Monthly Archive for November, 2007

Eidos’ New Montreal Studio to Develop ‘Deus Ex 3′

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on November 27, 2007
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Eidos announced the third game in the Deus Ex series, which began with a stunning story-driven game and was followed up with a not-so-good one, will be developed in their newly inaugurated Montreal studio, Gamasutra reports.

It’s not clear how much experience the team working on the new Deus Ex game has, but Eidos Montreal’s general manager, Stéphane D’Astous, says the team will do well.

“We will want to limit our dev teams to a human-sized team of 80 people at the very highest of the peak in the production cycle,” said D’Astous. “We don’t want to become a huge studio where there’s over 100 people on a title. We want a smaller, multi-discipline group that are tightly knit together. But by doing so, we will give them at least 18 to 24 months for the production cycle.”

With a small, talented group and a lengthy production, here’s hoping Deus Ex 3 will turn out better than the sophomore effort.

Educational Games Show ‘Why Games Matter’

Published
on November 21, 2007
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Feeling unproductive after a Thanksgiving break spent gaming? Well eat this (after your turkey). In the “gee wiz” story of the week, the three winners of the “Why Games Matter” contest were announced yesterday, as reported by 1UP.

These three games raise awareness and recommend solutions to issues of gender relations and domestic abuse, teen depression and anger and the AIDS epidemic. Each will be recognized with a $5,000 prize and will be invited to the 2008 Games for Health conference.

Games are made to entertain, but this contest demonstrates one possible secondary function: to educate. This is nothing new. Whoever went to grade school in the early ’90s (and is reading a blog about video games) remembers all those classic computer lab games about doing math, building space ships, stopping bleeding and getting to Oregon.

But will we ever see a game that combines these two functions fully? One that is as fully immersive as BioShock, but also imparts some wisdom about the world outside of Rapture?

Books and movies are already doing this. They flirt around the topic without addressing it full-bore. What better way to learn about the royal politics of Elizabethan England than by reading Macbeth? And Shogun and Gates of Fire are kickass novels, but they also deliver historical and cultural lessons and interpretations. Sure, there are the PBS specials about dealing with racism that we saw in school, but there’s also 2004’s “Crash,” an average film made Oscar-worthy by its relevance.

What lesson does BioShock or Mass Effect teach? What purpose do they serve beyond providing compelling and stimulating entertainment? Interesting questions, which none can answer.

BioWare Austin Hiring Writers For New MMO

Published
on November 13, 2007
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BioWare’s upcoming MMO is their largest project to date, and they need your help. With one of the greatest reputations for video game writing in the industry, the creators of Baldur’s Gate II and Jade Empire are now hiring writers for their Austin, TX, branch.

Applicants should have some degree of experience, professional or in school, and must include a 15 to 30 minute module made with the Neverwinter Nights toolset that demonstrates your game writing abilities. Writing for games requires a unique brand of skill not found among all mortals.

“Just trying to explain the concept behind writing without a protagonist to someone who has never even been a dungeon master can be like showing card tricks to a dog,” said Daniel Erickson, principal lead writer with BioWare Austin, in an email to Penny Arcade.

Think a writer for the epitome of literary game developers could never come from your humble origins? Think again!

“In the history of the company, we’ve had published fantasy authors, screenwriters and editors all wash out of BioWare’s training program,” said Erickson in the same email. “On the flip side, we’ve had fantastic kids right of college, an ex CNN producer and a former gift wrapping clerk from Singapore all succeed in the BioWare writer family.”

So what the hell, give it a chance. I know I will.

See BioWare’s jobs page for more information on how to apply and on other jobs with the company.

The ‘Essence of Mario,’ According to Creator Miyamoto

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on November 8, 2007
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Nintendo President Satoru Iwata and Shigeru Miyamoto, who needs no introduction, had an interesting conversation about the nature of Mario, readable on Wii.com.

This is the fourth in a series of transcribed queries by Iwata regarding Super Mario Galaxy. The game is released in Japan, and the North American release is only four days away. On a side note, such transparent production is an increasingly popular trend used to build community interest.

The two Nintendo gods discussed co-op play, new technology, the significance of Super Mario Galaxy and the “Essence of Mario.” Miyamoto described this essence as “form around function,” unique and original objects and obstacles that look like what they are.

