gdc-2012
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SimCity 5 rumors building
Rumors are pointing to an official reveal for SimCity 5 at next week's Game Developers Conference (GDC), with a launch sometime in 2013.The rumor katamari began earlier this week when AllGamesBeta posted alleged concept art of the upcoming city planning program, then things really got rolling as Gamespot reported on a translation of a German magazine article that all but confirms next year's launch details.VG247 has also been gathering details from all over, noting the "Inside the GlassBox" talk at next week's GDC, which introduces the "Glassbox" engine as "next-generation technology that is built from the ground up to power the next entry in one of their most beloved franchises."The EA and Maxis event will be held next Tuesday, March 6.
The Daily Grind: What do you hope to hear from GDC 2012?
Well it's almost time for game convention silly season. First up is the Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco next week, followed by PAX East in April and E3 in June. A gaggle of Massively scribes are heading west in a few days to bring you the best (and the most grammatically correct) coverage of all the happenings at GDC. From preview sessions with The Secret World, DUST 514, and PlanetSide 2, to interviews with dev luminaries and glimpses of all that's new and shiny in the world of MMOs, there looks to be a lot of industry news coming your way next week. Today's Daily Grind is an easy one. Are you looking forward to GDC, and is there anything in particular that you hope to learn from this year's conference? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Bigpoint's A Game of Thrones MMO to debut at GDC 2012
Brace yourselves; GDC is coming. And with it comes the first ever public demonstration of Bigpoint's upcoming MMO title based on George R.R. Martin's hit fantasy series, A Game of Thrones. For the first time ever, players will be able to get a look at the world of Westeros brought to life in all its browser-based glory. Bigpoint CEO and founder Heiko Hubertz is understandably optimistic about the title, stating that the devs "intend to build a game that resonates intimately with its diehard community of followers, while also creating an authentic gaming experience that attracts newcomers to the franchise." So if you're heading to GDC 2012 and you want to take a look, just make a trip on over to Bigpoint's booth and see for yourself. What's that? You're not going to GDC this year? Well, then it's a good thing we're going for you! You can look for more info from our impressions coming later next week. Andremember: When you play the game of thrones, you win or you corpse run. [Source: Bigpoint press release]
Epic Games to privately showcase Unreal Engine 4 at GDC
Unreal Engine 3 is one of (if not the most) prolific gaming technologies in existence right now, powering everything from Mortal Kombat and Asura's Wrath to Gears of War 3 and Batman: Arkham City. If you're one of the many developers that depend on Epic's engine, the upcoming 2012 Game Developers Conference may be your first chance to see the next generation of Unreal Engine in action.Epic will be showcasing Unreal Engine 4 to "select licensees, partners and prospective customers" behind closed doors at the conference; demonstrations will be given by appointment only, and all who attend must sign what we can only assume is the most air-tight, all-encompassing non-disclosure agreement ever written. For instance, developers allowed into Epic's demonstration area may not smuggle air out of the demonstration area inside of their lungs and then transfer that air to the lungs of another living person, under pain of chainsaw death. It's pretty serious stuff, but it's probably worth it to see some totally sweet tech demos.
Next Metal Gear Solid targeted for 'high-end consoles' and PC
Joystiq can exclusively reveal that the next Metal Gear Solid will feature intense zero-gravity chess, cybernetic nano-crocodiles, mirror universe machinations and a trash-compactor escape scene that will serve both as Star Wars homage and finger-wagging sermon on humanity's crushing impact on the environment. Well, provided the Joystiq staff are hired to work on the game.Kojima Productions has unveiled an extensive list of available jobs, hinged on evolving the in-development Fox Engine and, more importantly, bringing the next game in the Byzantine franchise to life. According to the page introduction, Hideo Kojima and co. are on the hunt for engineers, artists, designers and a brand manager to handle "the latest Metal Gear Solid targeted for high-end consoles and PC."If you think you can bolster the Fox Engine with new rendering tech, create "fantastic game content," or cultivate MGS "as a global mega-hit franchise in all regions," you should swing by the Game Developers Conference Career Pavilion between March 6 and March 9 and make yourself known.We might nudge you out of the way as we deliver our own game concept, which we're tentatively calling "Metal 6ear Solid: Sublimation Synthesis." Don't you just love the sound of that, Kojima?
Study: Just over half of Japanese developers turn a profit
The last couple of years have been tough on Japanese game developers, according to a recently released study (PDF). The study, compiled by one Mirko Ernkvist, used consolidated financial data and revealed that just over half of Japanese developers actually manage to turn a profit. Specifically, in the last reported fiscal year for Japanese developers, 54.8 percent of companies reported a positive profit.Obviously, that means that nearly half of developers either broke even or saw a financial loss. The study attributes these issues to a decrease in both domestic and international demand, increasing production costs and other factors like a strong Japanese Yen and "unfavorable demographic development in Japan and the challenging development of domestic consumption."The data collected refers mostly to larger, publicly held companies, while financial data regarding smaller studios is harder to come by. Still, the study paints something of a bleak picture. With several Japan-focused panels planned for GDC next month -- notably a panel with Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune -- you can bet we'll be hearing plenty about how Japanese developers plan to reinvigorate their industry.
