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GDC08: Spend some quality time with Fez's developers
At the Independent Games Festival Awards, Fez took the award for excellence in art. Now, here's an opportunity to hear the developers chat anxiously about their game, prior to the awards show. Mahalo Daily and Veronica Belmont spoke to members of the art collective Kokoromi about their innovative platformer. Check out the video above for development details, and Kokoromi's explanation of why Fez pulls off 2D/3D better than Super Paper Mario.
GDC08: Convention Associates get their Brawl on
When I had my Brawl play session, I didn't go to Nintendo's booth. I went to an after-hours tournament for GDC volunteers, organized by my friend (and Wii Fanboy alum!) Nathan Mallory. Not only did I get to play Brawl for the first time on a huge screen, I got to see an exclusive, little-known piece of GDC culture. I brought the Mahalo Daily video crew along to document the event and get interviews with some of the Community Associates. The video's up on Joystiq now. If you don't mind seeing the final Japanese game (and therefore possible character spoilers) go check it out!
GDC08: Imported Rock Band music possible in sequels
I was totally there and listening to the talk, but somehow I missed this: Harmonix's Chris Foster mentioned that while the technology used in Phase to generate gameplay from the music on the player's iPod currently won't work for Rock Band (because the Phase tech can only generate a single gameplay track for the song, and not one per instrument), Harmonix is looking into the possibility of procedural generation in the game.There was no information on when, and no details (probably because the details don't exist) but Foster said that feature would be implemented in a Rock Band sequel if they can get it to work. So, uh, Rock Band sequel confirmed?
GDC08: Extended Mario Kart trailer, remixed music
Remember that Mario Kart Wii trailer we posted just two days ago? Well, shift-delete that footage from your memory and replace it with this extended promotional video which debuted at the Game Developers Conference. Not only is this clip twice as long as the previous one we featured, but it has a remixed version of the old Mario Circuit music as its audio track instead of some guy who sounds like Jerry Seinfeld yelling in the background.We can totally get behind this song! It sounds like something out of Bust a Groove!%Gallery-4772%
GDC08: EA joins the user-generated bandwagon with 'The Sims Carnival'
GDC08 may have officially come to a close, but there's still plenty of news from the past week to catch up on. Lost in the mire of developer rants and ridiculously long lines was EA's announcement of The Sims Carnival, a "YouTube-style" site where users can create their own Sims-themed games, and play and rate those of their peers.By all appearances, Sims Carnival is just one more user-generated game portal, following suspiciously close to Microsoft's announcement of the XNA Community Games. What may set Carnival apart, however, is the involvement of Rod Humble, last seen wowing audiences with his minimalistic art game The Marriage. Still, examples games shown include your standard Space Invaders clones, and other simple titles which could very well turn Carnival into another dumping ground for mediocrity (albeit with the occasional low-fi breakthrough). The program is currently in a closed beta, but users can sign up via the website. We're anxiously waiting to be proven wrong on this, so go forth and create.
Overheard@GDC: Defragging the seats
The pink-shirted volunteers made GDC run smoothly, helping answer questions and usher people to the right sessions. Ten minutes before Peter Molyneaux's scheduled speaking time, attendees filled into the room. Conference-goers often left spaces between cootie-carrying strangers, but this pattern didn't bother a veteran volunteer. He shrugged to another helper, saying, "We really aren't defragging [yet]."
GDC08: Watch highlights of (the first half of) the Developers Rant
While you're reading our thorough coverage of the Game Developer's Rant (trust us, it's worth it), be sure to check out video highlights from the session courtesy of Mahalo Daily. Unfortunately we only have the first half of the session on film, so you're going to have to read the rest. (Warning: video NSFW)%Gallery-16726%
GDC08: Six things to take from Game Developers Rant
It has been one year since Chris Hecker made the headline-catching Duct Tape comment at the Developer's Rant. At GDC this year we were waiting with great anticipation for what other nuggets would come this year. Interested in vulgarity, balloons, excessive drinking and French literature? How about poignant discourse and hope? Keep reading for both!%Gallery-16726%
GDC08: Six things to take from Game Developers Rant: Balloons!