“If you look at the Boos for example, and their peek-a-boo reaction when you turn the other way, you’ll see that they’re very shy, and they blush too. I think it’s aspects like these that point out the importance of designing things with functions that can be easily understood,” he told Iwata.

Even the now ubiquitous turtle was developed this way. “I remembered an experience I once had when I was working on Mario Bros. [Gunpei] Yokoi-san asked me, ‘What’s something that wouldn’t be able to move if I hit it from underneath?,’ and I replied, ‘A turtle, of course,’” said Miyamoto.

Miyamoto’s definition of Mario does not include the cutesy art style that’s become so common. Instead, this art style is the result of his attempts to make things in the game simple and easy to understand.

“Because people believe that the characters should be that way, they make assumptions on their own, like how the eyes should be always big and bright. But I don’t really draw my characters like that,” Miyamoto said. “I think it’s perfectly OK for Mario to be drawn in a cool way, and by that I don’t mean drawing him specifically to be cool, but that the overall design treatment turns out looking cool. So in the past, I’ve always tried to not design anything that looks childish, and change the design depending on the game.”

Wii and DS In Hand, Nintendo Focuses On Multiplayer

Published
on November 5, 2007
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Is Nintendo becoming a multiplayer-only developer? MTV’s Steven Totilo postulates that they are.

“Nintendo’s console is a party console, destined to mark the end of Nintendo-crafted single-player game designs,” Totilo wrote on his blog earlier today. “I fully expect the next Zelda, the next Donkey Kong, even the next Mario role-playing game to be designed in such a way that at least two players will be able to enjoy the main game mode simultaneously.”

Totilo backed up his theory with a look at Nintendo’s marketing, sales and upcoming games, as well as comments by top industry personas.

Whether or not Totilo is correct, Nintendo is clearly taking the road less traveled. Both the Wii and the DS went in radically different directions than their chief competitors, introducing new approaches to gameplay rather than upping the ante technology-wise.

Satoru Iwata, Nintendo’s president, recently called the current console business model, with 4-year generations, “too inflexible,” according to Next Generation. “When we will be able to launch a new kind of hardware will actually depend on when we can change entertainment completely,” he said.

Totilo concluded his analysis. “Where I’m going with all of this is the idea that The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess may be a relic of a previous era. When the Wii is old, I expect that game to look like an aberration: a freakishly lonely experience offered in a library of titles designed primarily for group indulgence.”

Multiplayer is becoming more and more of a draw to games, inviting casual gamers to play online or with friends. The Wii especially, with its simple and enjoyable controls, has always been a party system. And given Guitar Hero III’s success, the multiplayer trend clearly is not limited to Nintendo. These games are easier and cheaper to develop, sell like hotcakes and produce sequels like rabbits.

With all this going against them, I certainly hope we won’t see an end to top-notch, big budget single player games, as Totilo envisions. Let’s hope Mass Effect will stick it to the multiplayer competition this Thanksgiving.

Community Has Substantial Impact On Game-Making

Published
on November 3, 2007
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Andy Robertson has an interesting feature on Gamasutra on using transparent production to ensure quality and build community, using projects from the film industry as examples.

Whether through the big budgets and impressive plans of The Lord of the Rings, or through the fan love of Firefly, the film industry is now painfully aware of the need to enable audiences to have a sense of ownership of the entertainment they buy. There is no better way to establish buyer loyalty, or in fact to deliver a compelling experience, than to share the film’s development and production process with the consumer.

Roberts looks at how Bungie went down this road for Halo 3. Bungie explained every step of the production and lent their ears to the community. They added fan-favorite features to the game, especially Forge, replays, and four player online co-op. What resulted was not just a game that fans could get excited about, but one that the gaming community felt invested in.

Community building is becoming an undeniable part of production. Microsoft and Sony both rely on their blogs (Major Nelson and Playstation Blog) to deliver information about upcoming games to fans, and to get feedback. This approach can backfire when used solely for marketing, as it did with Sony’s “All I Want for Christmas is a PSP.” Developers must create and work with a community to create a top-notch and commercially successful game.