Category Archives: Train2Game

Train2Game

Get five great indie games and help charity with the Humble Indie Bundle

Posted on by
Reply

Humble Indie Bundle

This may have already been pointed out on the TrainGame forum, but it’s such a good cause we’re putting it here on the Train2Game blog too.

A group of independent developers are not only offering five great indie games that Train2Game students will want to play, but you can pay what you like and the money goes to charity. The original Humble Indie Bundle was a great success which raised a huge amount of donations for charity.

Now there’s a second Humble Indie Bundle which once again not only gives you the opportunity to own five great indie games, but also donate to kids charity Childs Play or the Electronic Frontier Foundation when you buy the pack. You can hand over whatever amount you want for five games that when bought separately would cost $85!

So what games can Train2Game students add to their collection by buying the Humble Indie Bundle? Well you will get Braid, Cortex Command, Machinarium, Osmos, and Revenge of the Titans.  You can find out a little more about each of them by watching the Hundle Indie Bundle #2 trailer below.

Humble Indie Bundle #2 has already been a huge success making over $500,000 in just one day.  At the time of writing, the bundle has brought in a total revenue of over $680,000 with the biggest individual donation coming from Minecraft developer Notch who handed over $2000. (You can read more about Minecraft here on the Thoughts of Train2Game blog) As I write this, the Humble Indie Bundle has been bought almost 93,000 times.

The average price paid for the Humble Indie bundle currently stands at $7.33. The Average donation by Windows users is $6.12, the average donation of a Mac user is $8.27 while Linux users are handing over an average donation of $13.66. It looks like Humble Indie Bundle #2 might raise more than the original!

Once again, Train2Game students can pay what they like for five great indie games. It’s an offer that really should be taken up! You can hand your money over to a good cause here.

As usual, you can leave your thoughts here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Minecraft entering Beta December 20th

Posted on by
1

Minecraft

Indie game sensation Minecraft – well loved on the Train2Game forum – is entering its Beta testing phase.  The news was announced by Minecraft creator Marcus ‘Notch’ Persson on his blog.

The biggest news, that is if you haven’t yet bought the Alpha version, is that the price will be rising from €9.95 to €14.95. The Beta version of Minecraft will also change the license to remove the line that all future versions of the game will be free. So if any Train2Game students want to invest in Minecraft before it moves out of the Alpha stage – and therefore get it for the cheapest price – you have until December 20th to purchase it from Minecraft.net.

The Minecraft Beta will also come with “a larger focus on polish and content” and Notch says he’d like input from modders on this – it could be a great experience of Train2Game students! The Beta will also see the introduction of a story mode.

Train2Game students can read the full post from Notch below:

“With Beta comes a larger focus on polish and content, and we’ll start early on with adding proper modding support with a stable API, and we’d love all input we can get on this from the modders out there. We’ll also add some kind of non-intrusive narrative to the game to help drive the game experience early on, and to provide some kind of late game goal. There will be a bigger focus on testing and stability as well, with more time between updates.

When the game enters beta, the price will rise to 14.95 Euro.

We will also change the license to remove the line that promises all future versions of the game for free. Please note that this change only affects people who buy the game after December 20, so if you got the game for during alpha, you will still get all future updates for free, despite this change. A promise is a promise.

Buying the game during beta will include all updates up until release, of course, and bug patches will be free.

Soon, you will be able to buy gift codes for Minecraft, perfectly timed for the holidays! Even better, if you buy those before December 20, accounts created from these codes will count as alpha accounts, and will receive all future updates for free”.

Minecraft is a brilliant example of an indie developer producing a hit game that provides huge amounts of inspiration on students on the Games Design, Games Developer and Games Artist & Animation courses.  The game has been purchased digitally over 750,000 times and brought in over $10 million.

You can see a more in depth look into the history of Minecraft and the games development in this post on the Thoughts of Train2Game blog. You can also get involved with the ongoing discussion about Minecraft on the Train2Game forum where many Train2Game students have been sharing their experiences of the sandbox game.

So Train2Game, if you’re yet to purchase Minecraft, are you tempted to do so before the game enters Beta on December 20th? What are your thoughts on the price increase? And if you’re already playing Minecraft, what are you looking forward to in the Beta?