2. Balloons! Jonathan Mak (Everyday Shooter) has had a lot of memorable moments at GDC. During last year's IGF Awards, Mak gave the most memorable and atypical acceptance speeches. For this year's Game Developer's Rant, he decided not to give a speech at all. Instead, when Eric Zimmerman announced him, Mak asked everyone to stand up. Just then, a few helpers ran to the front of the stage with black garbage bags. In seconds, the room was filling up with balloons. The entire crowd was bouncing them up and down for what seemed like a long while (actually only about 2 minutes). Each balloon had something different written on it: we noticed "pay with this," "perfect" and a smiley face.When the crowd finally died down, Portal designer Kim Swift was at the podium in Mak's place. At request, she screamed. She said he has no idea why she's up there. "Uh, yeah, things that are on [the] slide," she said, checking the computer. "Oh, it's got absolutely nothing on the slide. At this point and time, I have absolutely nothing to complain about, so let's take a look at these balloons." She asks if anyone has anything cool written on their balloon. Someone in front shouts "Mine says I'm a misunderstood robot."Swift smiles and quietly steps down. End of rant. Next: Happiness
GDC08: Phase session not procedurally generated [update]
[Update: Somehow I missed it, according to IGN, Foster did say that Harmonix was looking into procedurally-generated note charts for Rock Band. Amazing!] Harmonix's Chris Foster decided instead to go ahead and manually write his postmortem on the design of the iPod rhythm game Phase. Throughout the talk, Foster returned to the point that in all decisions, the team went with the "fun" option to make an accessible game. Every decision was informed by the need to make a game that is just fun for a potentially non-gaming audience. The most notable feature, and the one that caused the most trouble for the development team, is the procedurally-generated gameplay. Since Phase works with the music on your iPod, note charts must be automatically generated. Foster talked at length about the issue of ensuring that these are fun, making sure that there aren't too many or two few and that they are consistent. Some important decisions that went into this: the "slider" sections in silent parts of the song, and varying note density not only by beats, but also by loudness, to ensure a dynamic gameplay experience. Sensitivity of the generator was tested with an eclectic set of 200 songs, including especially problematic Japanese noise music and Bjork.
Overheard@GDC: Is this a new interface?
An attendee asked an Expo Hall booth rep this question. There are a lot of unusual control methods on display at GDC, so that's not really a strange thing to ask in most cases. Many interfaces being demonstrated are, in fact, new.This one, however, was the DS.
GDC08: Six things to take from Game Developers Rant: Happiness
3. "Games are the ultimate happiness engine"Jane McGonigal was up next. She's not mad at game designers; her rant is about reality. And it's broken. "We are the people who are supposed to fix it," she said."When I'm in games I have all the info and feedback I need, I have superhero skills ... it's just better than real life." McGonigal explains she has been spending the last year doing research on happiness, deeming it not a warm puppy. Instead, McGonigal lays out a four-point happiness list: Satisfying work to do The experience of being good at something Time spent with people we like The chance to be a part of something bigger "What the hell does any of this better but games? Nothing," she said. "Games are the ultimate happiness engine, and you [the game industry] are in the happiness business." McGonigal noted that it took them until 1930 that soap can be used to kill germs. For depression and isolation, perhaps games can be the same fix. She quotes someone we didn't catch: "Why should we care about games? Because our life is crap." McGonigal lists five things that game designers could fix today: Running Being on a plane Playing fetch Commuting Annoying people She then hypothesized about how the Nike + iPod shoes can keep track of how far you've run and how that technology could somehow be used alongside a social MMO, noting that gamers would be happy and healthy. Explaining her belief the game designers are the smartest people in the world (with Will Wright on her side, we can't blame her), she asks "Can we fix it? Hell yes. Will we fix it? I have no fucking idea." Next: Duct Tape, redux
GDC08: Explaining 'Destroy All Developers' meta-game
This might seem a bit late since the (meta) game is now over, but check out this footage of Mahalo Daily's Veronica Belmont as she interviews Destroy All Developers! organizers on how the game works.
Heard@GDC: Americans hate nipples
"It's something about you Americans and nipples, there's something you hate! If this was Germany, I'd be romping around naked right now."-Peter Molyneux at his GDC lecture
GDC08: Professor Layton and the Curious Truck
Parked between San Francisco's North and West Halls was the above curious vehicle: a box truck wrapped in Professor Layton branding and sporting an enormous display on the side looping a promo for the game. What's inside the truck? An army of Segway-equipped spokespeople handing out Professor Layton postcards, of course. %Gallery-16730%
Puzzle Quest: Galactrix (re)announced
We've known a Puzzle Quest sequel was coming out for some time -- turns out, we've known longer than we thought. In April 2007, D3 Publishers announced Galactrix, a "blend of puzzle, RPG, and strategy games" with sci-fi twist. This week at GDC, D3 announced it again (via Gamespot), only this time re-branded as Puzzle Quest: Galactrix. (You can view the old screenshots here.)The obvious gameplay difference from Puzzle Quest is the hexagonal board, adding to the board's complexity. Galactrix is due out this year for DS, Xbox Live Arcade and PC; a PSP version could not be confirmed.
GDC08: Six things to take from Game Developers Rant: The Little Prince
5. "We don't need more three little pigs games, we need something like The Little Prince. Makes you try to think about your life"Jenova Chen (flOw) took the stage next, explaining that he can't just rant as a designer but also as a gamer, one who has been playing less as the years go by and is losing interest in trying the games. Fifteen years ago, he said, he was excited to playing racing games or kill Nazis (e.g. Wolfenstein 3D). Nowadays, though, there's not much interest and what he learns now is not much more than he does from a set of wooden blocks."We never say its too old to read books or watch movies or play sports. so whats the difference with games?" Chen notes that books are considered intellectual, movies emotional and sports social. "As grown up gamers, I don't want to see them abandoned because I'm too old." He specifies that there's not much more mature content "for people like us who still want to play games." He notes that he doesn't mean "mature" games like DOAX2 and Manhunt 2. ("We all know who cares about that," he quips, flashing a picture of hyperactive teen gamers.)Given the average age of gamers is 33, Chen said he wants games more emotional, social and intellectual. Focusing on intellectual, Chen said, "We don't need more three little pigs games, we need something like The Little Prince. Makes you try to think about your life" Next: Wonderful!
GDC08: Six things to take from Game Developers Rant: Wonderful!
6. "WONDERFUL!"Daniel James (Three Rings) is up last. We're not sure his part accounts for a rant, but it's interesting nonetheless. James' accompanying slides consisted of a number of interjections. NICE! -- "Isn't GDC wonderful?" BRILLIANT! -- He used to play with LEGOs as a kid, and now you can share that love with the LEGO MMO. FANTASTIC! -- He used to played 1984's Elite on the computer, and now you can share and play together with EVE Online. WTF ... err ... AMAZING -- Similar to the above, the evolution from "You stood on a narrow road between land whence you came" (MUD). Now there's 10 million people that do it in World of Warcraft. TOTALLY. AWESOME. INCREDIBLE. -- The sea change he noted after having dinner with the creator of Facebook. Although without a direct interjection, James told a story that he got a letter the other day from a grandmother, who said her grandchildren showed her Puzzle Pirates and now she plays it with them online every night. She used to just watch TV every night. We'll add a more subtle "sweet" to that story. Back to interjections. WONDERFUL! -- The domination of television and that story. And now, he said, he's going to go get very, very, very drunk. Let's do this again!
GDC08: hands-on with Street Fighter IV
After playing Street Fighter IV on its (fantastically expensive) arcade cabinet at GDC for well over an hour, I can't help but feel like Capcom will soon pull off one of the best cons in gaming history. You see, if you've played Street Fighter II then you've essentially played Street Fighter IV. There are a few differences, of course -- we'll get to those in a minute -- but for the most part it's the same game it was nearly two decades ago. There's a common axiom that states, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it," or in Capcom's case, "if it ain't broke, keep repackaging it and selling it to the same people over and over again." That's basically what Street Fighter IV does once again. My would-be journalistic sensibilities tell me I should be angry about that. Honestly though, I was having too much fun to care. Hence, a con.
GDC08: Meet us at Video Games Live, get swag
We've got a pile o' swag from GDC and, like always, we're looking to give it away to you, dear readers. There are some caveats because we're short on time: notably that we're not bringing it home. Some of Team Joystiq are going to Video Games Live tonight (look for the socially awkward blogger type) and we'll be bringing all the swag you see up there and more. Want it, just stop by and say hi and we'll share. Easy, right? Anyone here planning on going?Update: We've run into some of you already, but you can find us huddled in the left rear corner of the entrance area -- just take a left as you walk in through the door!
