingwood, Victoria, and make sure to tune into their member drive event ‘Save Our Sabby’ on August 4th-8th in person and streamed on Youtube and Twitch.
