Description
If it's related to the games industry or education, it goes in here!
Industry and Education
AEAF announces Star Wars for Day one!
The Australian Effects & Animation Festival is proud to announce that a full day of the conference program will be dedicated to the digital creation of Stars Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. Tuesday, December 3 has been earmarked as a special "Star Wars Day". This is an opportunity to gain an insider's view of the techniques behind the creation one of the biggest effects blockbuster's of the year. The Star Wars Day will be a forum for learning the processes behind George Lucas' effects masterpiece, and is exclusive to the AEAF. Headlining the program for the day is Rob Coleman, Animation Director at Lucas' production company Industrial Light & Magic (ILM). Already credited with an Oscar nomination for Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Coleman will be flying direct from his studios in San Francisco to lead a team of speakers who worked with him on Episode II. As Animation Director, Coleman played an integral role in the creation of the digital cast of the Star Wars saga. At 9am on December 3, Coleman will launch the day with a "Masterclass" focusing on the character and facial animation techniques used in Episode II, including the clone-manufacturing Kaminoans, the insect-like Geonosians and a fully CG Yoda. The all-day seminar will focus on the creation of the digital cast and provide an in-depth look at the complex technical and simulation systems that were developed at ILM to make the computer-generated characters realistic, both visually and physically. These same systems also made it possible to create digital doubles who could "stand in" for actors during dangerous scenes or scenes that were too difficult to shoot practically. The day will close with an interactive panel session led by Rob Coleman with his team of ILM speakers to discuss the challenges of digital film making for a project of this size, scale and vision. The AEAF will open on December 1 with an opening party and screening presentation from Sydney Silicon Graphics Centre. A Festival Pass costs $395.00 + gst and includes entry to all AEAF events. Single day passes are also available for $195.00 + gst and attendance at the AEAF Awards only will cost $70.00 + gst. Student prices are available. A full conference program can be viewed at http://www.dmw.com.au
Interview with Gregg Barnett
Gregg Barnett worked at Beam Software in 1982, where he was involved with games such as 'The Way of the Exploding Fist', 'The Hobbit', and 'Discworld'. We have an interview with him at http://www.sumea.com.au/sint1GreggB.asp .. Post your comments and thoughts about Gregg, his games, and anything else about the interview here!
New Zealand games industry?
There's a small number of New Zealand visitors to this site, so I was thinking maybe extending this games dev site to cover the New Zealand games industry as well.. any of you know any companies developing games over there ?
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Tue, 24/09/02 - 7:42 AMPermalink
Australian Effects & Animation Festival
EMMY AWARD WINNING "WALKING WITH BEASTS" - EXCLUSIVE SESSION AT THE AEAF - The Australian Effects & Animation Festival welcomes Mike Milne, Emmy Award winner and Director of Computer Animation at Framestore CFC (UK) to the speakers program December 1-4, 2002. Mike is flying direct to Sydney to speak exclusively about his work on Walking with Beasts, the joint BBC/Discovery Channel series that earned him and his team an Emmy Award in the "Outstanding Animated Program" category at the presentation in LA on September 14. Walking with Beasts is one of the largest projects that Framestore have undertaken and follows on from the award-winning series Walking with Dinosaurs. Thirty new creatures were added for Walking with Beasts and all feature a more complex range of movements and textures than their dinosaur predecessors. The graduation from dinosaurs with scales to mammals with fur, feathers and more advanced muscular structures presented greater challenges to the CG team which doubled in size in order to take on the more complex tasks. Comprising of six 30-minute documentaries, Walking with Beasts features 1000 visual effects shots taken from more than 30-hours of computer-animated footage. A regular speaker at computer animation conferences in Europe and the USA, Mike was awarded an honorary Doctorate from Bournemouth University, England in 2001. His talk at the AEAF will uncover some of the processes, techniques and disciplines that are required to make an award-winning series based on notoriously challenging CG-mammals. In addition, Mike will be previewing footage of Framestore's work on the new Hallmark/ABC TV miniseries Dinotopia which also won an Emmy at this years awards for "Outstanding Special Visual Effects". The Walking with Beasts session with Mike Milne will kick off at 10:00am on Monday December 2, 2002. The AEAF will open on December 1 with an opening party and screening presentation from Sydney Silicon Graphics Centre from 6:00pm. A Festival Pass costs $395.00 + gst and includes entry to all AEAF events. Single day passes are also available for $195.00 + gst and attendance at the AEAF Awards only will cost $70.00 + gst. A full conference program can be viewed at http://www.dmw.com.au or phone 02 9319 4277 for more details
Submitted by Obsolete 386 on Mon, 04/11/02 - 11:56 PMPermalink
Aussie Animation Schools
If any Aussies could help me out with this I'd really appreciate it...
I'm looking for information in regards to studying 3D graphics and animation. I have the opportunity to study at the silicon graphics centre in Enmore Sydney (certificate IV in animation) or at Computer Graphics College Sydney and I am wondering if either have a recognised reputation within the industry. Alternatively I am thinking about doing several short courses at the Mad Academy to get discreet accreditation. Is the Mad Academy considered to be a good training institution?
Next year is going to cost me in the vicinity of $10,000 - $25,000 and I just want to make sure I spend it in the right place.
Also if there is any other information that you could offer that may help ease me into the industry I would be most grateful.
If you're willing to move to canberra (AIE), the animation course there is just under $3000 for the one year cert IV, and then $7500 for the second year diploma. They are highly respected in the industry...of course it does require the move to canberra :)
CYer, Blitz
($10,000-$25,000 sounds an awful lot for one year...)
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Sun, 22/09/02 - 2:24 AMPermalink
I'd also recommend the AIE as well, having gone there last year and although it wasnt that hot abour 3 or 4 years back (from what people told me), it's really picked up now and the student intake has doubled from last year (which had a high intake at the time).
If you can handle the dullness that is Canberra (you could always cruise to Sydney for the weekend), I'd recommend it highly. I learnt a lot and for the $3000 it cost me for the first year.
From what I've heard, the AIE has gained a lot of respect in the eyes of industry workers (due to improving vastly) and now they've got some great tutors in there (Tom Magill, Sebastian Perry spring to mind -- there are others).
