Gamasutra News

Speech Graphics unveils lip synch service for game characters

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 14:58:00 -0500

UK-based startup Speech Graphics announced its new technology that analyzes audio to predict how muscles will move on a face to produce those sounds, then syncs that with the animation of a game's 3D characters. The lip synch solution will be initially offered as a service, and is meant to save development time and resources. As part of its voice-based animation service, the company takes facial models and audio assets provided by clients, and then ...

Jersey Shore star lends likeness to social games

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 14:53:00 -0500

Newsbrief: Apps Genius Corp has signed an exclusive worldwide agreement with Jersey Shore's Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino and his company to create four social games and mobile apps. The licensed projects, which The Situation promises will "introduce Jersey culture into the social gaming and mobile application industry," are based on the reality TV show star's life and his family. The applications and games will release on Android, iOS, Facebook, and Google+. Apps Genius (Slap a ...

DICE 2012: The five keys to Rocksteady's Batman success

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 14:47:00 -0500

At DICE 2012 on Thursday, Rocksteady's Sefton Hill exposed the fundamental rules that the studio followed to make critical and commercial hits Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City. One of those keys, Hill said, is rapid prototyping. "The prototyping is all done in-game," he said. Early in the game's creation, he would present an idea to people on the team. Then they'd break it apart, analyze how it could be implemented, and "get it ...

Turtle Beach claims to be 2011's top accessory maker

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 14:17:00 -0500

Newsbrief: Turtle Beach claims it was the number one third-party video game accessory company in 2011 based on dollar volume, and said its products controlled 50 percent of the headphones and headsets category for games last year. The company credited the popularity of its accessories to growing demand for high quality audio experiences with their games, and its introduction of Ear Force headsets with new features (e.g. presets for customizable audio settings). Referring to data ...

DICE 2012: How social and mobile are creating the 'new arcade'

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 14:14:00 -0500

At DICE 2012, Atari coin-op veterans gathered to shed more light on their new mobile game company, Innovative Leisure, which is working on iPad games with publisher THQ. Company founder and former Xbox man Seamus Blackley said the short form gameplay on Facebook, mobile and other new platforms has led to the emergence of "the new arcade." Blackley reviewed the history of the arcade, from its humble beginnings to its explosive success, to the video ...

Don't sell games, sell self-satisfaction

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 14:00:00 -0500

Indie developer Jeff Vogel (Avadon: The Black Fortress) argues that players pay for easy-to-pirate indie games because it makes them feel good to support creators, in a new Gamasutra feature. "You want to pirate the PC version of my newest game, Avadon: The Black Fortress? Search for it on The Pirate Bay. You can get a free copy in less than the time it takes to read th... Oh, you got a serial number already? ...

Mafia veterans' new studio licenses CryEngine 3 for RPG

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 13:43:00 -0500

Newsbrief: Warhorse Studios, the Prague-based developer recently founded by veterans from the Mafia series, has licensed Crytek's CryEngine 3 for an unannounced open-world RPG. Established last summer after securing an investment from private backers, Warhorse is made up of developers who worked on games like Bohemia Interactive's Operation Flashpoint series, fantasy pen-and-paper RPG Dragon's Lair, and the Mafia games. Daniel Vavra, who was the director and lead designer on Mafia: The City of Lost Heaven, ...

Irish government helps fund Big Fish cloud gaming research

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 13:19:00 -0500

Big Fish Games is enhancing and expanding the cloud gaming research development program at its Cork, Ireland arm, recruiting 30 new software engineers, thanks to backing from the Irish Government. With this expansion, the online portal operator and casual game developer will be able to continue its push into the burgeoning game streaming market, which is populated by companies like OnLive, Gaikai, Playcast, OTOY, and Crytek affiliate Gface. Big Fish says that its planned service ...

Report: iPad 3 announcement expected in March

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 12:17:00 -0500

Newsbrief: Apple will reportedly unveil the next iteration of its successful iPad tablet computer line at a San Francisco event taking place in early March -- and could ship the device shortly afterward. The company debuted the iPad 2 around the same time last year in an event at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, across the street from the Game Developers Conference, and could be aiming to hold its press meeting against the ...

Road to the IGF: Alexander Bruce's Antichamber

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 12:12:00 -0500

[In the latest in our "Road to the IGF" series of interviews with 2012 IGF finalists, Gamasutra speaks with Alexander Bruce about his 2012 IGF Technical Excellence Award nominee Antichamber.] Alexander "Demruth" Bruce's Antichamber is a game about discovery, set inside a vibrant, minimal, Escher-like world, where geometry and space follow unfamiliar rules, and obstacles are a matter of perception. The game was a finalist for the Nuovo Award at the 2011 Independent Games Festival, ...