Category Archives: Developer

Train2Game News: Molyneux and Livingstone on next BAFTA Games Question Time panel

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Peter Molyneux BAFTA Train2Game blog image

BAFTA Games Question Time returns on Tuesday 12th June, with the free event offering Train2Game students the chance to ask a panel of experts about the games industry.  The BAFTA panel will include Peter Molyneux OBE, Ian Livingstone OBE, Alice Taylor and David Bailey.

Peter Molyneux founded Lionhead and Bullfrog productions and was until recently Creative Director of Microsoft Games Europe.  He left to form startup 22 Cans. He recently appeared at Train2Game and Epic’s Make Something Unreal Live, mentoring Train2Game students as they built games.

As co-author of the Fighting Fantasy series, Ian Livingstone also played a huge part in Make Something Unreal Live, something he was “delighted” to have taken part in. He’s also Life President of Eidos, Vice Chairman of UKIE and co-chair of their Next Gen Skills Campaign.

Alice Taylor was previously VP Digital for BBC Worldwide, and commissioner of Channel 4 Education games, apps and web TV shows, Alice is the founder of MakieLab, a new company producing customisable, 3D-printed, game-enabled toys.

Dave Bailey  is co-founder of Mediatonic, a studio based in central London whose team of around 40 design high quality social and mobile games in partnership with media giants such as Disney, EA, Time Warner and Sony.

The event will be chaired by games industry journalist Johnny Minkley.

BAFTA Games Question time takes place on Tuesday 12th June from 18:30p.m. For more information, or to book free tickets for the event, visit the BAFTA website.

You can also submit questions for the event in advance viaevents@bafta.org, the hashtag #baftagamesQT .  It offers a great opportunity for Train2Game students to get advice from some of the best in the UK games industry.

There’s more BAFTA news here on The Train2Game Blog.

Will you attend BAFTA Games Question Time? What would you like to ask the panel?

Leave your comments here on The Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

BAFTA’s public events and online resources bring you closer to the creative talent behind your favourite games, films, and TV shows. Find out more at www.bafta.org/newsletter,www.facebook.com/bafta or twitter.com/baftagames

Train2Game News: Metro: Last Light brand manager on getting into the industry

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Those looking to move forward into the games industry need play a lot of video games, but need to do more than playing the big box office hits; they need to play independent titles too. That’s according to Metro: Last Light global brand manager Mark Madsen.

“Play the Hell out of video games, continue to gather your own opinion.” he told The Train2Game Blog when we asked his advice on getting into the industry at a recent press event by THQ.

“And while the mass market games are a lot of fun, just understand that you need to take those with a grain of salt. They drew their inspiration from elsewhere, and from elsewhere is where you should really get your gaming base.” he added.

The advice is somewhat similar to that of Mass Effect 3 senior writer John Dombrow, who previously said “You should play games all the time.”

Find out more about Metro: Last Light from our interview with senior producer John Block in which he discusses developing the game and offers his own advice on getting into the industry.  Metro: Last Light is scheduled for release early next year.

There’s more advice from industry professionals on getting into the industry here on The Train2Game Blog.

As usual, leave your comments here on The Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Train2Game News: The Creative Assembly to make Total War announcement at Rezzed developer session

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Shogun 2 Total War

Total War studio The Creative Assembly will be hosting a developer session at PC and indie games show Rezzed, which is sure to be of interest to anyone on a Train2Game course.

The presentation will celebrate the studio’s 25 year history and will feature an exclusive first look at the future of Total War.

“This year, The Creative Assembly is celebrating a quarter of a century making games,” said Total War lead designer James Russell.

“I’ll be at Rezzed giving a talk on the making of the Total War series, and showing a sneak peek of what we’re doing next. Exciting times – see you there!”

The Creative Assembly recently released a free map editor for Shogun 2: Total War.

Rezzed takes place in Brighton on Friday 6th and Saturday 7th July with day the price of day tickets £12, or £20 for both days. There’s more information here.

Other games available to see at Rezzed include Aliens: Colonial Marines, Borderlands 2, XCOM: Enemy Unknown and more, in addition to a number of developer sessions.

Keep reading The Train2Game Blog for the latest updates about Rezzed, while there’s more from The Creative Assembly here.