Super Mario 3D Land, Resident Evil Revelations talks at GDC
Super Mario 3D Land director Koichi Hayashida will present a postmortem talk at GDC entitled "Thinking in 3D: The Development of Super Mario 3D Land." Attendees will be required to cross a pit of moving blocks while being chased by evil purple versions of themselves in order to attend.Or, what will actually happen is that Hayashida will discuss developing for 3D devices, and "share development philosophies learned from Mario creator and legendary Nintendo designer, Shigeru Miyamoto."Another 3DS-centric talk is "Revealing the Truth About Resident Evil Revelations," presented by producer Masachika Kawata. And Cave COO Mikio Watanabe will discuss "Retro and Japanese Social Games on Smartphones," bringing attention to the company's recent endeavors in porting crazy shmups to iOS.
GANG announces nominations for 10th annual awards in game audio
The Game Audio Network Guild (which translates to the convenient acronym of GANG) has announced its nominees for the 10th annual GANG Awards to be held at GDC, honoring the best music and audio in interactive entertainment over the last year. You can see all of the nominees in the press release after the break. As you might imagine, Battlefield 3, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, and Portal 2 are all nominated, all of which boasted very excellent and memorable aural experiences.Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, however, leads the pack in nominations, with nine total, including Audio, Music, and Sound Design of the Year. Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary also got a nod for Best Soundtrack Album, despite the fact that most of the music is as old as the awards ceremony itself. And while most of the choices are obviously worthy, there's one more worth mentioning: Bastion was only nominated for one category, for Best Audio in a Casual/Indie/Social Game. Shame that it's relegated to just that category -- <a aiotitle="Build that Wall" "="" data-cke-saved-href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8cELTdtw6U" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8cELTdtw6U">"Build that Wall"</a> is one of the best listens our ears have had all year, video game-related or otherwise.
Classic game postmortems return to GDC
Last year, for the 25th anniversary of the show, GDC featured a series of "Classic Game Postmortems" on games like Pac-Man, Prince of Persia, Another World, and Marble Madness. These new looks at old games proved so popular that the show is bringing them back for the crucial 26th anniversary event.This year's set of classic games to go under the microscope includes Alone in the Dark (with designer Frederick Raynal), Fallout (with designer Tim Cain), Gauntlet (with creator Ed Logg) and Harvest Moon (with producer and former Marvelous CEO Yasuhiro Wada). Forget about all those new games! This is why we really go to conferences.
IGF 2012 Audience Award voting now open
Despite being into awards shows before they were cool, we're hoping you're not above voting for this year's Independent Game Festival "Audience Award." Voting has just kicked off for 2012's entrants, which comprise all finalist games across all IGF 2012 categories (yes, the list once again includes Fez).Should you choose to cast your favor towards any particular game, you'll want to head to this particularly yellow form and fill things out before February 19. Once you've done as much, we're told a verification email will come through to make sure you're not an evil robot. If you are, in fact, not an evil robot, things should go swimmingly.
See Indie Game: The Movie, listen to filmmakers at GDC
Unless you were at Sundance or are Jonathan Blow, you're probably still waiting for a chance to see Indie Game: The Movie. Your next potential opportunity will be at GDC, where it's accompanied by a panel discussion featuring all the involved game developers, and filmmakers Lisanne Pajot and James Swirsky.The screening will be free to all GDC pass holders, and will occur March 5 at 6PM. This information is, once again, redundant for those of you who are Jonathan Blow. Sorry, Jonathan! We have lots of other posts that should be of more use to you.
Devolver Digital open to indie pitches at GDC, set appointments now
Serious Sam publisher Devolver Digital will hear indie pitches as part of its "Pitch Fork Parker Project" at this year's Game Developers Conference. The project is a continuation of the successful Serious Sam Indie Series, in which Devolver Digital and Croteam produced Serious Sam "indie titles" with developers Vlambeer, Mommy's Best Games and Be-Rad Entertainment.Devolver will provide "completion funds and a publishing deal" to the three best game prototypes, demos or pitches it's presented. Indies interested in getting in front of the execs should email "pitchfork@devolverdigital.com" with details on their team and project to set up a meeting.
Sid Meier, Keiji Inafune and Riot Games folks added to GDC seminar list
Sad your favorite game designer isn't getting his or her deserved time in the spotlight? Well dry those eyes, friend! It's gonna be hard to hold onto that grudge because today industry legends Sid Meier and Keiji Inafune have both been added to the GDC talk docket, as well as League of Legends proprietors, Riot Games. But hey, if you're not going to GDC, feel free to keep crying while you read the rest of this post.Meier's talk, entitled "Interesting Decisions," will revolve around his viewpoint of gameplay as "a series of interesting decisions" and how developers can recognize and add these kinds of decisions, ultimately providing the player with a more fulfilling experience. Maybe he'll also talk a bit how that philosophy will play into XCOM: Enemy Unknown?Inafune will aim to analyze the current state of the Japanese game industry in his sixty-minute talk, "The Future of Japanese Games." Along with his unnamed cohorts, he'll delve into the current problems facing the region and analyze the past success of Japanese game development. We imagine he'll also probably suffer through a lot of questions about Mega Man.Finally, Riot Games offers a postmortem on its successful Dominion expansion for its runaway hit, League of Legends. Lead producer Travis George will offer insight into the expansion's genesis, all the way through production and launch.
