Monthly Archives: March 2016

Train2game News SEGA Art Prints

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Funstock.co.uk today announced a brand new range of officially licensed SEGA art prints (in common poster sizes) featuring iconic imagery from classic titles; Sonic The Hedgehog, Streets of Rage, Golden Axe, Altered Beast, Shinobi and Alex Kidd.

The majority of this stunning collection is scheduled for release at the end of March, however, there are 2 sets of Limited Edition prints that are scheduled to co-inside with Sonic the Hedgehog’s 25th Anniversary (in June) with one piece releasing in April and the second one in May. The Limited Edition prints are all hand numbered and limited to just 995 prints!

The range features a split of prints across magnificent 300GSM textured paper and 300GSM paper in a variety of sizes and 14 unique designs.

The SEGA Art Prints are available at: www.funstock.co.uk .

Train2game News GDC 2016 Record Attendance

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UBM Game Network’s 2016 Game Developers Conference (GDC), the world’s largest and longest-running event serving professionals dedicated to the art and science of making games has set a record for event attendance, with more than 27,000 game industry professionals at last week’s conference in San Francisco’s Moscone Center.

This year, UBM Game Network also debuted the 2016 Virtual Reality Developers Conference (VRDC), an event dedicated to the creation of new video games, entertainment and technology around virtual and augmented reality (AR), which was held alongside GDC. The organizers have announced that GDC will return to the Moscone Center in San Francisco from Monday, February 27 to Friday, March 3, 2017, and will see the return of VRDC. Call for submissions for both GDC and VRDC to open this summer.

GDC 2016, through its introduction of the VRDC, has helped bring greater focus to the nascent field of Virtual Reality (VR) development, with two days of dedicated talks and sessions surrounding challenges and opportunities tied to the rapidly-maturing field of VR and AR.  The event and its resulting buzz helped to set the stage for Sony Computer Entertainment’s announcement of the price point of $399.99 in the United States and October 2016 release date for their upcoming PlayStation VR headset, which was first unveiled (under the project name Morpheus) at GDC 2014.

GDC 2016 marked the 30th edition of the event, and to celebrate the history and legacy of the conference, the organizers hosted a comprehensive retrospective talk on the history of GDC. On Wednesday, March 16, the main conference opened with the “Flash Backward: 30 Years of Making Games,” a session that brought together industry luminaries from GDC’s history. From conference founder Chris Crawford’s talk on the first GDC hosted at his house, to Lori Cole’s experiences crafting pioneering PC adventure games, to speakers including Phil Harrison, Ken Lobb, Tim Schafer, Palmer Luckey and others, the session covered insights into the history of game consoles, the birth of digital game distribution and the promising future of VR. 

The annual Independent Games Festival (IGF) and Game Developers Choice Awards (GDCA) ceremonies took place on Wednesday evening.  Developer Sam Barlow’s Her Story won the IGF Seumas McNally Grand Prize award of $30,000, as well as the IGF award for Excellence in Narrative. The IGF ceremony also played host to the ID@Xbox Rising Star Award, that went to Girls Make Games, which is a series of international summer camps, workshops and game jams designed to inspire the next generation of female designers, creators, and engineers. Sam Barlow made a reappearance on the Awards Show stage, as Her Story also went on to win the Game Developers Choice Awards for Innovation, Best Narrative and Best Handheld/Mobile Game during the ceremony that immediately followed the IGF Awards.

The GDCA Game of the Year went to CD Projekt Red for their game, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

The bustling Expo Floors in the Moscone North and South Halls exhibited some of the most notable names in the tech and games industry, including Amazon, Epic Games, Google, Microsoft, Oculus, Sony, Unity and more than 550 other companies who offered product and tech demonstrations, networking and recruitment opportunities. The Moscone North Hall housed the IGF Pavilion which featured all the award finalists’ games, as well as the GDC Play area. Inspired by the success of the IGF Pavilion, GDC Play similarly offered a dedicated space where developers could show off their playable games and conduct meaningful business at GDC.