You can leave your thoughts about Minecraft entering Beta stage here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Mass Effect 3 & Elder Scrolls V among new games revealed at VGAs

Posted on by
Reply

Mass Effect 3

The Spike TV Video Game Awards in Los Angeles has revealed a number of new games we can expect to see arrive in 2011 and beyond, and the excitement is already evident on the Train2Game forum.

The biggest announcements included Bioware showing off a trailer for Mass Effect 3 (So the teaser that featured on the Train2Game blog last month WAS for the third game in the series) and Bethesda revealing Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

The Mass Effect 3 trailer see’s London overrun by an alien species, while a sniper inside Big Ben pleads for Commander Shepard to return to earth. The commander is looking down on the planet from space while huge alien machines lay waste to London. You can see the Mass Effect 3 reveal trailer for yourself on the Train2Game forum. The game will be coming to PC, Xbox 360 – and yes – the PlayStation 3 towards the end of 2011.

The VGAs also saw the revealing of another much rumoured RPG title in the form of Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. You can see the trailer for that here on the Train2Game forum. Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a direct sequel to Oblivion and will be released on 11th November 2011. Another reveal included that of Resistance 3, with a trailer featuring a mix of live action footage and gameplay. The Resistance 3 trailer is also available in the VGA thread on the Train2Game forum.

Batman: Arkham City and Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception also had extended trailers shown off. The Uncharted 3 trailer – available on the Train2Game forum – shows what we can expect from Naughty Dog and reveals the game will come at the start of November.

Meanwhile, the Arkham City trailer reveals Doctor Hugo Strange as a villain and Train2Game students can watch it below.

Other reveals included Prototype 2, Guillermo Del Toro’s game InSane, but the latter not being scheduled for release until 2013!

So Train2Game, which of the VGA reveals and announcements are you most excited about? You see all of the trailers and leave your thoughts about them here on the Train2Game forum. Alternatively, you can leave your thoughts here on the Train2Game blog.

Call of Duty: Black Ops holds off Cataclysm

Posted on by
Reply

Call of Duty: Black Ops Train2Game

Train2Game students probably aren’t surprised to see that Call of Duty: Black Ops remains at the top of the UKIE GfK Chart-Track All Formats chart this week, once again comfortably holding off its rivals.

Regular readers of the Train2Game blog will know that Call of Duty: Black Ops has topped the chart every week since it was released in early November. The only week Activision’s shooter hasn’t claimed Number 1 so far is the week Gran Turismo 5 was released.

FIFA 11 is also a non-mover, holding onto second place for the second week running. It’s an impressive feat when you consider the game was first released over two months ago. This weeks highest new entry is World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, with the PC exclusive expansion title taking third place after its worldwide launch last week. Train2Game students may be interested to here that Cataclysm’s achievement doesn’t include digital sales, according to GamesIndustry.biz.

The new entry of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm pushes Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood and Gran Turismo 5 down one place each to fourth and fifth respectively. Just Dance 2 also drops one place to sixth place in this weeks All-Formats chart, while Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit is a non-mover in seventh.

Donkey Kong Country returns for the Nintendo Wii enters the top ten in its second week on sale, bounding five places up the chart to eighth place. Professor Layton and the Lost Future for the Nintendo DS and Wii Fit Plus round out the top ten, having swapped positions since last week.

Michael Jackson: The Experience and Wii Party both drop out the top ten, falling to 11th and 12th respectively.  Former Number 1 Fallout: New Vegas doesn’t look like it’ll be reentering the top ten any time soon, dropping from 11th to 18th place.

Disney’s Epic Mickey enters the top 40 for the first time, but only manages to sneak up to 37th place.

The full UKIE GfK Chart-Track All Formats Top Ten for the week ending December 11th is as follows:

1. Call of Duty: Black Ops (Activision)
2. FIFA 11 (EA)
3. World of Warcraft: Cataclysm (Blizzard)
4. Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood (Ubisoft)
5. Gran Turismo 5 (Sony)
6. Just Dance 2 (Ubisoft)
7. Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit (EA)
8. Donkey Kong Country Returns (Nintendo)
9. Professor Layton and the Lost Future (Nintendo)
10. Wii Fit Plus (Nintendo)

So Train2Game, are you at all surprised that World of Warcraft: Cataclysm didn’t take Number 1? Or was it always going to be difficult for a PC exclusive to knock down Call of Duty: Black Ops? And with Christmas fast approaching, which game do you think will the all important title of Christmas Number 1?

