============================== IGDA Newsletter - January 2007 ============================== ================= Table of Contents ================= 0: A Word From Brian Reynolds 1: IGDA Action at GDC 2: Call for Nominees: 2007 Board of Director Elections 3: Mentors Needed > GDC Student Scholarship Program 4: Columns Update 5: Chapter Meetings/Reports x: Logistical Bits & Unsubscribe Info ================= ============================= 0: A Word From Brian Reynolds ============================= Greetings fellow developers! This month, we begin the election cycle for the IGDA Board of Directors with the call for nominations (see below), and if you've been a member for at least two years and have some solid time in the industry behind you then I'd invite you to step forward and consider running... We've progressed over the years from a quite informal organization to a serious medium-sized non-profit, so there is certainly continuing demand for board members with business, management, and legal experience, but we also very much need board members who are "real game developers" ­ people actually doing the work of game design, programming, art, and so forth, because those are the people who will best help us continue to stay in touch with the needs of our members. Being a board member does entail some significant time commitment ­ it can take a couple hours out of your week, though not always, and it lasts for three years. On the other hand it really does give you a seat at the table to make a positive difference in the industry. Looking back on my own years on the board, I can think of many great accomplishments we've made as a group, but I can also think of a couple specific projects that just might not have gotten done at all if I hadn't joined the board (an example that comes to mind being our complete revamp of the Choice Awards procedures and the inclusion of mandatory attributions). What I'm saying is that you should reread our mission, and if there are parts of it you're passionate about and wish more would happen, maybe all that's missing is... you. Game on! - Brian Reynolds Chairperson, IGDA President, Big Huge Games ************************************************ ** Ad: Autodesk 3ds Max 9 ­ Free Trial Offer ** ************************************************ Autodesk® 3ds Max® 9 software is a highly productive, professional 3D solution offering state-of-the-art modeling, texturing, character animation, rendering, and data management capabilities. 3ds Max 9 helps game artists accelerate creative workflow and increase pipeline efficiency with enhanced animation and rendering tools. 3ds Max uses the latest technology advancements, such as 64-bit workstations, to help artists and programmers work with ever-increasing amounts of data and more complex datasets. Download free trial: http://clk.atdmt.com/XDA/go/ame0040000021xda/direct/01/ ************************************************ ===================== 1: IGDA Action at GDC ===================== Each year the IGDA works hard to maximize the GDC experience for our members and the game development community. Here's an outline of all the stuff the IGDA has cooking at this year's GDC. Members-Only Party ------------------ After three great years at E3, the IGDA is bringing its ever-popular Members-Only party to the GDC on the Tuesday evening. Network with fellow IGDA members and enjoy three floors of food, drinks, and fun! http://www.igda.org/events/rsvp_gdcparty_07.php Game Developers Choice Awards ----------------------------- The IGDA will be presenting the recipients of the 7th annual Choice Awards on Wednesday evening. Full details at: http://www.gamechoiceawards.com/ IGDA Conference Track --------------------- The rant session is back (this time, giving publishers a go), along with coverage of censorship, quality of life, workforce diversity, credit standards, academic bridge building, accessible game dev. Plus a batch of "group gatherings". http://www.igda.org/events/gdc_sessions.htm IGDA Booth/Lounge, Ribbons, T-shirts, etc ----------------------------------------- As always, the IGDA will have a booth in the lobby area with a members-only lounge (with big comfy sofas). Each member will receive a member ribbon for their badge upon check-in. And, as usual, will have cool t-shirts (sponsored by Emergent) to hand out to members. Annual Meeting -------------- The board presents the progress of the past year and fields questions from the membership. Will run during lunch break on the Thursday (boxed lunches will be provided). Chapter Leaders Workshop ------------------------ The IGDA will be hosting its second annual chapter coordinators workshop at GDC (Monday, March 5, from 1-6pm). This half-day workshop will enable coordinators to analyze the current health of their chapters, learn best practices for chapter development, and tackle specific concerns with IGDA management and fellow coordinators. For complete details and updates on the above IGDA activities, please jump online: http://www.igda.org/events/#gdc ***************************************** ** Ad: Game Developers Conference 2007 ** ***************************************** March 5-9, San Francisco, California KEYNOTE ANNOUNCED: Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto "A Creative Vision" Thursday, March 8 Game development legend Miyamoto will reveal how a singular creative vision drives his work, not only in the creation of classics like Mario and Zelda, but also in generating key technologies, including the current global phenomena, Nintendo DS and Wii. Industry-defining new sessions are posted to the GDC website daily. Join the world's leading developers at GDC 2007 to advance the art of game creation. Register before January 31 and save up to 35%. IGDA members receive an additional $50 discount. http://www.gdconf.com/register?cid=GDC07_QUENX3 ***************************************** ====================================================== 2: Call for Nominees: 2007 Board of Director Elections ====================================================== We would like to invite you to submit nominations for the IGDA Board of Directors. The next election process will get started early March at the Game Developers Conference, with voting taking place in the weeks thereafter. We are filling four open board seats. