Train2Game Game Designer Adam Gulliver writes about his experiences on a Train2Game student work placement at DR Studios. You read can part 3 here on the Train2Game blog, or on the official Train2Game industry experiences website. Both Part 1 and Part 2 as also available on the Train2Game blog.
Earlier this year, the Train2Game blog reported that a budding game developer had caught the eye of studios with a ‘World of StarCraft’ MMO mod for StarCraft II.
Then as also seen on the Train2Game blog, modder Ryan Winzen was invited to Blizzard to discuss potential employment. While there hasn’t been any news of Winzen in a job, rumours of a Starcraft MMO have surfaced.
That’s according to a report by GameFront which suggests Blizzard are “committed to enhancing shareholder value through residual monthly fees,” with StarCraft
“Given the popularity of the StarCraft universe, the immediate reaction to the World of StarCraft mod, and factoring in an aging World of Warcraft, Blizzard has been put into a position where an SC MMO would be too financially lucrative to pass up.” The report states, with an update adding “Our source asserted that there will be a StarCraft MMO.”
While there isn’t a guarantee anything from the independent ‘World of StarCraft’ mod will be in any new MMO, it’s still a good reminder to Train2Game students about the impact modding can have.
For a reminder of how beneficial modding can be, see this Train2Game blog post from earlier in the year.
And it isn’t just the Train2Game blog that stresses the importance of modding to the game developers of the future. In a recent interview with the Train2Game blog, Red Faction: Armageddon Lead Level Designer Jameson Durall said modding is a great way for aspiring game developers to practice their skills.
“One thing I would say is for people who are even interested in it is to start modding. Find your favourite game, download their tools and start learning what it is to actually create content for this.
That gives you real practical knowledge of how making games works, even if it’s just in a small capacity.” he replied when asked what advice he’d give to those looking to be a Game Designer.
“Grab one of the LEGO games, like LEGO Indiana Jones, it has a full level building system built right into it. And LittleBigPlanet, those are things you can get in there, learn to play and just recreate something you experienced to see what goes into that” the Level Designer added.
He also recommended UDK as a great modding tool, and as reported by the Train2Game blog it recently passed 800,000 downloads.
It’s also worth adding that infamous 2 is released this week, and as previously mentioned by the Train2Game blog, it’ll feature a level creator with the best becoming easily accessible to every player.
So Train2Game, there’s not really any excuse not to start modding or at least building levels using in-game tools!
What are your thoughts on the prospects of a StarCraft MMO? Would it be a successful MMO? Could the fact it exists be purely down to the mod before it?
Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.
Train2Game Game Designer Adam Gulliver writes about his experiences on a Train2Game student work placement at DR Studios. You read can part 2 here on the Train2Game blog, or on the official Train2Game industry experiences website. Part 1 is also available on the Train2Game blog.
L.A. Noire, which as the Train2Game blog previously reported became the UK’s fastest selling new IP, is once again top of the UK Charts as compiled by UKIE.
The Rockstar published title from Team Bondi holds No.1 after a quiet week for new releases. Lego Pirates of the Caribbean rises one place and takes it’s third No.2 in the four weeks since release, while Dirt 3 drops one in its second week on sale.
Former No.1 – as reported by the Train2Game blog – Zumba Fitness holds No.4 while fellow former No.1 Brink is also a non-mover at No.5. There’s also no change for Wii Sports Resort at No.6.
Chart regulars Call of Duty: Black Ops and FIFA 11 switch positions in No.7 and No.8 respectively. As reported by the Train2Game blog, Activision’s next Call of Duty title – Modern Warfare 3 – will be coming later this year.
Another former chart topper in the form of Portal 2 moves up three to No.9, while The Sims 3: Generations is the highest new entry this week at No. 10. The only other new entry this week is Hunted: The Demon’s Forge from independent game developer Inxile which debuts at No. 14.