I'd also be wary of paying $25000 for a course - especially for one year. Nothing is guaranteed from doing a course. Being right next to Microforte doesnt hurt the AIE, either. This year students and developers mingled with a Warcraft III tourney.
I predict big things for the AIE (not just because I went there - it is genuinely going from strength to strength). They also upgraded the computers for the DIP II guys this year too.
Submitted by Meatex Salami on Sun, 22/09/02 - 2:33 AMPermalink
AIE is great i did cert2 this year and am going to do cert 4 next year
The tutor there are great
when i went there they only did a couple of tutorials every now and then to show some things but most of what you learn is one on one with the tutors. The way it was done with cert 2 was if you wanted to do something you just asked hey how do i do this and they tell you.
The learning environment is great and so are the tutors.
It's good to hear they have been acknowledged, everyone told me that they sucked but i went there anyway and they were wrong. It really is great. However if you want to do cert 4 you may not get in, ppl who have completed cert do get instant acceptance and then the rest of the space goes to the other people.
Bloody hell its a giant harmonica!
AIE, 'nuff said. Best courses, lowest fees, sure you have to move to Canberra but it's still cheaper than anywhere else.
Don't go to QANTM. No offense to anyone there but I've seen their stuff and frankly it's not even slightly worth the ridiculous fees they charge. They sent us a demoreel of student work and it paled in comparison to the AIE first year students. They even had the gall to include a model from a Steed tutorial ...
Mmm... ex-QANTM student myself, and it's hard to praise it from my experience which is most unfortunate.
Chris Bowden
http://brain.gamekey.com/
AAARGH, where was this site before I dumped almost ten grand into QANTM?!?!?!
I'm about to graduate in about 3 months from their games animation course...and I'm pretty worried!
Before I joined, they told me how wonderful the place was and how last year's stuents had a 80% employment rate...now last week they admit it's more like 10%. Then I start to hear about what a bad reputation it has!
Well, to hell with it, I'm working on my demo reel anyway.
Great site, btw.
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Thu, 26/09/02 - 11:57 AMPermalink
I dont think you should worry - if you've learned skills from Qantm, then more power to you. I don't think that a potential employer would hold it against you for going to a particular school - in the end, you could have 5 degrees but if your portfolio isnt as good as the next guy, he'll get the job. Your skill should/will reflect in your demo reel.
Cheers
Submitted by bouncy roo on Fri, 27/09/02 - 10:09 AMPermalink
Heh QANTM I didn't consider doing a course there because when i was in high school i rocked up to one of their workshops and man i was stunned because of how behind the tutor was, ugh but It's even more frustrating now..because i'm studying at GU-Qca griffith uni college of art and they have one 3d course but it's mainly working in autocad and designing products so i'm just doing a graphic design course and hopefully people in the industry accept me even without having a degree focusing on 3d applications. But yeah Qantm is dodge
You know what would be cool? Student internship with ILM *Drools* If they offer anything more like that i'd certainly try go for it. *dreams a little dream*
hey hey! I didn' blab as much as i usually do, better stop here otherwise i'll break the record.
//Without order nothing can exist - without chaos nothing can evolve. \(anon)
Submitted by Crystalmesh on Fri, 27/09/02 - 8:16 PMPermalink
Submitted by bouncy roo on Sat, 28/09/02 - 1:10 PMPermalink
I feel kinda bad about all the QANTM bashing...sorta.* There are some lecturers there that really know what they're doing and what they're talking about. Unfortunately they are about 5% of the teaching staff. Sigh. I should name names but I'm being nice.
*Actually, no I don't. $10K and I'm still struggling with stuff I thought I would have mastered by now. And they won't let me steal I mean borrow the Wacom pads. Gah.
What is _really_ ticking me off is that at the end of the year there's an 'industry night' where we invite local industry people and show them our stuff in hopes of landing some work. Management has left it to the students to organise this...and gee, how many students actually know any industry people? Gah, train wreck...
Oh boy, that sounds pretty terrible.
Speaking of Wacom tablets, I was thinking of holding a modelling contest on Sumea, where the main prize was a Wacom Tablet.. of course, that all requires some form of sponsorship.. I will have to email a few companies and see if it happens, but I think it's a great idea, and certainly one of the things I had hoped the website could do. That picture box of the girl you see on the main page was put there as a placeholder for the entries in the competition...
Anyway - Adamant, did you finally decide who you're going to go and study with yet? Enmore is pretty top class, btw..
Wacom Tablet!!! Yes yes!!!
Actually it's a sore point for me at the moment, as apparently a big pile of them were stolen from QANTM over the past week or two. I love those Tablets and it's half the reason I go to class at all :) So on one hand I'm ticked off that students stole them and therefore made everyone else wear dorky id holder tags around our necks all the time now...but on the other hand I'm ticked they didn't ask if I wanted one ;)
j/k!!! But man, sometimes it doesnt pay to be honest! :)
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Wed, 02/10/02 - 9:12 PMPermalink
quote:
BTW, my contract with MF is up and assuming I can't find work I'll be back at the AIE next year, cya there...
No offense, but if you've got industry experience, why not look somewhere else? Otherwise, you'll just be putting yourself into debt again. Then again, if you feel you've got lots more to learn, then by all means.
Excuse me? I said that I'd be studying if I couldn't find work. Maybe you should read my whole post? Frankly, even studying something I already know would be better than sitting on the dole doing nothing. I guess you feel otherwise.
And any artist who thinks they have nothing left to learn is fooling themselves. For example, if it was as easy to find a job as you seem to think then you'd be working, wouldn't you?
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Thu, 03/10/02 - 8:21 AMPermalink
Whoa dude - don't take it the wrong way (I did say no offense ), I simply misinterpreted your comment (just woke up at that time of day). From what I've gathered, having experience appears to be the biggest plus anyone can have on their resume so that would probably put you higher in the eyes of employers than unproven artists like myself.