In addition to the Expo Floors, GDC hosted a variety of Interactive Spaces throughout the week. Independent developers and some of the latest indie games were featured in the GDC Train Jam, alt.ctrl.GDC and Mild Rumpus areas, a special edition of Double Fine’s “Day of the Devs” and the Indie MEGABOOTH showcase. The GDC VR Lounge featured a range of VR and AR demos across all the upcoming VR platforms. For fans of tabletop board games, ”Shut Up and Sit Down” hosted a selection of the best board games of the year for all attendees to enjoy. iam8bit returned to GDC this year with a 1980’s living room where attendees could pose for pictures and pay homage to the very first Game Developers Conference, which was held in the living room of GDC founder and developer Chris Crawford’s house in the 1980’s.

“This year’s GDC, paired with the inaugural VRDC, allows us to look both backwards at the legacy and lessons of previous years, and forward to the future of games and VR experiences. Even in its 30th edition, GDC continues to evolve and grow to encompass all of the key lessons, advancements and artistic strides that the industry makes. Once again, the staff, volunteers, speakers, students and attendees have made GDC 2016 an amazing, fun and safe show all around,” said Meggan Scavio, general manager of the Game Developers Conference. “As technologies mature and tastes in games change, we’re happy have a place for all of our friends, colleagues and soon-to-be-friends to meet about, learn about and discuss the games and VR experiences that we love. Games are becoming the most popular form of entertainment in the modern world, so it’s only appropriate that GDC carry with it the same spirit of fun, adventure and discovery as the games themselves, just as it has since its beginning.”

For additional information about GDC and VRDC, visit www.gdconf.com .

Train2game News Resident Evil 20th anniversary

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20 years ago today with the debut of the first Resident Evil game, the doors to the infamous mansion first opened and ushered in fans to a whole new world of survival horror.

Dark hallways and ominous corners led to thrills and chills that would leave a lasting imprint on everyone who dared to see what was behind each new door. Who could forget the creepy turn of the first zombie’s head as it looked up from its feast, the startling surprise of a Cerberus zombie dog crashing through the window of an eerie hallway, the almost Jill Sandwich, or the miracles of typewriter tape and potted herbs?

Since the birth of the series on March 22, 1996, Resident Evil has gone on to become one of the most iconic and successful gaming franchises of all time. With game sales topping 66 million copies worldwide and its expansion into successful Hollywood feature films, merchandise, attractions and events across the globe, the series continues to infect the hearts of survival horror fans everywhere.

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the series, Capcom will be releasing a series of developer interviews featuring commentary from some of the team members who have played a vital role in developing the brand into what it is today. Hear from the team as they go back through the mansion doors to look at how the survival horror phenomenon began and its epic rise over the years. The first video with producer Hiroyuki Kobayashi is available for download from the press site now.

The anniversary celebrations will continue over the next year and the team is already hard at work to deliver some amazing new surprises. Stay tuned to our channels throughout the year for more news on what the team has in store.

Capcom would also like to take this opportunity to thank our media partners, gamers and the fans that have shown their passion and support for the Resident Evil titles over the last 20 years. There’s no doubt that the continued success of the series is all because of you.

Train2game News Pokémon trading card mosaic

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The Pokémon Company International has partnered with British artist Quentin Devine to create the world’s largest trading card mosaic, consisting of 12,987 individual Pokémon Trading Card Game cards.

The massive work of art, measuring 71.54 square metres and hanging at over 10 metres tall and 7 metres wide, was unveiled today in Paris.

The finished mosaic, which secures a new world record, forms the image of beloved Pokémon character Pikachu, using the original iconic pose drawn by GAME FREAK illustrator Ken Sugimori.

Anthony Cornish, Marketing Director for The Pokémon Company International, said: “We are incredibly excited to have secured this highly ambitious world record, and are thrilled to have worked with renowned artist Quentin Devine to bring the mosaic to life.”

Quentin Devine is an artist, animator and designer from Surrey, England. He has previously created a giant mosaic of the Mona Lisa constructed from fan self-portraits, as well as an image of Her Majesty the Queen of Great Britain and Northern Ireland using only penny coins. The mosaic of Pikachu is his biggest creation to date.