As usual, you can leave your thoughts here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Sony reveal gun attachment for PlayStation Move

Posted on by
Reply

PlayStation sharp shooter

Many Train2Game students have already welcome motion controllers into their homes with open arms, but a new attachment from Sony could help swing some of those who remain unconvinced.

The Sharp Shooter will allow Train2Game students to use their PlayStation Move controllers in the fashion of a real gun when playing shooters. The new device will be compatible with the upcoming Killzone 3, along with other games including Time Crisis: Razing Storm, Socom 4 and Dead Space Extraction.

The official blurb about the PlayStation Move Sharp Shooter on the PlayStation Blog says:

“The PlayStation Move sharp shooter houses both the motion controller and navigation controller, giving you complete control over aiming, movement and interaction within the game. It will truly offer the most intuitive and immersive control experience ever found in a shooter game.

It was designed for both comfort and precision, including easily accessible buttons, a responsive digital trigger, adjustable shoulder stock and convenient access to the navigation controller.

In addition, the sharp shooter has incorporated a firing mode selector, realistic pump-action and a reload button that allow for new ways of engagement.”

Train2Game students can see a video of the PlayStation Move Sharp Shooter,  thanks to the European PlayStation blog below

The Sharp Shooter doesn’t have a yet fixed release date, but it’ll be available in time for Killzone 3 in February 2011. The US price is $39.99, with no signs of a UK price as of yet.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on the Sharp Shooter? Is it something you’d like to use to play first person shooters? Do you think it’ll work? Would it encourage you to get a PlayStation Move controller if you don’t already have one?

As usual, you can leave your thoughts here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

“If you’re having no fun making your game then you’re in trouble” says Joe Danger creator

Posted on by
Reply

Joe Danger Train2GameTrain2Game students are no doubt enthusiastic about their games design, developer and artist and animator courses, but Hello Games boss Sean Murray says developers in the industry should be more enthusiastic about the work they produce.

Speaking at the Evolve in London conference, Murray said:

“Some game developers, they don’t play their own games, they don’t feel it’s an expression of themselves think that’s very sad.”

“I think some of the gameplay mechanics that are in the social gaming space are more indicative of that, there are certain pyramid scheme elements to the game design that I don’t think anyone who just wanted to make a game that they themselves would play would ever put that in.”

“The social games of the future that are just built around rewards and pyramid schemes… maybe don’t have as much a place in that world”

During his talk, the Hello Games boss showed videos of Joe Danger developers laughing and having fun while playtesting the game.  He said that “If you’re having no fun making your game then you’re in trouble,” We’d therefore very much like to think that Train2Game students are having fun when they’re developing games!

Murray also spoke about how motion controllers saying that they’re great in theory, but “”inaccurate motion control actually reduces interactivity and that’s harmful” He then showed the video of someone ‘playing’ Kinect Joyride and coming third despite not moving at all during the race.

“It’s such as shame, it’s such a lost opportunity. It is actually a good game, but there’s a danger of making games too casual and removing interactivity, and you see that sometimes. I think even the casual gamer doesn’t want to just have reward.” He said.

Train2Game have a great opportunity to be enthusiastic about producing games through entering the Train2Game Christmas Competition. The winners will see their game published during 2011!

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on Sean Murray’s comments?  Do you think he’s right about social games? And how enthusiastic are you about your Train2Game projects?

As usual, you can leave your thoughts here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

(Source: GI.biz)

Train2Game Christmas Competition 2010

Posted on by
Reply

Train2Game Christmas Competition Map

Train2Game has launched a competition that will see the winning team have their game released on the iPad by DR Studios!