However, in defense of my post, I'd appreciate it if you didnt put words in my mouth. I never said that sitting on the dole would be better nor did I say that I thought getting an industry job would be easy. It's just that a few people I knew chose to do self-directed study and use the money that would have been spent on tuition to fulfil these requirements.
I had a similar choice to make this year. I could choose to go back to the AIE this year and spend $10,000 NZ (taking my student loan to a grand total of $40,000) on the Dip II course or I could work on my portfolio in my spare time and find full time non-related work to finance it- which is what I chose to do.
Hope there's no misunderstandings - no offense was intended. Sweet?
JK
Eep... thought you were trying to be a smartass, my mistake. I'm very sorry, I've been a bit snappy since becoming unemployed. My apologies, hope you understand. :)
The main reason I'd be studying is not so much for the sake of my skills as to avoid having Centrelink waste my time with "mutual obligations" and crap like work for the dole. I'd much rather stay at home and work on my own projects but if I was to do that the government would see me as a lazy dole-bludger and would order me into slavery, and then I'd have a lot less time for my demoreel.
Submitted by ronald_marc on Sat, 15/02/03 - 2:10 AMPermalink
quote:I was one of the first Qantm scholarship winners
wasn't 3/4 of the course on scholarships, just to make full classes. that is what i was told.
lachlan inglis
Showreel WIP: http://effectism.com/sample/
Submitted by ronald_marc on Sat, 15/02/03 - 10:58 PMPermalink
[[/quote]
wasn't 3/4 of the course on scholarships, just to make full classes. that is what i was told.
THE first intake we were all scholarship winners I think.
No licences on software, so you couldn't save any work you did.
lots of bungling. and mumbling. then they tried to sell me an
SGI. pfft.
they gave me a T shirt though. I washed my car with it till it died.
Handy.
ahh, gonernment education..they get you with the free tshirt.
lachlan inglis
Showreel WIP: http://effectism.com/sample/
nah its government. its just tafe with a fancy name.
lachlan inglis
Showreel WIP: http://effectism.com/sample/
Submitted by ronald_marc on Tue, 18/02/03 - 9:13 AMPermalink
So who are you looking to work for?
I assume that forum users here are either a.) In game development or b.) Wanting to get into game development.
Is anyone else here hoping that attending the AGDC might lead to some contacts or getting a word in for a job? If so, who are you looking at working for?
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Wed, 18/09/02 - 8:29 AMPermalink
Is no one interested in working for an Australian devco?
I'm looking at tailoring my portfolio towards Torus and maybe Krome. Mostly as a concept and texture artist. I dabble in 3d modelling and am not bad at it but lack the real technical knowledge to land a job as a 3d modeller. My skills are mostly 2d anyway.
Yourselves?
My options are somewhat limited, living in Sydney. Microforte would be the place to work for here. SSG do strategy type of games which really aren't my kinda thing, and Tasman studios don't seem very active. Tycom and Mystical Developement are quite similar in that they don't have an office and work over the net, unless I am mistaken.
If I could choose, I'd love to work for Krome. They're doing some fun projects at the moment (Tas 2, and another cartoony 3rd person game), and they also have a great history. I'm sure they'll be around for a long time. My game career hopes will be put on the back burner for a while yet though.. have to find a web design job soon!
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Wed, 18/09/02 - 11:20 AMPermalink
quote:
My options are somewhat limited, living in Sydney. Microforte would be the place to work for here. SSG do strategy type of games which really aren't my kinda thing, and Tasman studios don't seem very active. Tycom and Mystical Developement are quite similar in that they don't have an office and work over the net, unless I am mistaken.
If I could choose, I'd love to work for Krome. They're doing some fun projects at the moment (Tas 2, and another cartoony 3rd person game), and they also have a great history. I'm sure they'll be around for a long time. My game career hopes will be put on the back burner for a while yet though.. have to find a web design job soon!
Why not move then? I'm prepared to jump across the Tasman but I'm sure it's more complicated than that. I wouldnt mind working for MF either, but I think their concept art and texture artist positions are filled for the time being.
I wonder how many of the Original Beam/Melbourne House are still around at Melbourne House (Infogrammes)? I remember Edge had a "Making Of" Way of the Exploding Fist - they've got some real history. Most of the Australia companies are going from strength to strength really -- the industry really seems to be boom there.
Family and friends is the only reason why I won't move. I'm amazed at how some people can leave everything behind like that - it's just something I find hard to do.
Funny you mentioned The Way of the Exploding Fist - I had *really* *really* *really* hoped that the programmer (and designer.. he did both) of that game would answer my interview questions that I sent him. I spent a while hunting him down and found out that he's still developing games! Unfortunately I haven't received a reply (and it's been 2 months now).. it would have been great.. I had a lot of nostalgic Beam / Exploding Fist questions too. I *loved* The Way of the Exploding Fist.. It's one of those milestones in game history, and practically got the ball rolling with the 2 player combat genre, spawning tonnes of clones.
And yeh, Beam/Melbourne House certainly has a long history.. They're the longest running Australian game developer, I would think. From since way back on the Spectrum..
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Wed, 18/09/02 - 12:27 PMPermalink
quote:
Family and friends is the only reason why I won't move. I'm amazed at how some people can leave everything behind like that - it's just something I find hard to do.
Funny you mentioned The Way of the Exploding Fist - I had *really* *really* *really* hoped that the programmer (and designer.. he did both) of that game would answer my interview questions that I sent him. I spent a while hunting him down and found out that he's still developing games! Unfortunately I haven't received a reply (and it's been 2 months now).. it would have been great.. I had a lot of nostalgic Beam / Exploding Fist questions too. I *loved* The Way of the Exploding Fist.. It's one of those milestones in game history, and practically got the ball rolling with the 2 player combat genre, spawning tonnes of clones.
And yeh, Beam/Melbourne House certainly has a long history.. They're the longest running Australian game developer, I would think. From since way back on the Spectrum..
Well, when you want it that bad, you gotta put it everything else on the backburner. Most of my close friends from university have moved to other parts of the country and most of my family are in different parts of the world (and some live in Aussie). I've lived out of home for a few years, so as long as you see the family a couple of times a year, it's all good. You can make new friends - and meet new people so it all sort of balances out.
What I'm wondering is if the same Beam Software was the one that was responsible for the SNES Super Smash TV? I know there were two parts to Beam and that Midway developed the original arcade version (or did they just distribute it?). SSTV is unbelievable, even nowadays -- I've yet to come across a game that matches it for sheer frenetic, frenzied action. If there is a game that needs an update, it's this one (along with Sega's Streets of Rage) and I'd love to be on a team making it.
Yep, Melbourne house did Super Smash TV for the Nintendo and SNES, which was published by Acclaim. Midway developed the arcade game.. I remember playing a little of it, but I never got into it that much. .. It was on the Amiga as well..
Just a little note.. after typing that message, I fired an email off to check up and see if the questions might be answered.. anyway, I got a reply, and hopefully it'll be done by this week..!! Awesome.
NSW also has a LOT of poker machine companies (think some 3000 people in design and content creation for poker machines in NSW~ most of my old wok friends there now) a lot at Aristocrat, but there is also pacific games? and konami was going to open an office....
might want to leave your morals at the door though
I applied ot Ratbag a few times, almost got in the second time tho. I've applied to other places interstate too, but I've gotten knocked back everytime. And also I want to finish my degree first.
Eventually I hope to get my own game dev place up and running :), probably in Adelaide tho, because its so much cheaper than Melbourne or Sydney, even there's not as much action going on down here.
Krome'd be funky. I've met guys there like John Passfield such at events, John Barry when I applied for a QA position ages ago (still keep in fair contact) and I've gotta mate who's been doing QA on Ty. It's surprising how big it's gotten. I first went there when they didn't even have a fridge, and now it's all fancy shmancy with the whole building being theirs.
Evolution looks like a great group to work with too. Still a small development team, just the way I like it. @:-)
Really, I'd be willing to get a foot in anywhere in the industry (who wouldn't? @;-) but I'd like to work on a platformer. Nice character focused designs, fun gameplay, and what I reckon would be a good first project. Time out from FPS for awhile.
Chris Bowden
http://brain.gamekey.com/
I've been working in the games industry for about 8 years now - as a journalist / game reviewer. I'm looking to move into development and so I've been studying at QANTM all this year while still working in the biz.
As far as who I want to work for goes - Krome, Krome, Krome. I love what they're doing and John, Steve and Rob are some of the nicest guys around. I'm lucky enough to have known them back from the Gee Whiz days - in fact back when John and Steve were doing comics as their main thing. I visited them last month for Ty and came away so impressed with how big they are now and all the stuff they're up to. So...yeah, I'd love to do animation / modelling and eventually game design. But heck, I'd settle for being their coffee maker.
Failing that...Brisbane is full of opportunities nowdays. Pandemic would be cool. I've heard good things about Evolution. I even like the idea of working on the Shapies show. :P
*laughs* Wooo for Shapies! @;-D
Meh mate and ex-QANTM lecturer is working on Shapies as a modeller dude. That's the only reason I watch that show. The singing... THE SINGING!! ARGHAHAHAHA!!
Chris Bowden
http://brain.gamekey.com/
Submitted by Crystalmesh on Thu, 26/09/02 - 1:52 AMPermalink
I have to agree, I work at Krome and it's one of the best places i have ever worked, the general feel around the place is very relaxed, it doesn't even feel like a job to me here. I've had offers recently from companies in Sydney and Melbourne to leave Krome and go work for them, but I find myself loyal to the place that first gave me my break in the games industry. All the directors are cool and easy to talk to, we've got a pretty swanky setup downstairs to play games at lunch time too ;)
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Thu, 26/09/02 - 12:08 PMPermalink
Jason - I came across your website at Polycount, I really like your models and textures. Might I ask you for some advice sometime?
I looked through the Krome site, and I almost fit most of the artist descriptions - got a design degree too!
BTW - Gamespot seems quite positive in its previews for Ty - I think the Australian flavour will really differentiate the game from other platformers on the market.
Peace.
Submitted by Crystalmesh on Fri, 27/09/02 - 8:36 AMPermalink
I love that gaming setup. It's swanky and there's no other word for it :) And free Coke! FREE COKE!!
I had a quick visit to Light Knights yesterday. Smaller than I imagined but I guess I was comparing it to modern Krome. Very nice place though and super nice people. Lots of toys everywhere :) They don't have free Coke but the staff do get treated to movies a lot.
I better stop dreaming about free coke and get back to making cool ass portfolio things :)
Submitted by bouncy roo on Sat, 28/09/02 - 2:00 PMPermalink
Is anyone going to the AGDC 2002 ?
Is anyone planning to go to the Australian Game Developers Conference in December, down in Melbourne?
Submitted by Fluffy CatFood on Thu, 05/09/02 - 5:37 AMPermalink
It's at the Melbourne Convention Centre: December 6 - 8, 2002. I've emailed the people at http://www.agdc.com.au two times, but I've never received a response, so I have no idea how much it costs to enter, and whether or not it's for industry people only.
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Thu, 12/09/02 - 11:24 AMPermalink
I went last year -- it was pretty good. As a student, the tickets costed AUS$150, I think. Throw in accomodation on top of that... etc. That included a three day pass and entry into everything EXCEPT the VIP dinner. You've got to cough up about an extra hundred or so for that. There appears to be a VIP cocktail party this year too now.
This years looks to be classier with that MF ship party thing. Interesting to see the Xbox prizes and PS2 as a major sponsor of the AGDC. BTW - have MF confirmed that Citizen Zero is moving to the Xbox yet?
The small print says that the tickets are AUS$143. Not bad. Now I've got to cough up for the accomodation.
I work in the Canberra studio, CZ is none of my durn beeswax, sorry. Even if I did know I couldn't say. I imagine we'll know by then anyway.
I still haven't seen much news about the conference but the website has been updated. They're apparently flying us down (woohoo, no train for me this year!). And many, many parties... of course parties are the best reason to go to the AGDC. Friday night is the big MF party in the ship, Saturday night is the cocktail parties (best time to hand out demoreels guys), and the dinner is after that. Speaking of the dinner, anyone planning on going? I don't know what the story is here yet but it's always good fun. Especially tagging bigwigs with blazing Nerf death.