Train2game News Skylanders Celebrity Toy Auction

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Activision today announces it has teamed up with some of Europe’s top sports stars and entertainment personalities – including the UK’s very own Ben Collins (AKA ‘The Stig’) and former Formula 1 driver Max Chilton – who have designed seven customised Skylanders™ SuperChargers toys.

The collaboration will see Activision donate the exclusive toys to Make-A-Wish, the world’s largest wish-granting organisation. The charity will auction off the models to the highest bidder, with the proceeds helping to support the many wishes that Make-A-Wish grants to children with life-threatening medical conditions around the world each year.

Alongside Ben and Max, well-known personalities from the racing world such as Timo Glock, as well as French TV presenter Joan Faggianelli, kitesurfing champion Gisela Pulido and popular YouTubers St3pny and TheKing77 have lent their talents to the project. Each have designed their very own SuperCharged car, either a Hot Streak or Crypt Crusher – two vehicles from the latest Skylanders game, Skylanders™ SuperChargers, in which vehicles are brought to life for the first time. The designs have been sprayed onto models of the cars for superfans to bid on and raise money for Make-A-Wish.

Jon Stettner, president and CEO, Make-A-Wish International, added: “On behalf of my colleagues across Europe, I would like to thank Activision, and all the famous faces involved in the project, for this fantastic collaboration. We are thrilled with the unique vehicles that have been specially designed and the money raised will help us in our ongoing efforts to grant wishes for children with life-threatening medical conditions.”

Former ‘Stig’ from Top Gear, Ben Collins: “As soon as I heard about this Skylanders activity I had to take part. Being a huge fan of racing and cars, I think Skylanders SuperChargers is really cool and I’m enjoying playing the game!  It’s a great idea to raise money for a highly deserving cause, like Make-A-Wish®, and getting to customise my own SuperChargers car was awesome.”

British racing driver, Max Chilton: “I’m really excited to be working with Skylanders on this activity. I love racing in SuperChargers so getting to customise my own HotStreak vehicle was awesome! Make-A-Wish® is a wonderful cause that does amazing work with children, so I’m proud to be supporting them with this campaign. My very own customised SuperCharger will be up for auction so make sure you look out for it – all proceeds will be going towards this incredibly deserving cause.”

To see all the auctions, click here: http://makeawish.vonality.com/, while links to the auctions for the vehicles that Ben Collins and Max Chilton designed can be found below:

·         Ben Collins: http://makeawish.vonality.com/collins
·         Max Chilton: http://makeawish.vonality.com/chilton

Happy bidding!

Train2game News Museum of London exhibits London Gaming

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From 18 March – 28 April 2016, the Museum of London will be examining London’s place in gaming culture with a new temporary display and offering visitors the chance to play four classic video games from the 1980s and 1990s.

The display will trace the city’s journey from the early text-based adventure games where everything was described in words and gamers used their imagination and experience to navigate the virtual world, to its first graphic representations, and finally its more modern and accurate representations in games such as Sim City 3000 and London Racer which offer an almost cinematic experience to the player.

The four games, played on specially emulated computers, will be the 1982’s text-based Streets of London (the very first video game to depict London), 1984’s cult classic Hampstead, 1989’s Werewolves in London (one of the earliest visual depictions of London in a video game) and 1996’s Broken Sword II: The Smoking Mirror (the first video game with actual interaction with a London landmark).

By playing these games visitors will be able to see not only how video games have advanced in the past 35 years but also how basic representations of London in text-based games on consoles such as the Commodore 64 and Spectrum ZX evolved into more recognisable depictions of the city by the 1990s on more modern platforms like Windows 9x.

As part of the London Games Festival (1-10 April), the Museum of London will also be hosting the Games Culture Summit at 3pm on Friday 8 April. The Summit will bring together leading cultural institutions and creative leaders to look at a variety of issues including how galleries and museums curate, collect and archive games.

Train2game News GDC Awards

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The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, the mature and expansive open-world fantasy role-playing game from developer CD Projekt RED, was honored with the Game of the Year award at tonight’s 16th annual Game Developers Choice Awards (GDCA) ceremony during the 2016 Game Developers Conference (GDC) at the Moscone Center in San Francisco.

