Tag Archives: Unreal

Train2Game & Epic Games Make Something Unreal Live: The Book

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Train2Game and Epic Games co-sponsored Make Something Unreal Live, an unprecedented game development competition that took place at the Gadget Show Live.

Four teams presented their new iOS games based on individual books in the “Fighting Fantasy” series to the franchise’s esteemed creators, Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone OBE, and the duo determined that Commando Kiwi’s fresh twist on the third-person adventure genre makes the best use of the property and exhibits the most outstanding commercial potential.

Read the story of the whole show, and the run up to it in this virtual book here on The Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game Scribd page.

Train2Game Gadget Show Live interview: Commando Kiwi artist Cat Forsyth

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Train2Game student teams recently took part in Make Something Unreal Live at The Gadget Show, a contest in association with Epic Games that saw winners Commando Kiwi walk away with a fully licensed Unreal Development for Ios. Their winning title was a game based on Fighting Fantasy book The Warlock of Firetop Mountain.

During the course of the show, Train2Game news spoke to art & animation student and Commando Kiwi member Cat Forsyth. In an interview that was recorded before the winners were announced, she told us how she was finding the experience, and even mentions the possibility of a job offer!

Read the interview here, or listen via Train2Game Radio. Leave your comments here on The Train2Game Blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Cat, can you tell me what course you’re on, please?

I’m on the Train2Game Art & Animation course, and I’ve been doing it for about a year.

And how did you get into that?

I was actually a jeweller beforehand by trade, business was beginning to get a bit slow, so I decided to take the opportunity for the Train2Game course advertised, and I applied for the Art & Animation course,  and here I am now.

And how are you finding the course so far?

I’m enjoying the course very much. Unfortunately, because of The Gadget Show, I haven’t actually done anything in several months, but fingers crossed when the dust settles after this event, I’ll get back onto it.

How did Commando Kiwi, the team that you’re on, come about?

We went to the Train2Game & Epic Game Jam in November last year. None of us had met each other before and we got put together as a team, came up with the name Commando Kiwi, and that’s where we started.

What’s your role on the team?

I’m the UI Artist for the team, I’m predominantly doing the user interface, graphics, buttons, things like that.

So what’s been happening over the last few days?

Basically, we’ve sped up out working process; it’s a lot easier to work all together in one room. It’s a culmination of the last three or four months and we’re fine tuning things, tweaking things, making the game run smoother, things like that.

It must have been hard over the last few months, working towards this show and doing your studies at the same time.

A little bit, I think I sit on my computer until about 11 o’clock at night, that’s my life at the moment!

Hopefully this experience will help further your study and career path, do you think that’s going to be the case?

Yes, it’s a massive opportunity and I couldn’t imagine being where I am now six months ago. I’ve learned an awful lot, my skills have improved immeasurably, and I’ve had loads of opportunities meeting people, making contacts, learning. It’s been an invaluable opportunity.

How do you rate your chances here at Make Something Unreal Live?

I think the competition is quite good but I think that we’ve got a fair chance.

And you had an underhand interview happen here at the show?

Yes, I had an interview without knowing it. I got introduced to a gentleman who took my card, and fingers crossed after the event I can keep in contact with the possibility of a job.  It’s been very worthwhile.

Excellent, a fantastic opportunity. Thanks very much Cat.

For more information about Train2Game and Make Something Unreal Live visit www.train2game.com

Train2Game news: All the Make Something Unreal Live interviews in one place

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Train2Game News has recently posted a number of interviews with students taking part in Make Something Unreal Live. The event, which takes place at The Gadget Show Live, sees  four Train2Game student teams making games based on the prestigious Fighting Fantasy IP in an effort to win a fully licensed Unreal Development Kit for iOS.

In order to make them easier to find, we’ve put links to each Make Something Unreal Live interview below, in which the Train2Game student contestants reveal a bit about their games and tell us how they feel about taking part in the event. You can also listen to each interview here. Enjoy!

Team Digital Mage

Interview with Craig Moore.

Interview with Laurence Kinane.

Team Commando Kiwi

Interview with Jonny Robinson.

Interview with Adam Sherratt.

Team Derp Studios

Interview with Chris Ledger.

Interview with Stuart Moore.

Team IndigoJam

Interview with Ben Stoneman.

Interview with Daniel Rutter.

Keep up to date with the latest Make Something Unreal Live news, right here on The Train2Game Blog.

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

Train2Game news: PC is best platform to begin making games for says Bleszinski

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Train2Game students looking to kick start a career in making indie games should develop games for PC. That’s according to Epic Games design director Cliff Bleszinski, who gave advice to the game developers of tomorrow at a panel session at GDC.

“Xbox Live and PSN, skip both of them because you’re at Sony or Microsoft’s will as to what’s on the dashboard. iOS, maybe, but you have to have Apple’s approval, there’s too much piracy on Android, no one has a Windows phone, Kickstarter’s wonderful, go Tim Schafer. I would go with the PC.” he said.