BTW, for all you broke student types check out the Hotel Enterprize, I stayed there last year. Cheap as chips and within easy walking distance, the details are on the AGDC page.
I'm currently waiting until the schedule's up so I can figure out what I'll be going to and such. My main aim (apart from checking the mad games and soaking in the atmosphere) is to attempt to drum up employment, as you do. Having being turned down most of the year though, I wondering if it's worth the effort (and money)... We'll see.
Chris Bowden
http://brain.gamekey.com/
Sounds all good! I wish I could go, but I'm kinda broke at the moment . A few of my friends from Melbourne should be there though. If any of you are willing to write up an article / take some pictures of the event, I'll gladly put it up on the site!.. (Well, I hope at least someone does. It's pretty bad if it's not covered somehow on this site)
AGDC is the best place, bar none, to get your work out there and make contacts. If you can afford it, go. Take the train down, stay at the Enterprize, eat at the 7/11 on the way to the conference, you can keep your expenses to around $250 or so. Depends how far you have to travel, and where you eat. If you're sneaky or a fast talker you can get into the lunches - students aren't normally supposed to go. You didn't hear that from me though. :p
I'll try and get some photos, or I can just steal them from the AIE. ;)
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Fri, 13/09/02 - 7:55 AMPermalink
Submitted by Fluffy CatFood on Fri, 13/09/02 - 8:15 AMPermalink
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Fri, 13/09/02 - 8:50 AMPermalink
quote:
$150 seems a bit much but screw it, I'll pay it. I hope that covers a 3 day pass.Lead paint: delicious but deadly!
It did last year and it was worth it. The talks were really interesting and it was great to be in rooms of like minded people. I know some guys that kept their previous years "pass" and wore them into the parties. They used the same design for two years running and no one checked the dates on them.
If you can beat the system, then well done, I say.
Look at it this way: if you manage to impress someone and it leads to an interview.....then surely $150 is a small price to pay?
The registration form's at:
http://www.agdc.com.au/FEEDBACK/reg_form.pdf
EDIT: Okay, site's back. Prices are:
Pay Before 8th November
Full 3-Day Delegate - $800
1 Day Delegate - $580
Student 3-Day Delegate - $250
Student 1-Day Delegate - $180
Student Saturday Pass - $35
Expo Pass - $15
Expo Pass (Family) - $30
Friday and Saturday lunch events - $27.50 each
Satuday Conference Dinner - $143
Hotel Enterprize (Cheapest hotel option via registration form) - $77 for Courtyard Room.
There's also discounts on bulk registrations - 20% on 5 or more, 30% on 20 or more, which would be preferable for organised Sumeans (or whomever else wants a discount @:-).
Chris Bowden
http://brain.gamekey.com/
Edited by - Brain on 13/09/2002 16:49:22
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Sat, 14/09/02 - 8:39 AMPermalink
quote:
The registration form's at:http://www.agdc.com.au/FEEDBACK/reg_form.pdf
EDIT: Okay, site's back. Prices are:
Pay Before 8th November
Full 3-Day Delegate - $800
1 Day Delegate - $580
Student 3-Day Delegate - $250
Student 1-Day Delegate - $180Student Saturday Pass - $35
Expo Pass - $15
Expo Pass (Family) - $30Friday and Saturday lunch events - $27.50 each
Satuday Conference Dinner - $143Hotel Enterprize (Cheapest hotel option via registration form) - $77 for Courtyard Room.
There's also discounts on bulk registrations - 20% on 5 or more, 30% on 20 or more, which would be preferable for organised Sumeans (or whomever else wants a discount @:-).
Chris Bowden
http://brain.gamekey.com/Edited by - Brain on 13/09/2002 16:49:22
Shit - did the price just go up or what? Up $100 already from last year but I suppose they are offering more than in previous years. I'm hoping I can squeeze in on the student tag this year, there's no way I can afford the $800 tag if I'm forced to go for a delegate pass. Technically, it would be a grand for me as $1000 NZ = $800 Aussie.
Well hasnt that just thrown a fat, hairy wrench in my plans.
NB - Just checked the rego form. It doesnt say anything about providing proof of where you attend study....although I cant remember if they email you back confirming your form and then asking for details.
Mmm, the cost has swayed me muchly, especially since I'm not tied to the 'Student' tag at the moment.
Unless something else comes up, I think I'll continue to save up money for my own puter. Still... *sigh*
Chris Bowden
http://brain.gamekey.com/
The Saturday Student Pass seems to be quite good value, it gets you entry to the expo (normally $15) and also 4 seminars, the saturday arvo keynote, and the saturday evening sony cocktail party. Thats what i'll be getting, so i'll see any of you on the saturday. I'm actually not a student atm, finished comp sci degree last year,a nd hoping to go to AIE next year, just working part time atm and saving up for AIE fees :) I emailed the organiser and explained my situation, and it seems they will be a little more lenient on the saturday passes than the student delegate 1 and 3 day passes.
Good luck to anyone who is trying to get there!
CYer, Blitz
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Sun, 22/09/02 - 2:30 AMPermalink
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Sun, 13/10/02 - 9:34 AMPermalink
I'm not 100% sure, but I think if you want the 20% discount, you have to prove what organisation you're from? Hmm... maybe we should all chip in some news for Sumea and then we can go as journos?
I remember seeing something on the registration form asking for proof or something - at least 5 need to be from the same organisation.
Food for thought.
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Sun, 13/10/02 - 11:52 AMPermalink
I wish they'd hurry up with the schedule. I know Daz King is doing a tutorial on texturing so I'll be there in the front row for that. I'm also interested on what else is going to be addressed.
From the REGISTRATION FORM: "Incentive ?
Bulk Registrations from the same organisation
I am claiming the following discount for bulk registrations.
All registrations have been
made at the one time and paid by the same credit card/
cheque.
#137;
20%
discount for 5 or more delegates
#137;
30%
discount for 20 or more delegates
Names of Staff (Please complete separate registration form for each delegate"
Hmm... it looks like we'd all have to be paying on the same cheque. :(
Sumea is a registered business with an ABN number.. I don't see why you can't put Sumea as the organisation, and 'member' as your position, seeing as that's what some of you actually are. [:)].. better hurry up to beat the 8th November early bird deadline though.. you're all going as Full 3 Day Delegates ?
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Mon, 14/10/02 - 12:39 AMPermalink
Submitted by JonathanKerr on Wed, 16/10/02 - 8:50 AMPermalink
NSW - Silicon Graphics Centre - Open Day
g'day peeps!
its this sat coming (17th) ill be heading there (im interested to find out more info about their new game dev course )
ill put some details here to save others looking
110 Edgeware rd, Enmore
2042
Submitted by LostSanitY on Fri, 16/08/02 - 7:06 AMPermalink
Broadband and 3DS Max users : conference in WA
POTENTIAL FILM/TV BROADBAND USERS, AND 3D ANIMATORS BOTH EVENTS at FTI ARE FREE- RSVP - FTI -9431 6700 92 Adelaide Street, Fremantle. 1) SEMINAR/ FORUM ON THE FILM INDUSTRY BROADBAND Initiative TO PROVIDE COST EFFECTIVE SERVICES TO THE INDUSTRY. WEDNESDAY 21ST AUGUST 6:30-8:30PM (DETAILS BELOW) 2) 3DSMAX 5 NEW FEATURES- ARTIST CONVERGENCE AND TECHNOLOGY UPDATE TUESDAY 27TH AUGUST, 6PM-8PM. (DETAILS BELOW) 1) SEMINAR/ FORUM ON THE FILM INDUSTRY BROADBAND Initiative TO PROVIDE COST EFFECTIVE SERVICES TO THE INDUSTRY. WEDNESDAY 21ST AUGUST 6:30-8:30PM Judi Tucker, Executive Director- FIBRE (Film Industry Broadband Resources Enterprise) is interested in meeting with the Post production, Graphics, Games Software development etc industries in a round table forum. She is interested in outlining the FIBRE business model and to determine the level of demand for aggregated access to broadband services from these sectors in WA. The FIBRE Network Project is supported by the Commonwealth Government through the Commonwealth Film Program of the Department of Communications, the Information Technology and the Arts. This program is assisted by the Department of Industry and Technology WA. FIBRE was formed in November 2000 by a number of key players in the post production industry, after the "First Past The Post" forums in Sydney and Melbourne confirmed the difficulties faced by the industry in obtaining cost-effective broadband connectivity to suit the difficult and often unpredictable needs of post production. The Government recognised that the Australian Film and Television industry has real value for this country, both in the production of local content and as a significant provider for overseas productions. Establishing a high bandwidth network linking North America, Europe and the Asian regions with Sydney, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Melbourne Adelaide and Perth will allow companies to work cooperatively and more efficiently on projects to optimise the use of computer processing and data storage facilities. The Minister for Communication, Information Technology and the Arts, Senator Richard Alston announced in September 2001 a $600,000 grant to FIBRE. The money, spread over two years is to assist FIBRE to work with production and post production houses and with telecommunications carriers to develop and implement a demand aggregation case for an industry broadband network. For more info about FIBRE http://www.fibre.org.au/ COST:FREE RSVP- FTI 9431 6700 2) WEST AUSTRALIAN 3DSMAX ARTIST CONVERGENCE AND TECHNOLOGY UPDATE - SPONSORED BY CADD SYSTEMS AND FTI. TUESDAY 27TH AUGUST, 6PM-8PM. THIS EVENT IS FOR 3DSMAX COMMUNITY IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA - COMMERCIAL AND EDUCATIONAL USERS OF 3DSMAX AND 3DS MAX LECTURERS. Carl Frischmuth from CADD-SYSTEMS will be showing some of the new features of 3dsmax 5. Who's it for? - The real Agenda: * WA 3d animation industry news update * Special guest/3dsmax artist profile -who's capable of showing some recent/best work done in max, bring it along! * Open discussion on HDRI techniques (environment lighting)- has the line between synthetic and real been zapped its getting harder to tell the difference. * Hardware/software news - new plugins * FTI - news on course offerings * Announcements: diji glove animation services / laser scanning services in WA * Break -refreshments and a chat with fellow max artists * 3dsmax5 presentation * Door prizes - score some cool stuff! Topics covered: An overview of the new features in 3dsmax 5 Advanced lighting rendering engines in the box: light tracer and radiosity Materials - ink n paint and advanced lighting material. Mapping - uvw unwrap, Photoshop psd support for layers. Modelling -polygon modelling enhancements Lighting - new photometric lights, support for self-illum materials as well as HDRI techniques, lighting analysis for set design etc. IK features - using spline based IK, character node Animation controls - function curve editor and dope sheet New transform controls - scale and nu scale integrated etc. Physics - fully integrated hard and soft body dynamics as well as cloth and fluid simulation, wind and motors etc. Direct X9 support, in veiwport hardware shaders, transparency controls. New network licensing Backburner COST:FREE RSVP- FTI 9431 6700
AUSTRALIAN EFFECTS AND ANIMATION FESTIVAL 2002
AUSTRALIAN EFFECTS AND ANIMATION FESTIVAL December 1-4, 2002 Sydney Convention Centre, Darling Harbour CALL FOR ENTRIES AEAF AWARDS 2002 Organisers of the Australian Effects and Animation Festival are now accepting entries into the AEAF Awards to coincide with the December conference in Sydney, Australia. The AEAF Awards are designed to reward innovation and expertise in digital content creation for film, television, games and the web. You can enter as many individual entries as you wish, as long as they've been completed between July 1, 2001 and October 27, 2002. Entry into the AEAF Awards is free. Finalists' entries will be screened before an audience at the AEAF Awards presentation night, December 3, 2002 at the Sydney Convention Centre, Darling Harbour. There are 12 categories into which you can enter: * Commercials: Animation * Commercials: VFX * Feature Film: Animation * Feature Film: VFX * Music video * Short Film * TV Series * Titles, Idents & Stings * Web Animation * Student * Games * Education & Training The AEAF Awards draw competition from around the globe and are judged by a leading panel of CGI experts. Regular AEAF entrants include ILM (USA), The Mill (UK), Animal Logic (AUS), Digital Domain (USA), Sony Pictures Imageowrks(USA), Cutting Edge Post (AUS), BBC (UK), Ambience Entertainment (AUS) and The Moving Picture Company (UK). To enter, visit the web site at http://www.dmw.com.au and follow the links to the AEAF and the Awards entry form. Fill it out online or print it, and send entries to AEAF: PO Box 250, Bondi Junction NSW 1355 no later than 5pm Monday October 28, 2002. Your entry must be PAL formatted and supplied on Beta SP or Digital Beta and be accompanied by a document of no more than 100 words explaining its special features. For further information, contact aeaf@dmw.com.au. To view the terms and conditions of entry, go to http://www.dmw.com.au/html/aeaf/entry.htm#terms
AUSTRALIAN EFFECTS AND ANIMATION FESTIVAL
AEAF AWARDS 2002
CALL FOR ENTRIES
Australia's leading CGI competition is on again!