The UKIE Gfk Chart-Track All Formats Top 10 for the week ending 4th June 2011 is therefore as follows:
1. LA Noire (Rockstar)
2. LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean (Disney)
3. Dirt 3 (Codemasters)
4. Zumba Fitness (505 Games)
5. Brink (Bethesda)
6. Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo)
7. Call of Duty: Black Ops (Activision)
8. FIFA 11 (EA)
9. Portal 2 (EA)
10. The Sims 3: Generations (EA)
Big name releases this week include infamous 2, Red Faction: Armageddon, and…Duke Nukem Forever. Much more information about each of these is available on the Train2Game blog.
Infamous 2 is set to feature User Generated Content, find out how this could be a massive benefit for Train2Game students here on the blog.
Last week, the Train2Game blog featured an in-depth interview with Red Faction: Armageddon Lead Level Designer Jameson Durall. Subjects covered included Game Design, game development and how to get into the games industry.
And last month, the Train2Game blog got a massive insight into the long, long development of Duke Nukem Forever, thanks to the BAFTA Q&A event with Gearbox Software CEO Randy Pitchford.
So Train2Game, which title do you believe will be No.1 next week? Which one of the new releases will you be going for? Or could L.A. Noire hold them all off?
Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum
Train2Game Game Designer Adam Gulliver writes about his experiences on a Train2Game student work placement at DR Studios. You read can it here on the Train2Game blog, or on the official Train2Game industry experiences website.
Train2Game Game Designer Chris Robinson writes about his experiences on a Train2Game student work placement. Chris is on placement at DR Studios. You read can it here on the Train2Game blog, or on the official Train2Game industry experiences.
Chris Robinson has previously shared about his experiences with the Game Design course. Read them here on the Train2Game blog, or alternatively, listen to him on Train2Game Radio.
Another post by Train2Game Game Design student Robin Channon about his Train2Game work placement at DR Studios. You can also read it here on the official Train2Game student industry experiences website.
You can also read his thoughts about the placement in this Train2Game blog interview.
The Train2Game blog was recently lucky enough to grab a chat with Volition’s Jameson Durall, Lead Level Designer of the upcoming Red Faction: Armageddon. In a wide ranging interview that’ll be of interest to anyone on a Train2Game course, Durall discussed the impressive Geo-Mod engine, how it impacts on Game Design, what goes on behind the scenes during game development at Volition, and revealed to us his tips for getting into the games industry.
In the second part of this interview, Durall continues to discuss how the Geo-Mod engine influences Game Design, how it could potentially be used for modding, and the game development process at Volition. Part one is already available on the Train2Game blog.
Train2Game blog: Can you tell us a bit about the process of how creating and designing new enemies actually works?
Jameson Durall: In our case we wanted to build something to further enhance the experience of the destruction. We had humans in [Red Faction] Guerrilla and we wanted to do something where we could be a little bit more elaborate with them. One of our main goals with taking a good chunk of the game underground was we could utilise the walls and the ceilings, so we wanted to also have enemies that we could do that with as well.
And so when we’re developing each of the types of the aliens, we wanted to make sure they were able to attach themselves to the walls, and attach themselves to the ceilings, giving them different ways to come into the world. So if the player goes in and blows up everything we wanted a way to make sure we can keep refilling the battle or making it as intense as we want. So we did things like the ‘Monster Closet’ so we could bring more into the battles when we needed to.
Train2Game blog: Is the advancement in the Geo-Mod engine the reason why Red Faction: Armageddon has mostly moved underground and is no longer sandbox style as in previous game Red Faction: Guerrilla?
Jameson Durall: One of the things we found with Guerrilla was that the restrictions of building such a destructible area meant that we had to have a lot of space in between each of those encounters. So one of the things with going underground allowed us to do was, we’re not having to draw these vast distances so we can really intensify areas with a lot more destruction. So we wanted to make sure; one, that we got a more dense destruction area, plus we wanted to make sure the player didn’t have to wait as long in between them and we’ve accomplished that goal.
We were handed a fantastic technology for this game, and the Geo-Mod is truly remarkable; so for us it was making sure ‘what could we do on top of that, how could we integrate it a little more in the gameplay’ and not have to worry about having these gaps and what we could do to make sure it was more action packed, and let the player do what they want to do more which is blow things up.
Train2Game blog: Can you see the Geo-Mod engine or something like it being used in other games aside from Red Faction? Or even for modding purposes in future?