It’s not the first time Bleszinski has given advice to aspiring game developers, with the Train2Game Blog previously reporting that the Epic man suggests game developers need to make themselves stand out.

“First and foremost, make a great game but also have a personality. Be the guy with the hip glasses, with the one gauge earring and the gamer tattoo all the way to the sleeves with a skateboard. Stand out.” he said.

Keep up with Cliff Bleszinski here on The Train2Game Blog.

Train2Game and Epic Games are working together to host Make Something Unreal Live, a contest taking place at The Gadget Show live which will see one Train2Game student team walk away with a licensed Unreal Development Kit.  Find out more here on The Train2Game Blog.

So, what are your thoughts on Bleszinski’s advice? Do you agree that the PC is the best platform for indie devs to begin with?

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


Train2Game interview: Jonny Robinson of Train2Game & Epic Games Make Something Unreal Live team Commando Kiwi

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Train2Game  students are launching four new development studios in 2012 as part of ‘Make Something Unreal Live,’ a competitive process designed to accelerate their careers by giving them the tools and resources needed to release games for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch this spring.

The studios are Commando Kiwi, Derp Studios, Digital Mage and Indigo Jam.

The first titles released by the studios will be based on the Fighting Fantasy series of books created by Ian Livingston and Steve Jackson.

We caught up with Commando Kiwi’s Jonny Robinson to find out how the road to Make Something Unreal Live at The Gadget Show has gone so far. Listen via Train2Game Radio or read it here on The Train2Game Blog.

Hi Jonny. Your team for Make Something Unreal Live is called Commando Kiwi, what made you decide on that name?

There wasn’t really any decision on the name, it was just a case of asking ourselves what sounded cool, what sounded indie and we just chose Commando Kiwi. Someone on the team just said ‘Commando Kiwi sounds cool’ so we decided to roll with it. It wasn’t a real decision, because we didn’t want to take ourselves too seriously as a team, we just want to have as much fun as possible.

And you had a bit of fun making the Commando Kiwi logo as well.

Oh yes. If you didn’t know, we hosted a little competition, a little social media pump if anything. We asked our Facebook fans to make us a logo, and the best one, a team decision, was made our actual logo, and thanks to Dave Higgins, we have a cool little logo. So that’s going to be representing us for the Make Something Unreal Live event.

You’ll be working with the prestigious Fighting Fantasy IP, which book in particular is your game going to be based on?

We’ve got The Warlock of Firetop Mountain, the iconic one…unfortunately. Well, it’s not unfortunate but it’s just more pressure compared, I think, to the other teams.

And which genre of game have you been assigned to make?

We were given the third person style. At the Train2Game and Epic Game Jam, I read out ‘third’ at the presentation, so we’ve taken on the assumption of third person.

Does that mean the game is Fable-esque, perhaps?

No…I’d like to think our game has taken the course of Final Fantasy meets Infinity Blade. We’d like to say it’s a good looking game, really lush, with this kind of strategy element, making sure you pick the right moves at the right time like you’d see in a normal Final Fantasy. We’ve designed it that way so it has simple controls and not too thumbs heavy; it’s the same as another touch and play game.

How have you found working with UDK in the run up to Make Something Unreal Live?

It’s a great piece of kit. It’s been stressful at times, but it’s just like with any piece of software, there have been builds that have gone down and we’ve had to rebuild, luckily I’ve got an amazing team. We’ve tackled some hard problems on the UDK, we’ve bent the engine to our will, but it’s looking really cool and hopefully we’ll be delivering an awesome game.

And how have you found the transition from being a team at the Train2Game and Epic Game Jam, to being a fully functioning team going forward to Make Something Unreal Live at The Gadget Show?

One word? Nervous, just so nervous; the pressure is on, especially if you’ve got a big name like The Warlock of Firetop Mountain. I’ve read about it, I’ve read the books. I only first read the books two years back, but what I read was really cool because Train2Game actually talked about it (in the course books) which is why I was surprised when we got the IP of it! This is big.

How much are you looking forward to taking part in the event? How does the prospect of being there in Birmingham at the NEC while making a game make you feel?

Er, scared…Don’t get me wrong, it’s going to be an amazing experience. The reason I’m so scared is because it could change our life, and if anything there’s more pressure to get it right. If anything, these shots don’t happen very often, and we want to deliver as best as we can for this opportunity we’ve been given.

But the skills you’ve learned through the Train2Game course will help you throughout the process.

Oh yes, they’ve helped tremendously, especially for team management and project management for game design. It’s really opened a lot of the team’s eyes for what we’ve had to do. If anything, we’ve learned a lot more for this little development, and the Train2Game course helped.

What are the contact details of the Commando Kiwi social media pages?