The acclaimed title also received the award for Best Technology for its complex game engine that combines brilliant visuals with a huge game world. An archive of the award ceremony, as well as the full presentation of the Independent Games Festival Awards (IGF Awards), can be viewed at http://twitch.tv/gdc

Her Story, the interactive crime fiction game from independent game developer Sam Barlow, earned the most awards of any nominee tonight, taking home the awards for Innovation, Best Narrative and Best Handheld/Mobile Game. Starring actress/musician Viva Seifert, the game cleverly combines taped confessions and a simple computer interface to engage players in a compelling murder investigation. Earlier this evening, the game also received the Seumas McNally Grand Prize and Excellence in Narrative awards at the 18th Annual IGF Awards, the sister event that celebrates the best independent game development, which immediately preceded the GDCA ceremony.

Ori and the Blind Forest by developer Moon Studios earned two Choice Awards, for Best Debut and Best Visual Art. Ori and the Blind Forest is an action platformer set against a visually stunning hand-painted world and offers players a deeply emotional story about love, sacrifice and hope.

Other winners tonight included Rocket League, the wildly fun and deeply competitive soccer-meets-rocket cars title, which earned developer Psyonix the award for Best Design. The Audience Award, which is chosen from among all of the GDCA finalists through a public online voting process, was presented to developer DONTNOD Entertainment for Life is Strange, the captivating coming-of-age tale told in five episodic installments. The title puts players in control of Maxine Caulfield, a teenage girl with mysterious powers, and forces them to make and reckon with moral decisions and their sometimes wonderful, sometimes terrible consequences. The honor of Best Audio was earned by the Crypt of the NecroDancer from developer Brace Yourself Games, which uniquely blends action, role-playing, and rhythm games, challenging players to explore dungeons and battle monsters to the bumping rhythms of Danny Baranowsky’s eclectic metal/electro/dance soundtrack.

The Game Developers Choice Awards honor the very best games of the year, and was created for and voted on by developers. Winners are selected by the Game Developers Choice Awards-specific International Choice Awards Network (ICAN), which is an invitation-only group comprised of leading game creators from all parts of the industry.

Every year, the Game Developers Choice Awards also recognize developers who have made significant contributions to the art, science and craft of video games with three special awards. This year, the Pioneer Award was given to Markus “Notch” Persson, the famed creator of the multiple GDCA and IGF Award-winning indie sandbox title, Minecraft. The game, which has sold more than 70 million copies over multiple platforms, has revolutionized the sandbox game genre and helped cement the role of video games in stimulating creativity and ingenuity as well as rewarding skill.

The Ambassador Award, which recognizes those whose actions have helped video games to “advance to a better place,” went to Tracy Fullerton, professor and director of the University of Southern California (USC) Games program, and leader of the Game Innovation Lab. Fullerton has been instrumental in the creation of influential independent games that include Cloud, fl0w, Darfur is Dying, The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom and The Night Journey, with artist Bill Viola.

The Lifetime Achievement award was bestowed upon Todd Howard, the distinguished creative director, designer and executive producer at Bethesda Game Studios. Todd Howard’s work on the acclaimed Fallout and Elder Scrolls series of open-world games has helped define an entire genre of games with deeply enthralling worlds with virtually endless opportunities for adventure and discovery.

“The world of video games can include every imaginable and unimaginable experience, from the vast world of The Witcher 3, to the intimate interrogations in Her Story, and the Choice Awards have evolved to honor this diversity of titles,” said Meggan Scavio, General Manager of the Game Developers Conference. “All of these winning and nominated titles have expanded what we think what games can be, how to maturely handle story, and how to make games that are ridiculously fun. I’m excited to see all of these wonderful developers recognized for their amazing contributions, and I congratulate all of this year’s winners and nominees.”

