PsxMeUP - Slashdot User

3D engine company, Unlimited Detail, not dead? -> 0

Submitted by PsxMeUP on Saturday July 17 2010, @01:48PM

PsxMeUP writes "A few months ago Unlimited Detail shocked the 3D graphics industry by revealing a graphics engine that could render unlimited amounts of polygons and point cloud data in real time. The concept was very promising, but not long after Chief Executive officer at Unlimited Detail, Bruce Dell, showed off the demos, the company went silent and we haven't heard from them since. GameObserver.com managed to get in touch with Bruce Dell, who was kind enough to admit some errors in their previous strategy.

It appears they didn't have a working product yet, and a few companies were already interested in using the engine. As a result, Unlimited Detail went under the radar, but they have since been "working hard to produce a commercial SDK" and ways to "import objects made for movies and use them without any downscaling." So it appears the company is still intent on releasing the Unlimited Detail engine in the future.

If you don’t know what Unlimited Detail is working on, check out this youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-ATtrImCx4"
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Comment: Link to article (Score 1) 1

by PsxMeUP on Saturday January 02 2010, @06:55PM (#30627612) Attached to: World of Goo - the 2001: A Space Odyssey of games

Posted this without the link and can't find the "edit" button anywhere, so here's the link: http://www.gameobserver.com/features/inside/all-platforms/we-are-world-of-goo-part-1-the-goo-filled-hills-211/

World of Goo - the 2001: A Space Odyssey of games 1

Submitted by PsxMeUP on Saturday January 02 2010, @06:36PM

PsxMeUP writes "A GameObserver analysis of World of Goo reveals that it may have more hidden meaning than a simple social commentary on corporate globalization and consumerism. It may be more akin to Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey than anything else, hinting at information control, emotional control, enslavement conspiracies and the need to evolve and cast down our primitive nature before inevitably reaching the stars."

A Software Bill of Rights-> 0

Submitted by

PsxMeUP

on Sunday August 23 2009, @04:20AM

PsxMeUP writes "Hatred towards DRM and other copy protection measures is as high as ever online, so it's hard to find fair articles that look at the problem from both sides.

The following article written by Dr. John B. Williston, a Ph.D, presents one of the most structured and logical articles on the topic you will ever find (for those with the patience to read through all the details).

Dr. John B. Williston, a skilled programmer in his own right, goes over a number of topics: file sharing, intellectual property, the rampant lawsuits, how developers have the right to protect their products, consumer rights, etc. The author makes a clear distinction between legitimate file "sharing" and P2P file sharing, which he considers a crime.

"It's not a violation of copyright law, for example, for me to loan a CD to a friend. That's genuine sharing because my friend gets to enjoy the music I have purchased while I temporarily forgo that benefit. What FS involves, however, is the deliberate duplication of copyright-protected material so that my friend can have his own copy without paying for it," he explains.

On the flip side, he goes over a list of things that developers are doing that are downright criminal, like the much-talked about hidden files installed on hard disks, but also the absurd demands companies have with regards to what consumers do with their products.

"Why can Microsoft insist, for example, that I do nothing to decompile or even tweak their products, yet Ford cannot insist that I never lift the hood of one of their cars, adjust the timing, etc.? From what I've seen, software vendors think they can do anything they damned well please, as long as it is mentioned in the software license."

Dr. Williston uses a few examples from his days of writing shareware apps in some arguments, and all of it boils down to the fact that the digital industry needs special laws to govern consumer, retail and developer behavior. It's because such laws aren't in place that we are having rampant pirating and draconian antipiracy measures used by companies to control the situation. A very interesting read."
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Interview with developer of Transformers 2-> 0

Submitted by

PsxMeUP

on Friday August 14 2009, @10:10AM

PsxMeUP writes "Love 'em or hate 'em, movie licensed games are big business, but they are apparently also very hard to make. In an interview with GameObserver, Activision's Luxoflux explains the pitfalls and success strategies of making such titles. They recently developed Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen, which was above-average compared to other movie-based games, and previously made Kung Fu Panda and Shrek 2.

Joby Otero (Chief Creative Officer) and Chris Tremmel (Creative Director) of Luxoflux studio explain the process of making such games. There apparently IS some cooperation between the movie and game studios, so much that they even claim their Kung Fu Panda game influenced some parts of development of the actual movie.

With regards to Revenge of the Fallen, Luxoflux explains that Breakaway, the Autobot sniper in the game, "was originally designed for the film" but was dropped from the movie. They also claim that Hasbro is one of the best partners to work with when making movie games. Furthermore, they take the time to comment on Ubisoft's "Media Convergence" strategy, which promises to produce unparalleled film licensed games."
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Designer of indie MMO project, "Love", int-> 0

Submitted by

PsxMeUP

on Tuesday August 11 2009, @01:56PM

PsxMeUP writes "Love is a persistent online first-person shooter that will let players build structures, permanently manipulate the environment and share resources all in real-time. Action will be similar to a real-time strategy game as seen through the eyes of a grunt. Love is completely being designed by one single person, Mr. Eskil Steenberg, and GameObserver had a chance to interview him.