It’s www.facebook.com/comkiwi and for Twitter it’s @CommandoKiwi We’re more than happy to engage with our fans.

Thanks for your time Jonny, and good luck.

Thanks Danny.

Keep up to date with the latest news from Make Something Unreal Live here on The Train2Game Blog.

Train2Game news: Epic’s Samaritan tech demo needs power of ten Xbox 360s

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The Samaritan Train2Game blog imageTrain2Game students might be familiar with Epic Games Samaritan tech demo which showcases what it could be possible for games to look like in future.

If you need reminding about the impressive the Unreal Engine powered demo, watch it here on The Train2Game Blog.

The power needed to run the Samaritan? 2.5 teraFLOPS is what Develop Online reports Epic Games’ CEO Tim Sweeney told a D.I.C.E. Summit audience. That’s ten times the power of the current Xbox 360 console, which operates at a maximum of 0.25 terraFLOPS.

The next generation of consoles is therefore going to have to provide a massive leap forward if they want to be able to run anything like Epic’s Samaritan tech demo in future.

We’ve no idea what specifications would be required for Unreal Engine 4 to run the demo, but at least we’ll get a hint as to what it’s capable of later this year.

“People are going to be shocked later this year when they see Unreal Engine 4 and how much more profound an effect it will have,” Epic Games Vice President Mark Rein said last week.

It’s reported that Unreal Engine 4 will arrive in 2014.

For more about Epic Games, the Unreal Development Kit and the Samaritan tech demo,see The Train2Game Blog interview with Epic European Territory Manager Mike Gamble, who was speaking to us at the Train2Game & Epic Game Jam.

What are your thoughts on the power needed to run the Unreal Engine demo? How long do you think it’ll be before consoles are capable of that amount of power?

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

[Source: Develop]

Train2Game news: Unreal Engine 4 reveal later this year

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The Samaritan Train2Game blog imageTrain2Game students will get to see Unreal Engine 4 later this year. That’s according to Epic Games Vice President Mark Rein who not only said Unreal Engine 4 is scheduled for a reveal in 2012, but hinted that it’s already in the process of running on next-gen consoles.

“People are going to be shocked later this year when they see Unreal Engine 4 and how much more profound an effect it will have,” Rein told G4TV.

And while the development kit for Unreal Engine 3 took years before being given to indie studios and modders, The Train2Game Blog has previously reported that Unreal Engine 4 will be available to the public much sooner than the current version was.

You might remember that Epic showed off their impresive Samaritan tech demo, a glimpse of what could be possible with next gen systems, at last year’s Game Developers Conference, which you can see right here on The Train2Game Blog

And while there’s no guarantee that an Unreal Engine running on a next gen console would look like that, Rein reportedly said Unreal Engine 4 is running on “systems we can’t name yet,” which could potentially signal a next generation Xbox console. Alternatively, it could be the Nintendo Wii U, scheduled for release later this year.

For more about Epic Games, the Unreal Development Kit and that Samaritan tech demo, see The Train2Game Blog interview with Epic European Territory Manager Mike Gamble, who was speaking to us at the Train2Game & Epic Game Jam.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on Unreal Engine 4 being revealed this year? Could it already be in the works for next-gen consoles?

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

[Source: NowGamer]

Train2Game news: Dead Space 2 designer offers advice on getting into the industry

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Dead Space 2 Train2Game blog imageTrain2Game game designers should definitely be interested in this, as Dead Space 2 Combat & Control Designer Brian Bartram offers advice on how to get into the industry.

In an EA feature titled Breaking into the Industry, the Visceral Games man says experimenting with game engines and modding are great ways for aspiring game designers – such as Train2Game students – to practice their skills.

The Train2Game Blog regularly posts about the benefits of modding.

“The best advice is to give it a try. Download a game engine and try building your own levels, modifying existing games, and creating original content.” Bartram told EA’s The Beat.

“There are many communities online for people who are creating games of all types. Game engines like Unity, Unreal, Torque, and Panda3D all make good starting places.”

It was the Unreal Development Kit that Train2Game students used to produced games at last November’s Train2Game & Epic Game Jam.

The Dead Space 2 Combat & Control Designer added that creating user generated content – in using games such as Team Fortress 2, LittleBigPlanet 2  or Infamous 2 for example – is also a great way to gain experience with game design.

“Creating multi-player maps for games is another channel. Some games allow you to create “user generated content,” and I advise aspiring designers to give them a try.” Said Bartram, who also suggested designing board games is a good idea.

“ Another thing that many System Designers do in their spare time is create board games, card games, and other “analog games.” I highly recommend Stone Librande’s speech from GDC entitled “15 Games In 15 Years.” (Which you can read here)

Bartam’s advice is similar to that given to The Train2Game Blog by Red Faction: Armageddon game designer Jameson Durall in an interview last year.