Jameson Durall: I think that’s totally possible. There’s a lot of interesting applications for something like that; just think of a quick Xbox LIVE game that you could make which is a fully destructible cartoon style world. The technology itself could transfer to anything that you want to do, it’s a fully physics based destructible world.
Train2Game blog: How does the Game Design team come up with the story and characters? Is it very much a team based effort? Or do individual designers work on individual parts?
Jameson Durall: It’s definitely a team based thing. Certain things will come in when we want to accomplish ‘X goal’ and then we’ll work together to figure out what we can mould around it to make sure that we accomplish that goal. Even the levels themselves have to be built around certain particular story points that we want to make sure we achieve.
So for us there’s a whole lot of each designer working together with our creative director and working with the writing department making sure everyone’s on the same page, that we focus on the key points we have to achieve and then how do we build the rest of the game around that.
You can read part 1 of our interview here on the Train2Game blog.
In Part 3 of the Train2Game blog interview with Red Faction: Armageddon Lead Level Designer Jameson Durall, he tells us how he got into the games industry, offers advice to budding Game Designers and discusses the benefits of modding. Red Faction: Armageddon is released June 10th.
The first of a new feature, Train2Game student Robin Channon writes about his experiences a Train2Game student work placement. Robin was on placement at DR Studios. You read can it here on the Train2Game blog, or on the official Train2Game website.
The Train2Game blog was recently fortunate enough to grab a chat with Volition’s Jameson Durall, Lead Level Designer of the upcoming Red Faction: Armageddon. In a wide ranging interview that’ll be of interest to anyone on a Train2Game course, Durall discussed the impressive Geo-Mod engine, how it impacts on Game Design, what goes on behind the scenes during game development at Volition, and revealed to us his tips for getting into the games industry.
In the first part of this interview, he talks about his role at Volition, how the Geo-Mod engine works, and how it impacts on Game Design in Red Faction: Armageddon. More about Game Design is available in part two, while in part three Durall speaks about getting into the games industry.
Train2Game blog: What does your role of Lead Level Designer with Red Faction: Armageddon mean? What have you contributed to the development of the game?
Jameson Durall: Well, I have a group of level designers and work together with those guys to make sure that we’re building the kind of environments we need for the most action packed, destructive areas that also help tell the story that we’re trying to tell in the game. So there’s a whole lot of working closely with them, trying to direct the areas in a way that fulfils those goals and make sure that we make the best levels possible.
Train2Game blog: The levels are based on the Geo-Mod engine; can you tell us how that works?
Jameson Durall: [Laughs] A smarter man than we would have to tell you exactly how it works! But simply the basics are that every building is built around a shard system. It has a state, and when it takes damage it breaks into smaller pieces. It’s a full physics engine, and so it takes real weight and stress, so anything we build in the game we have to be very realistic about how it’s constructed because anything on top is forcing weight down on to the stuff below. It gets a little more difficult when you want to make tall buildings, or things that look certain ways because you have to make sure you have real foundation at the bottom to hold the weight of the things you’re trying to do.
Train2Game blog: How does this affect the design of the levels and the story of Red Faction: Armageddon as a whole?
Jamson Durall: I’ve been designing levels for over ten years, and I’ve never had a challenge quite like this. You think about traditional shooters where a lot of enemies will come out from behind walls or they’ll open doors and the thing that we have to always consider is that the player could destroy the entire area before certain things start to happen. So we always had to think of each level as a mini-sandbox, where it’s like ‘Ok the player can do so many different things, so lets build each little encounter in a way that they have a lot more options plus we account for whatever they might do.’
It also forced us to do some things like come up with enemy types that now can actually come in through the walls; so we developed the ‘Monster Closet’ system so enemies can come in that way. And then things like the Wraith, it can literally appear anywhere, so we don’t have to worry about including visibility for things like that.
In part two of the Train2Game blog interview with Red Faction: Armageddon Lead Level Designer Jameson Durall, he tells us more about the Geo-Mod engine and how it impacts on every aspect of Game Design. Red Faction: Armageddon is released June 10th.
Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.