The game will be released in the second quarter of 2011 with the winning Train2Game student team credited as the originators of the title and taking share of the revenue along with a donation to the Princes Trust Charity

The team challenge involves making a game based around using the UK postcode map above. The Train2Game student team made came must adhere to the following criteria:

  • Games must be developed in GameMaker only.
  • There are no restrictions on the game type or genre
  • There are no restrictions on art style or look and feel
  • The game must include multi-player in some form, either 2,3 or 4.
  • The base image must not be changed in any way.

The style and tempo of the game is entirely down to the Train2Game student teams, and the final product will be assessed on ingenuity, innovation and playability.

Teams submitting games need to meet these criteria, with no exceptions:

  • The competition is open to Train2Game students aged 17 or over
  • All team members must be current Train2Game students.
  • Teams can include between 2 and 5 members.
  • Students can only take part in one team and are not allowed to members of multiple teams

To enter, Train2Game students must gather their team of 2-5 people together, name it, make a list of team members complete with contact details, and nominate captain and send this in an email to cc2010@drstudios.co.uk

The competition closes on the 20th of December at 4pm, with the winning team being revealed in January.

For more information, and full terms and conditions, please see the competition thread on the Train2Game forum.

Good luck!

This Dragon Age 2 developer diary is a must watch for Train2Game students!

Posted on by
Reply

Dragon Age 2 Train2Game

Bioware has released a developer diary for Dragon Age 2 which should prove of interest to Train2Game students be they a games developer, games designer or games artist and animator, because it almost contains everything!

The developer diary not only features Executive Producer Mark Darrah, Art Director Matthew Goldman and Lead Designer Mike Laidlaw talking about the concepts and ideas behind Dragon Age 2, but it also features gameplay, concept models and even some nice looking animated videos. Train2Game artists will be especially interested in the latter!

The Dragon Age 2 developer diary begins with Executive Producer Mike Darrah stating that meetings about the game had begun in 2009 before Dragon Age: Origins had even been released.  This cumulated in an impressive looking animated first build which the team say contains many of the elements that feature in the opening of Dragon Age 2.

The developers also say that there were ideas they had in these opening stages that in the end didn’t make the cut. For example, Art Director Matthew Goldman says he wanted protagonist Hawke to be a he lycanthrope that tasted his own blood and howled like a werewolf. Obviously, this idea hasn’t made it into Dragon Age 2!

The idea of cutting out more outlandish concepts from a game is something that games industry consultant Nicholas Lovell discussed during an interview with Train2Game.

Lead Designer Mike Laidlaw also talks us through one of the main changes for Dragon Age 2, where choices the player makes will have affects right away, rather than at the end of the game:

“Where Origins really shone by having this huge epilogue with thousands of variations based on the choices you made, we’ve instead moved that into the gameplay.”

“People you have interacted with at the beginning of the game are going to have their situations profoundly affected by their interactions with Hawke – your character. You re-interact with them. You see how that worked out. So we believe [this] be our most interactive game to date.”

The team also discuss how they’re aware that some of the changes they’ve made are big, but they believe that it will change Dragon Age 2 for the better.

Interested Train2Game students can watch the Dragon Age 2 developer diary below, courtesy of GameSpot UK.

If that isn’t enough Dragon Age 2 action for you Train2Game, you can check out the extended trailer in this Train2Game blog post from August.

Long time Train2Game blog readers will know that we’ve previously been massive advocates of Dragon Age: Origins, even going so far as to say that it’s a game that all Train2Game students should appreciate. The sheer open nature of the game means that the game designers needed to put a lot of effort into writing the different outcomes, while game developers and game artist and animators would have worked on parts of the game that the majority of players may not have even seen!

Dragon Age: Origins also ended up with a lot of game mods, and as Train2Game students will know modding can provide great practice when it comes to using your skills. Perhaps Dragon Age 2 will come with the same opportunities.

Dragon Age 2 is scheduled for release for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC on March 11th 2011.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on the Dragon Age 2 developer diary? Does it provide you with a good insight into how producing a game as massive as Dragon Age 2 works? And what do you think about the changes that have been made to the game since Origins? Has the game perhaps been tailored to a console audience?

You can leave your thoughts here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Pachter blasts Activision for not introducing Call of Duty online fees

Posted on by
Reply

Train2Game Call of Duty

The man gamers, including Train2Game students, love to hate has spoken again. No, it isn’t Bobby Kotick but the guy is talking about Call of Duty.  Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter has blasted Activisions’ decision not to charge an online fee for their successful online shooter.