It might be lengthy, but EA’s interview with The Dead Space 2 Combat & Control Designer provides an excellent behind the scenes insight into the industry. You can read it in full here.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on Bartram’s advice? Do you produce your own user-generated content?

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

[Source: EA]

Train2Game news: Epic President labels games business as “shockingly immature”

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Train2Game students have a great year for games in 2011, but while the games industry is very successful, the business behind it is still “shockingly immature.” That’s according to Epic Games President Mike Capps in an interview with GI.biz.

In the extensive piece, Capps argues that the games industry needs to share learning and experiences in order to continue to improve.

“Our games industry is shockingly immature from a business perspective, because so few folks have business experience before coming in, or an education for business,” he said.

“It’s awesome because it’s entrepreneurship gone right, that’s what our industry comes from, and that’s really exciting, but there’s not a lot of sharing, there’s not a lot of great game business ‘how to’ books, so we try to share and people listen to us, for some reason, and we try to learn as much as we can from everybody else and their mistakes. It just seemed like the right thing to do.” said Capps.

The Epic President said licensees of their Unreal Engine help each other, rather than only looking out for their own interests.

“There’s no reason, if you find a bug, you don’t go ‘ha ha ha, that’ll give us an edge on Splinter Cell!’” said Capps.

“Because it doesn’t at all and so you share it, because it’s one less thing that Epic has to find and fix and they can focus on something you care more about. And you share with the Mass Effect guys and they share with you.”

Of course, four Train2Game student teams, winners of the Train2Game & Epic Game Jam will be attempting to win a UDK licence of their own when they compete at The Gadget Show Live next year.

Lots more about Epic Games and their Unreal Engine can be found in the Train2Game blog interview with Epic’s European Territory Manager Mike Gamble. Get more Epic Games news here on the Train2Game blog.

So Train2Game, what do you make of the Epic President’s comments? Should games business work closer together for the benefit of the industry?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum

[Source: GI.biz]

Train2Game & Epic Game Jam student interview: Andrew Small

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Train2Game & Epic Games gave Train2Game student teams the opportunity to win one of four places at The Gadget Show Live 2012 and compete for the chance to walk away with a fully licence Unreal Development Kit.  

Train2Game student Andrew Small was one of those Train2Game students taking part. We had a quick chat with him during the Train2Game & Epic Game Jam to see how he was finding it.

Read it here, on Scribd,  or listen via Train2Game radio

Find out more the about Train2Game & Epic Game Jam over at Unreal Insider.

We’re here at the Train2Game & Epic Game Jam on the final day, in the final stretch now, hows it all been going for you?

Yeah, pretty good. It’s been a bit of an up and down ride, we’ve hit so many walls and broke our way through, but we’ve not lost the original concept that we’ve got, and it’s great that we’re slowly getting there together and it’s the first time we’ve got to deal with something like this.

The theme of the Train2Game & Epic Game Jam is Guy Fawkes, what were your thoughts on that when it was announced? And how did you deal with coming up with the game?

Everyone just went silent. We thought ‘What do we do?’ It does give you a lot of creativity, but you’ve just got to think outside box and I think that was the hardest thing, getting past the explosives and getting something innovative out of there.

What’s been the biggest challenge so far? Has it been the lack of sleep or something else?

Oh it’s definitely not the lack of sleep! The biggest challenge is making sure everything stays on track, because you’ve got so many components, everything is working on something different, everybody keeps going and it’s all got to come together at the end. One little problem stops the whole process so it’s just being organised I think.

The winners of the Train2Game & Epic Game Jam get to ‘Make Something Unreal Live’ at The Gadget Show next year, if you won that, what would that mean to you.

It’d just be incredible. In this industry just getting yourself out there and noticed is the biggest bonus you can get, so that would be the dream come true.

Do you think being at the Train2Game & Epic Game Jam has helped you improved your chances of getting into the industry anyway?

Yeah, definitely. For most of us working from home, this is the first chance we’ve got to have a real test of our skills. Getting into that sort of environment, none of us have got any experience of it, so it’s been an amazing thing. You just get the hang of everything, you get used to the flow and you kind of get used to it is just a massive learning curve.

How positive has it been to be part of a team with other Train2Game students?

It’s been the best. We might have been lucky, we’ve got an amazing team, no one is negative about constructive criticism. It’s the biggest bonus, having your own idea and running with it, but you’ve got so many people with ideas, you’ve got to compromise, it brings the whole experience together.

So you’d recommend taking part in a Train2Game game jam to anyone?

Definitely. It was something that I wanted to do but wasn’t sure whether it would be right more me…but yeah, definitely. It’s a perfect example of the stuff you can do. You learn your character flaws, your weaknesses, your strengths, it’s such a development process, it’s brilliant.  

Thanks for your time.

For more information, go to www.train2game.com