Will you be attending Rezzed? If so, what are you most looking forward to?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Train2Game News: THQ appoint Naughty Dog founder Jason Rubin as president, Danny Bilson leaves

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Publisher THQ has appointed Naughty Dog co-founder Jason Rubin as new president of the company, with EVP of Core Games Danny Bilson leaving his position in the company.

“Jason’s proven track record in the industry speaks for itself, and he is one of the brightest minds in the business,” said THQ Chairman and CEO Brian Farrell.

“We believe he can be a game changer and can contribute immensely to executing on our strategy of delivering quality connected core game experiences.”

“THQ has incredible internal and external game development teams, and an exciting slate of games in its development pipeline.” added new President Jason Rubin, who has developed games including Crash Bandicoot and Jak and Dexter.

“The recent transformation of THQ into a creator of wholly-owned IP has placed it in a perfect position to leverage future trends in the game business. I look forward to working with the management team and board to realize the company’s goals.” he said.

Along with Danny Bilson, SVP of Core Games Dave Davis is also leaving THQ who has been replaced by former Activision man Jason Kay.

“Danny has made significant contributions to THQ, and we thank him for his efforts,” said Farrell. “Along with Danny, Dave has been instrumental in getting our strong pipeline into production.”

Games currently in development to be published by THQ include Darksiders II, Metro: Last Light, Company of Heroes 2, and WWE ’13.

There’s more news from THQ right here on The Train2Game Blog.

What are your thoughts on the restructuring at THQ?

Leave your comments here on The Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Train2Game News: MMOs represent “toughest part of the game industry” says SWTOR lead designer

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MMOs are the most difficult genre for game developers to be successful in. That’s the view of Star Wars: The Old Republic associate lead designer Emmanuel Lusinchi.

“The MMO is the toughest part of the game industry without a doubt and we live in tough economic times in general,” he told PC Gamer.

“We have a very large development team still, definitely one of the biggest in the industry, and we have a very complete and detailed plan for the rest of the year.” the BioWare man continued.

“The players don’t really care about all that, behind closed curtains, but they want what they’re paying for which is a service with new content, new systems, that’s what they’re asking for and we listen to them. That’s what we mean to deliver.” he added.

Train2Game spoke to Emmanuel Lusinchi last year, in an in-depth discussion which covered development of Star Wars: The Old Republic, what his role as associate lead designer involves, and advice on getting into the games industry. Read it here on The Train2Game Blog.

Keep reading The Train2Game Blog for the latest Star Wars: The Old Republic news.

Do you agree with Lusinchi about MMOs being the hardest games to develop? That said, would you like to work on one in future?

Leave your comments here on The Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Train2Game News: Creative Assembly dev diary on making Total War Battles: Shogun for mobile

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Get behind the scenes of Total War Battles: Shogun, the mobile adaptation of the PC strategy series in a developer diary from The Creative Assembly and SEGA.

Total War Battles: Shogun- Dev Diary #1 sees senior designers Renauld Charpentier and Xu Xiaojun, lead artist Nick Farley and lead programmer Mattijs van Delden discuss the challenges of adapting Total War to mobile, while still ensuring it’s still a “real strategy game.”

For example, the UI needs to be adjusted for a touchscreen, while the art needs to be bright and easily recognisable to distinguish between different types of unit.

Watch the Total War Battles: Shogun developer diary below, right here on The Train2Game Blog.

Total War Battles: Shogun is available now for iOS and is coming soon for Android.

There’s more on Creative Assembly and their Total War titles here on The Train2Game Blog.

What are your thoughts on bringing Total War to mobile? Can it capture the tactical gameplay of the PC titles?

Leave your comments here on The Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Train2Game News: Guild Wars 2 beta tests taken “very seriously in terms of development strategy”

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Beta tests are very important when it comes to deciding development strategy for Guild Wars 2. So says ArenaNet lead producer Chris Whiteside on the announcement of a second beta test weekend for the upcoming MMO.

Guild Wars 2 beta weekend 2 takes place from Friday 8th June to Sunday 10th June for those who’ve pre-ordered the game.

“Your participation is even more important when you consider that we take our beta events very seriously in terms of our development strategy.” wrote Whiteside on the ArenaNet blog announcement, detailing the ways it helps game development.

“At ArenaNet, “beta event” means exactly that—it’s a development-centric event in which we test our systems, discover new and exciting bugs, and get pivotal feedback from our testers about what is going in the right direction and what isn’t.” he continued.

“We have listened intently to all of your feedback from our first Beta Weekend Event, and we’ve made great strides toward resolving many of the issues you’ve helped us identify. These include party movement into overflow servers, chat functionality, key bindings, server stability, performance, and many more that we will detail in the near future.” added the Guild Wars 2 lead producer.

There’s more about the next Guild Wars 2 beta event over on the ArenaNet blog.

There’s more beta testing news, and information on how it’s useful to developers and Train2Game students, here on The Train2Game Blog.

What are your thoughts on ArenaNet’s view on beta testing? Will you be taking part in the Guild Wars 2 beta weekend?

Leave your comments here on The Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Train2Game News: BioWare programmer offers advice on getting into the industry

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Those looking to get into the games industry need to be aware that you need more than just a love video games. That’s according BioWare programmer Fernando Secco who argues you need to be aware of a wide variety of different areas.

“I think a good advice is always to say that playing games is very different than working with games. One can love and know a lot about games. But video games are not only about making games, it’s about working in team, building a vision, dealing with customer, studying, learning and finding out that your ideas may be not as good as you thought.” he told the BioWare Blog.

Secco added that whatever area of the games industry you’re aiming for, you need to practice your skills.

“I think the most important thing is make sure that is what you want. Not many people want to mix their hobby with their work. If you are sure what you want then pick an area you like, try to understand what a professional on that area does, which are his responsibilities, what he has to deliver, which tools he needs to know and start practicing.” he said.

Train2Game students can find out more about what it’s like to be a programmer at BioWare in the full interview with Fernando Secco.

There’s much more advice from games professionals on getting into the industry here on The Train2Game Blog.

As usual, leave your comments here on The Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Train2Game News: Ian Livingstone, David Perry, Philip Oliver and David Braben to speak at Develop Conference

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Train2Game students who are able to attend Develop Conference will be able to see games industry veterans David Perry, Ian Livingstone, Philip Oliver and David Braben speak as part of the conference’s Visionaries track.

The Visionaries Track is being introduced to give Develop in Brighton delegates a unique opportunity to hear and learn from some of the industry’s most influential, inventive and inspirational entrepreneurs, who’ll no doubt be able provide some excellent insights into the industry.

“The games industry has come a long way in a short time. Its social, cultural and economic impact on society is finally being recognised in government and mainstream media.” Said Eidos life President and Fighting Fantasy co-author Ian Livingstone, who hopes to help future developers.

“But celebration of the art form is not enough. The new digital landscape requires new skills and access to finance for the next generation of creative talent to succeed, building on the great legacy of the UK’s trailblazing developers.

“From my experiences with Games Workshop, Fighting Fantasy, Eidos, working with government and investing in Indies, I hope to help point the way.” he added.

Some Train2Game students received advice from Ian Livingstone as they produced Fighting Fantasy games at Make Something Unreal Live last month. Livingstone said he was “delighted” to be a part of the initiative, and you can watch an interview with him here on The Train2Game Blog.

Train2Game News will be at Develop Conference, so even if you can’t make it, we’ll be bringing you news straight from Brighton. There’s more on Develop Conference here.

What are your thoughts on the Visionaries track at Develop Conference?

Leave your comments here on The Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Train2Game news: Paradox Interactive Senior Producer hosting War of the Roses livestream this week

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Train2Game students can get an insight into development of War of the Roses from Paradox Interactive when the studio hosts a livestream event on Wednesday.

The War of the Roses livestream will see Paradox Senior Producer Gordon Van Dyke and some key team members from developer Fatshark discussing the medieval multiplayer combat game, with a focus on character customization.

Train2Game students may find it very useful to watch the War of the Roses livestream, which could provide some interesting behind the scenes information about developing the game based around an exciting period of British history.

Those interested in watching the War of the Roses livestream should tune into the official Paradox Interactive Twitch TV channel http://.twitch.tv/paradoxinteractive at 7p.m. on Wednesday 30th May.

There’s more Paradox Interactive news here on The Train2Game Blog.

What are your initial thoughts on War of the Roses? Will you be watching the livestream?

Leave your comments here on The Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game forum.