Don't miss out on inclusion in the AEAF Awards that will coincide with the December conference in Sydney, Australia.
Why enter?
The AEAF Awards is the foremost competition for the digital arts community in Australia. Recognising and rewarding innovation and expertise in computer-generated material for film, television, games and the web, all entries submitted for competition are viewed by a leading panel of CGI experts from Australia, the USA and the UK.
Finalists' entries will be screened before an audience at the AEAF Awards presentation night, December 3, 2002 at the Sydney Convention Centre, Darling Harbour.
Entry into the AEAF Awards is free.
The details:
There are 12 categories into which you can enter:
* Commercials: Animation
* Commercials: VFX
* Feature Film: Animation
* Feature Film: VFX
* Music video
* Short Film
* TV Series
* Titles, Idents & Stings
* Web Animation
* Student
* Games
* Education & Training
You can enter as many individual entries as you wish, as long as they've been completed between July 1, 2001 and October 27, 2002.
How to enter:
Visit the web site at http://www.dmw.com.au and follow the links to the AEAF and the Awards entry form. Fill it out online or print it, and send entries to
AEAF: PO Box 369, Strawberry Hills NSW 2012
no later than 5pm Monday October 28, 2002.
Your entry must be PAL formatted and supplied on Beta SP or Digital Beta and be accompanied by a document of no more than 100 words explaining its special features.
For further information, contact aeaf@dmw.com.au. To view the terms and conditions of entry, go to http://www.dmw.com.au/html/aeaf/entry.htm#terms
And Good Luck!
Australian Effects & Animation Festival
December 1-4
Sydney Convention Centre, Darling Harbour
National Screenwriters? Conference 2002
Bits of the press release that are relevant to the games industry were: An industry overview of games: history and future directions Kathy Mueller has more than 15 years experience in Film and Television as a film Director and script editor. She moved into multimedia in 1994 when she received a grant to work with games company Beam Software to research the scripting of interactive games. She established the first interactive scripting course with games writer Mark Morrison and taught nationally for the past eight years. In 1996 Kathy received a grant from the AFC to develop an innovative design for interactive gameplay, and in 1998 was invited to give a talk on her game design to the MIT Media Lab in the USA. Kathy is currently completing her doctorate. Her work is currently being trailed by Melbourne University's Department of Psychiatry. Introduction to games writing Ian Malcolm is a games designer at Infogrames and has been writing and overseeing the dialogue for the Men in Black and Looney Tunes Space Race games. He will discuss writing speech for games, from writing through to recording, performance and hardware issues. Non-goal specific simulation games case study: Jurassic Park for XBox Nick Hagger is a producer and designer of video games. He?s part of the team of uniquely creative individuals which makes up Bluetongue Software. The last project he worked on, Starship Troopers [Hasbro Interactive/Infogrames 200 , was a tough license to crack but met with critical acclaim in both the US and European markets. His current project, Jurassic Park [Universal Interactive, 2002] will be available this Christmas. What's NEXT? The Writing of IKON IKON is a first-person-shooter/car-combat PlayStation2 title with a blockbuster-style action-adventure storyline - and is Adelaide games developer Ratbag Games' first foray into the genre. This session is a behind-the-scenes examination of the writing process on the game, including what went right, what went wrong, and why. Theme, Character, Plot, Structure, Dialog, Spelling - all that good stuff! From mid-2000 to early 2002, J.T. Velikovsky was the in-house Game Writer at Ratbag Pty Ltd, during which time he wrote (and rather frequently re-wrote) the 600-page IKON game screenplay. He studied film screenwriting and game design at the AFTRS 95-97, and has worked as a freelance writer in the film, TV and games industries for seven years. He has worked as a feature script assessor for the major film studios, and has developed a science fiction television series for Fox Studios Australia. He also guest lectures in Game Design, Video Games History and Game Writing at Charles Sturt and Flinders Universities, and was a judge for the national 2002 Faulding Awards for Multimedia. Anyone who happened to go to this ?
Gore, did anyone try it?
I really liked gore test2, and cant wait for the full retail to come out, some of the bad comments about it in reviews were a little thoughtless, criticising the games sound and graphics, there was barely any mention of the game play and the tactics that can be used with the various weapons(although I'am just going from the test versions), also I found it annoying that it was constantly compared to quake, but thats just a personal gripe. what did you all think(going by what you've played)
Lead paint: delicious but deadly!
Hey Fluffy
We have had some good and bad comments, I think it's alot to do with the FPS market.
Gore's strongest asset is it's online play, the single player side of the game is straight forward and fun but if you want to get the most out of this game play online, the netcode is great and I play all the time on usa servers (and win).
We are all looking forward to the Australian Release (hopefully mid july)
Gore Developer
"I think it's alot to do with the FPS market.".. Can you expand on this please? :)..