Cliff Bleszinski to host GDC Awards, Schatz returns for IGF Awards
Planning to attend GDC? If you are, you'll get to see everyone's favorite design director of Epic Games, Cliff Bleszinski, host the 12th annual Game Developers Choice Awards, replacing Double Fine's Tim Schafer as host. The Independent Games Festival Awards is kicking it old-school with 2007-2009's host, Andy Schatz of Monaco, winner of the Seumas McNally Grand Prize and Excellence in Design awards in 2010's IGF. Peruse the list of finalists for both award shows right here, and look for winners to be announced March 7 from GDC.
The IGF 2012 Student Showcase finalists are ...
We've got the final list of IGF Student Showcase finalists: The Bridge (Case Western Reserve University) Dust (Art Institute of Phoenix) The Floor Is Jelly (Kansas City Art Institute) Nous (DigiPen Institute of Technology) One and One Story (Liceo Scientifico G.B. Morgagni) Pixi (DigiPen Institute of Technology - Singapore) The Snowfield (Singapore-MIT GAMBIT Game Lab) Way (Carnegie Mellon University, Entertainment Technology Center) Of the nearly 300 entrants, these eight were selected to move on to the final stage of the Independent Games Festival. Each receive a cash prize of $500, simply for being selected as finalists. They'll be playable on the show floor at this year's Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco, where one will win the top prize of $3,000.
IGF 2012 entrants have a crack at winning the first ever 'XBLA Prize'
Independent Games Festival entrants aren't just charming, attractive, and creative -- they're also potential XBLA developers. At least they are now, after today's announcement of the first "XBLA Prize" by Microsoft and Game Developers Conference administrators UBM, which gives IGF entrants a crack at being fast-tracked on Xbox Live Arcade for publishing by Microsoft. According to the prize sponsors, a "standalone jury of independent game creators" will apparently collaborate with Microsoft to "identify a shortlist" -- a list which will then be considered for the XBLA prize. If the winner so chooses, his/her project will then be offered funding for development across Xbox 360, Windows Phone 7, and Windows, as well as given the opportunity to employ Microsoft's bevy of testing, marketing, and usability support. Alongside today's prize announcement, Microsoft head of first-party publishing Ted Woolsey also revealed that Microsoft invests upward of $20 million annually on XBLA titles, and offered support for the multi-year partnership with the IGF. "The independent development scene wouldn't be nearly as robust as it is today without the exposure provided by the IGF. We look forward to working with the IGF and having a window into to the huge array of independent games that are submitted every year so that we can continue to find the best games to share with our customers."
GDC Play offers paid exhibition space to indies at GDC Online and 2012
GDC Play, a new program to showcase emerging independent developers and their games, will debut at GDC Online 2011, which runs October 10-13 in Austin. The initiatve will have its own pavilion "in the heart of the show room floor" on October 11 and 12. Exhibitors in this pavilion will be given a monitor, keyboard, speakers and power (personal generators not necessary) to showcase their games -- for a $2,850 fee. Internet access costs $150 more. GDC Play will also be featured at GDC 2012 in San Francisco March 5-9 with an expanded pavilion to showcase mobile, social and independent games, for a $3,000 participation fee. For larger publishers who wish to be involved in Play, GDC 2012 will offer special packages, such as the "Networking Lounge (Exclusive)" for $15,000 and the "VIP Reception" for $30,000. To sign up your indie baby for GDC Play, contact the appropriate sales representative under the GDC Online 2011 or GDC 2012 headings, fill out a fancy Request for Proposal form, and then have a bake sale fundraiser (or twenty).
GDC 2011 reaches record attendance, GDC 2012 scheduled
Wondering exactly how many people you need to be supremely jealous of, thanks to the fact that they got to hang out with and generally become best buds with Eric Chahi, Clint Hocking, Peter Molyneux and other gaming inudstry legends at GDC 2011? According to the event's official blog, this year's conference was attended by a record 19,000 gaming professionals, who attended over 450 lectures, tutorials, keynotes and friendship bracelet craft circles. Want to help add to that number next year? Well, check your calendars -- the Game Developers Conference is going to roll back into San Francisco like a brisk wind March 5 - 9, 2012.
GDC returns March 5-9, 2012
Not that anyone was expecting it not to return, but now it's officially official: GDC 2012 will open its doors on March 5, 2012. The news was announced unceremoniously on the back of GDC 2011 attendees schedule pamphlets, as seen above. In case you've been covered in teddy bears and unable to move for the past week, all of Joystiq's GDC 2011 coverage is right here. And if you've got a bunch of extra teddy bears now as a result, can we have some?
