Young gamers enjoy Ace Invaders event

With live gaming competitions, prizes, interactive stands and activities, organiser Matthew Parker said that the event was about having fun and learning too – about both coding programming but also about being safe and secure online.

‘We have previously run Digital Ace, with online safety and empowerment events,’ he said.

‘But we wanted to shake things up this year and joined forces with Guernsey Gaming for Good, and the Guernsey E-Sports Association.’

Centre stage was a gaming tournament featuring favourites such as Mario Brothers, Rocket League and Super Smash Bros.

And a competition allowed children to have the chance to win a Nintendo Switch if they successfully filled up their ‘passport’ with stamps by engaging with the various stands at the event.

The Data Protection Authority was also on hand to reinforce the safety message.

‘We are big supporters of making sure children are safe online, ‘ said Rachel Masterton, deputy commissioner of the Office of the Data Protection Authority, whose stand was running a number of activities.

‘It is about getting that message across that we need positive engagement with tech. It is about keeping safe but not being afraid to engage.’

The local office of PwC was also present at the event, as an extension of the work it is doing in primary schools through the programme HiveHackers, setting participants coding challenges.

‘We do recognise a lot of the kids here today from the work we do in schools’ said digital learning manager, Ralf Meijer. ‘They get coding really quickly, especially the more they do it, as it’s really about logical thinking.’

Ansel Vidamour, aged 13, was one of those hoping to beat all-comers at Mario Cart.

‘My dad games, my brother games and I game,’ he said.

‘I’ve entered tournaments online before, but its fun to do it in one big place. It’s great to have people next to you when you are playing so you can chat and laugh with them – there were loads of shenanigans going on in that last race.’