The FPS market must be pretty tough to break into.. It's pretty much over saturated (just like the MMORG definately will be (or already is)). And yeh, I think it's pretty unfair to compare Gore to Quake III and Unreal Tournament 2, I'm guessing Gore was made at a smaller scale and budget than those titles. There were some mention on the quality of the art that's in Gore. As soon as something doesn't match up to those titles, it's an easy target to cut down, and just as easy to glance over its other good qualities. I'm hoping the tools are good and the mod community does some cool stuff for Gore...
Pretty much my feelings also. From what I've seen it just doesn't stand out from the rather crowded market. You can't just jump on the bandwagon and expect to be successful, you at least need to work in some neat gimmick ala Max Payne.
That's certainly not to say they haven't made a good game. I first say Gore at the AGDC in '01 and it was far from impressive, sub-Q2 quality, but AFAIK they've improved it hugely and kudos to them for that. But it's still just another FPS, and a very generic one to boot. As always I'll reserve final judgement until I play of course... ;)
Submitted by Fluffy CatFood on Thu, 20/06/02 - 8:43 AMPermalink
I found the gameplay in gore just a bit more interesting than in other games, and yeah the multi play is probably whats best although I'm disapointed the final version doesnt have off-line botmatch, sure it has single player but in the end that wont cut it for me. To me bots should be incorperated into all multi-player games, just so the option is there, I mean you dont want to use them for online, but in the future there may be no servers for this game, people who want to keep playing it can't.
As with the market, I believe a lot of games sell on brand name alone,RTCW is a perfect example. I bought it without trying it and now I regret it. People will usually pass over the little guy to get to the big name as I fear may happen with Gore.
Majorpain, what are the tools like to use, is it easy to get models in-game
Lead paint: delicious but deadly!
Good point about brand names, Wolf single player bored the hell out of me and although the MP was very good it was also very derivative, essentially a stripped-down TF. id snubbed the original TF team for years but these days they're all but taking credit for the mod. They've been living off their reputation for years - if they were as good at making games as they were at making tech then Q3 would have been mindblowing. Hopefully Doom III will restore my faith in them...
Serious Sam and System Shock II are really the only shooters I've ever seen break the mold. The Dark Forces/Jedi Knight series came close but didn't do anything really new or amazing.
The tools are pretty good, we have a custom level editor which has a bit of a learning curve but once you have a foot hold you can create levels quite fast.
Custom models can be imported from Max, stuff like ammo boxes, flying choppers you name it, when created with the right stripping they can be a cheap way to add detail to levels.
I would say Joel will release the bipeds used on all the profiles so making player models will be heaps faster using stock bipeds and animations.
Making custom models is quite fun because we support armor, item tracking, custom weapons, custom gibs, effects and each profile has it's own setting like speed damage etc etc... and with a poly budget of about 3000 (including armor) you should be able to create some cool mods.
When I get some spare time I would like to create a custom warhammer 40,000 model with full exploding armor, I would track small flames to his jet pack and create some custom WH40,000 weapons.
In regards to the Game inself the demo is only a day or two away, so you can see it for youeself, the last two releases were network tech tests only.
We are also working on a free add on pack which will have single player co-op plus extra MP maps.
Try the demo, i'll post a link when it's released.
Gore Developer
I can kind of understand why Gore was made the way it is. I've read somewhere, and correct me if I'm wrong please, that the developement cycle for Gore was 2 years. Around at that time, Quake III Arena was released December-ish, 1999 and Unreal Tournament October-ish, 2000 (from my quick google search). That's what everyone wanted then. Fast multiplayer death match action. I remember Carmack saying something on the lines that most people don't finish the single player mode anyway so why bother. So, with all this in mind, it seemed reasonable to not develope any single player mode (which might have led to new ideas and concepts ala Max Payne) and concentrate on a fast engine suited for online death matching. In the middle of developement, the tide was turning and everyone wanted immersive story driven single player games again, so you then have the situation where in the end the single player mode added more like a bonus, since it wasn't in the original plan of the game.
Of course, that's all speculation, and it's very likely I'm completely wrong .
Souri: Thats pretty close and the publisher wanted it. :-)
Most of the art-design and direction came from 4drulers, so most design issues and problems were based around that office, we created the tools with slam software and made sure the game ran as fast as possible.
re: animations/bipeds etc: you can use/create what ever you like.
If you want to make a 10 legged dog with four heads for deathmatch it can be done.
re: What were you setting out to make?: I kickass online fps.
Gore Developer
Submitted by Fluffy CatFood on Sun, 23/06/02 - 12:56 AMPermalink
Submitted by Fluffy CatFood on Tue, 25/06/02 - 7:46 AMPermalink
Well I got the demo, I enjoyed the single player part, I mean it was nothing special, just a blasting your way to the end like serious sam, but it was fun, I wouldnt mind trying my hand at making single player levels, its pretty good for a budget title, I'm going to get the full.
Lead paint: delicious but deadly!
I played the gore test (not sure which one) about a year ago.
I also downloaded the 101mb demo version a few days ago.
Personally, I dont think that Gore compares badly to q3a at all. I dont like the movement, but every games movement feels wrong after
q3a.
So..My question is...When are the editing tools being released?
I want to make a Gore level.
..................
http://asnagrim.tk
...................
I've had a go at the demo version of Gore, and I've got to say the engine is definately fast! I've got a pretty slow machine (will upgrade soon), so I was quite surprised how fast it really was. The game was quite fun although pretty hard to get to the end (and I was on easy! ).. the art did the job. Sure, it wasn't Kenneth Scott/Paul Steed quality artwork/modelling, but it was sufficient.. same goes with the level design.. but hey, not every developement team has that kind of talent anyway .. I gotta say again though, the engine sure is fast. It would definately be pretty interesting to do some mapping on.. I did try playing it online, but left early before someone had the chance of saying 'I ownz j00, dialup boy' .. Looking forward to checking out the tools!
http://www.sidhe.co.nz/frames.htm is for a devco called Sidhe Interactive. I dont know much about them - they've made a small number of games as well as doing some animations too.
Did a bit more looking and found http://www.nzgda.com/ - that was unexpected. Also unexpected that an NZ company was behind the code language of Blitz Basic...
Edited by - JonathanKerr on 23/09/2002 21:50:57