The Game Developers Choice Awards winners are:

Best Debut
Moon Studios (Ori and the Blind Forest)

Best Audio
Crypt of the NecroDancer (Brace Yourself Games)

Innovation Award
Her Story (Sam Barlow)

Best Technology
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (CD Projekt RED)

Best Visual Art
Ori and the Blind Forest (Moon Studios)

Best Narrative
Her Story (Sam Barlow)

Best Design
Rocket League (Psyonix)

Best Handheld/Mobile Game
Her Story (Sam Barlow)

Audience Award
Life is Strange (DONTNOD Entertainment)

Game of the Year
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (CD Projekt RED)

Pioneer Award
Markus “Notch” Persson

Ambassador Award
Tracy Fullerton

Lifetime Achievement Award
Todd Howard

For more information about the 16th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards, please visit the official website at http://www.gamechoiceawards.com . For information about the 2016 Game Developers Conference, please visit the official website at http://www.gdconf.com .

Train2game News UKIE on the 2016 Budget

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Chancellor George Osborne announced the 2016 Budget yesterday, setting out the government’s tax and spending plans for the next year and beyond.

95% of games companies are micro, small or medium sized enterprises, and 64% of firms were incorporated in the last 5 years. The Budget introduces a number of measures which will have a positive impact on small and micro games firms. Chief among these are cuts to business rates and stamp duty for lower-value properties, as well as some targeted support for the digital economy.

Responding to the announcements, Ukie CEO Dr Jo Twist said:

“It’s good news for small studios.  The overwhelming majority of games firms are small or micro studios, most of which have emerged in the last five years.  Cuts to business rates and stamp duty will reduce the tax burden for these firms and boost growth and so will be welcomed by the UK games industry.

Looking to the future we will continue to call for public support for innovative games content through National Lottery funds, just like Film and TV have at the moment.  We also want to see long-term investment in talent and await further details in the Education White Paper tomorrow.”

More detail will follow once the Treasury and other Departments follow up on the speech.

Taxation
·         Cuts to business rates totalling £6.7 billion over five years, targeted at small businesses. 600,000 small businesses, including games companies, will pay no business rates at all.
·         Stamp Duty on commercial properties will be changed to a marginal system, reducing the large jumps in taxation between different property values, and rates will be cut for lower-value properties. As a result, 90% of non-residential properties will be taxed less or the same.
·         A new Museums and Galleries Tax Relief from April 2017, supporting the development and touring of new creative exhibitions
·         Corporation tax will be cut further to 17% in 2020
·         Capital gains tax will be cut from 28% to 20%, and from 18% to 10% for basic-rate payers
·         Self-employed people will see class 2 National Insurance Contributions abolished from April 2018, representing an average tax cut of £134 each.
·         A new sharing economy tax allowance of £1,000 each for property and trading income – removing taxes from income made through online platforms such as AirBnB.
·         Tax-free personal allowance and higher-rate threshold both to be raised. The personal allowance will go up to £11,500 in 2017-18. Higher-rate income tax will be incurred from £45,000, rather than £42,500.

Apprenticeships
·         Some new detail on the Apprenticeship Levy: from April 2017, employers will receive a 10% top-up to their monthly levy contributions in England and this will be available for them to spend on apprenticeship training through their digital account. The government will set out further details on the operating model in April and draft funding rates will be published in June.

Digital Economy
·         A new Broadband Investment Fund, in partnership with private sector investors, to support the growth of alternative broadband networks by providing greater access to finance
·         A 5G strategy in 2017, based on an assessment by the National Infrastructure Commission of how the UK can become a world leader in 5G
·         Establish a panel of leading experts, chaired by Kathryn Parsons, to shape the £20 million Institute for Coding competition

Measuring the Industry
The government has accepted all the recommendations from the Bean Review of Economic Statistics, including:
·         Invest over £10 million in a new ONS hub for data science: “The centre for excellence will improve the Office for National Statistics’ capability to measure the changes in the UK’s digital economy and to push the frontiers of economic measurement.”

Ukie will continue to make the case to the government, setting out how the UK can be the best place in the world to make and sell games, as demonstrated in our Blueprint for Growth report.