In the interview, Eskil talks about how all MMOs offer an egocentric experience where character growth is the most important aspect, and how he intends to change that. He also explains how mainstream MMOs have too many players, which basically trivializes accomplishments that have an impact on the entire server. "If you imagine Civilization where you invent your stuff or build new stuff, imagine playing one of those characters on the ground doing that. And being able to do something minute in your world and see that impact in the major world," Eskil explains when asked what his game will be like.

"I want to scare people in a direction that is different from this sort of me-centric style of games. It feels that pretty much all games are going into that Diablo direction of collecting and building up my characters, and it's all sort of very egocentric about creating your own powerful character," he clarifies when asked how his game will be different from other MMOs. "I think people should care about the environment because if they care about the environment — if they built something cool — other players will see that as well. To me the environment and making things that other players can experience is a lot more interesting than the idea of having something that is just fun for you as a single player."

The game is well into development and its designer has already posted some incredible gameplay demos. Levels, for instance, are all procedurally generated. The game also offers open-source tools, like UV editing, not a small feat considering the whole thing was designed by one man."
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Bad video game names-> 1

Submitted by

PsxMeUP

on Monday July 20 2009, @01:21PM

PsxMeUP writes "What's in a video game name? Well, somebody over at GameObserver took the time to analyze that. All the punctuation abuse, bastardization of caps, use of numbers instead of words, all the bad game titles, it's all roasted by an old, surly gamer. Quote:

'There is no game on the Wii titled "Punch-out." There is, however, a game on the Wii titled "Punch-out!!!" You see, you have to yell out the game's title with three times the intended exclamation as you would a sentence ending with one exclamation mark. You'd have to go up to the sales clerk and say "Kind sir, I'd like to buy PUNCH-OUT!!! for the Wii please.'"
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Ehem... A poem about Wii Sports-> 0

Submitted by

PsxMeUP

on Monday July 13 2009, @02:30PM

PsxMeUP writes "Well, if a poem about Wii Sports woes doesn't properly explain the perils of this, err, fine game, then I don't know what will. "Wii Sports, Wii Sports, you rue my life How you have plagued these days with smite Into the abyss I should throw This damn broken motion controls When I bring the Wii to parties Other games I bring just get teased No More Heroes gets sold short And Monkey Ball passed for Wii Sports Wii Sports, Wii Sports, makes parties lame When we take turns on the bowling game These fake gutterballs make no sense When a real alley has a liquor license With a tennis game that's shallow Amusement sinks to a new low For baseball, the programmers should yield And let players control the outfield For pitching controls rarely work And batting seems to have some quirks Plus it burns retinas to see A field not of dreams but Miis I can't complain much when I realize Wii Sports gives fat kids exercise Moving their arms, make swishing sounds As they play through all three Golf rounds But golf isn't as fun as it could Why play as a Mii when there's Tiger Woods But at least Wii Golf isn't as bland As the worst Sports game in the land Fragile as a butterfly Inconsistent as a bee Figuring out the boxing controls Would dumbfound Muhammad Ali Sometimes you punch, sometimes you duck The controls for Boxing flat out suck Should've warned players the Wii's a sham Yet 40 million sold across the land Though I have enough class to say I'd rather this be bundled than Wii Play But 2 stars is what you will find For the most overplayed game of all time""
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GameObserver interview with Bethesda on Gamebryo-> 0

Submitted by

PsxMeUP

on Thursday July 09 2009, @07:58AM

PsxMeUP writes "GameObserver.com conducted an interview with Ashley Cheng, Production Director at Bethesda. They asked him questions on the Gamebryo engine, why they prefer it over other engines and the advantages it presented while making Fallout 3. Cheng also talks a bit about what inspired their designers while making Fallout 3, what is in store for the PS3 and elaborates on various other topics relating to their game design process. Apparently, much of the team has read Cormac McCarthy's "The Road," which inspired the look and story of Fallout 3. Bethesda, according to Cheng, will never create a game like Final Fantasy because the Gamebryo engine is better at handling "open ended worlds ripe for exploration," which pretty much means Bethesda doesn't think Final Fantasy games have a lot of exploration in them."
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Sacred 2 Art and Vision e-book available for free-> 0

Submitted by

PsxMeUP

on Thursday January 22 2009, @05:48PM

PsxMeUP writes "As a free gift to fans of Sacred 2: Fallen Angel, cdv Software Entertainment USA and Ascaron Entertainment are making available an e-book of the game's "Art and Vision" today. This lushly illustrated e-book showcases hand-drawn character designs, renders and other artistic creations from the game's diverse universe, while also showcasing the progression of Sacred 2: Fallen Angel from an imaginative vision to an incredibly compelling RPG for next-generation consoles and PC. The file is free to download in PDF format (43 MB)."
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