As reported on the Train2Game blog last month, Pachter recently predicted that Call of Duty: Black Ops players would have to eventually pay an online. Activision quickly moved to say they’d never, ever charge a fee for playing Call of Duty online.

Pachter is seemingly not happened with this decision, and in a move that may surprise many Train2Game blog readers, the analyst has openly criticised the gaming publishing giants for their position:

“We were disappointed to hear Activision’s new head of publishing flatly deny the company’s plans to charge for multiplayer,” said Pachter.

“We firmly believe that until the publishers address monetization of multiplayer, game sales will continue to be challenged by the publishers’ altruistic decision to provide significantly more entertainment value per hour than ever in history.”

“Considering that each of the publicly traded publishers exists to maximize shareholder value, we view their reticence to monetize multiplayer as a betrayal of shareholder trust, and can only hope that each implements plans to address the impact of increasing free multiplayer going forward.”

“Even if we are mistaken and charging for multiplayer doesn’t result in packaged goods growth, we think that investors will be satisfied if publisher revenues once again begin to grow due to contribution from multiplayer monetization.”

“In our view, monetization of multiplayer is one of the greatest opportunities for the publishers, and we think that it would be a serious strategic error to pass on this opportunity,

Michael Pachter may be unhappy with the decision of Activision not to charge for playing Call of Duty: Black ops online, but Train2Game students will certainly approve. Many posters on the thread on the Train2Game forum weren’t exactly keen on the idea.

Regular readers of the Train2Game blog will also know about the massive success of Call of Duty: Black Ops and may question why Activision would risk alienating players by charging! Call of Duty: Black Ops is still selling well and regained the top spot in the UK charts this week.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on Pachters’ comments? Why do you think he is so keen to lay into Activision?

As usual, you can leave your thoughts here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

(Source: Industry Gamers)

LittleBigPlanet 2 Wolfenstein 3D level shows more creative potential for Train2Game designers

Posted on by
Reply

LittleBigPlanet 2 Train2Game

Yet more evidence has emerged that shows how LittleBigPlanet 2 has the potential to be one massive game development playground for Train2Game students.

Video footage from the LittleBigPlanet 2 beta has emerged that shows how one user, RAPHAEI, has recreated a level from Wolfenstein 3D.  This newly designed level – suitably called Sackenstein 3D – isn’t just a 2D LittleBigPlanet level with some art taken from Wolfenstein 3D, it’s a fully working first person shooter in its own right!

And this recreation Wolfenstein 3D isn’t an on the rails affair like the Vietnam First Person Shooter that was shown on the Train2Game blog earlier in the year, this time, you can actually move your character around.

Train2Game students can see Sackenstein 3D in action by watching the video below.


This is just the latest in a long line of videos that show how LittleBigPlanet 2 could provide an excellent tool set for Train2Game students to use and practice their Game Design skills. Train2Game students will be able to use the creation tools in LittleBigPlanet 2 to not only build their own levels, but build there own games with the video above being a prominent example of the latter.

Other examples of user made levels that Train2Game students may take an interest in looking at include a recreation of Portal and classic game Dogfight, both remade using LittleBigPlanet 2. RAPHAEI has also been responsible for creating a version of PSN Indie game Flower with the design tools in Media Molecules beta, which Train2Game students should also look at as an example they could follow.

Creating levels using LittleBigPlanet 2 really is something Train2Game Games Designers should give thought to, because as the Train2Game Blog has previously mentioned, developers Media Molecule have hired budding game designers based on the levels they’ve created for LittleBigPlanet.

Train2Game students may also find that this Train2Game blog post about the development of Sackboy provides interesting reading.

LittleBigPlanet 2 is set for release for the PlayStation 3 on January 18th. Media Molecule recently revealed a checklist of things that still need to be done before then, which Train2Game students can see it here.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on the latest LittleBigPlanet 2 beta video? Could you see yourself using the skills you’ve developed to build an exciting and interesting custom level? Will you be purchasing LittleBigPlanet on day one?

You can leave your thoughts here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.