Train2game News Games Finance Market

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Dan Pinchbeck, founder of The Chinese Room and co-creator of Everybody’s Gone To the Rapture – last week nominated for 10 BAFTA Video Games Awards – will deliver the opening keynote address at the very first Games Finance Market in April.

The Games Finance Market is a first-of-its-kind event for games developers in London and the UK, matching 30 qualifying games companies with 30 investors. The Games Finance Market will take place 5 April to 7 April at The Grange City Hotel, part of the London Games Festival.

In an on-stage interview Pinchbeck will offer the 120+ delegates and industry guests an insight into working as a successful developer using different funding sources and partners. The Chinese Room has created a number of famed mods and the acclaimed games Dear Esther, Amnesia: A Machine For Pigs and Everybody’s Gone To The Rapture, working with a diverse mix of partners such as the Arts & Humanities Research Council, Frictional Games, Creative Europe and PlayStation.

Michael French, senior games programme executive of Games London, organiser of the Games Finance Market and the London Games Festival said: “The opening keynote for our inaugural event will set the tone not just for the day ahead but the years to follow. There’s no one better than Dan and The Chinese Room to inspire our delegates with their experiences in using key funding and financial support to create powerful, provocative and also lucrative digital experiences. Games Finance Market is all about connecting great ideas to funding, so hearing Dan’s experiences will be a perfect opening for us.”

Taking place over two days (6 and 7 April), the Games Finance Market will see 30 games studios and 30 investors meet for over 450 pre-arranged meetings. Representatives from leading private equity firms, tax-structured financiers, banks, international sale companies, publishers, games platforms and distributors will be amongst the accredited delegates.

The day prior, April 5, includes the Games Finance Summit – a special conference and training event dedicated to helping games studios understand games financing and investments – plus the Finance Market’s evening icebreaker drinks. 

The Games Finance Market and Games Finance Summit are sponsored by UK Games Fund and Pollen VC.

The Games Finance Market is part of the new London Games Festival which runs April 1 to 10. London Games Festival is organised by Games London, an initiative delivered jointly by Film London, the capital’s screen industries agency, and games trade body Ukie.

Backed by the Mayor of London, with funding worth £1.2m from the London Enterprise Panel, Games London is a new three-year programme to promote the UK’s wider games sector and make London the games capital of the world. Other key events in the LGF schedule include Now Play This at Somerset House (1 – 3 April), a special series of summits, the BAFTA Game Awards (7 April) and EGX Rezzed (7 – 9 April), plus a Fringe of 20 alternative events.
 
Follow @londongamesfest on Twitter or head to www.games.london for more updates.

Train2Game News Numskull and Bossa endorse Stand Up for GamesAid

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Numskull and Bossa Studios have endorsed their support to the Stand Up for GamesAid comedy event coming this May 9th.

GamesAid’s funniest night, Stand Up for GamesAid, is reaching for another magnificent triumph with a first class lineup and drum-rolling hype. It’s no wonder tickets are already flying fast.

Numskull has signed up as Premium Event and Exclusive Bar Partner and Bossa Studios has snapped up Event Partner.

Ben Grant, MD of Numskull says of GamesAid, “Having seen first hand the excellent work GamesAid do for smaller charities, we are honoured to support this initiative which will help the disadvantaged, disabled children and young people. We are looking forward to working together on this and many more projects over the coming years.”

Rob Gotlieb, Head of Marketing at Bossa Studios, “We’re delighted and proud to support GamesAid. Stand Up For GamesAid is such a special event, because it brings everyone from the industry together to have a really great laugh, but also shows how we can make a really positive difference to a young person’s life in just one night.”

Last year was a sell out year and this time it will be even bigger. Imran Yusuf is hosting the night, pulling together an award winning line up including, Mike Gunn and Allyson Smith. He has been nominated best newcomer at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and organised some of the country’s leading stand up acts. “One of the most captivating, energetic and animated stand up comedians I have ever seen,” reviews The New Current with a 5-star crown.

More information and tickets can be found at The Comedy Store. Money raised will go to GamesAid and their life-changing charities.

Numskull website: http://www.numskull.co.uk/

Bossa Studios website: http://www.bossastudios.com/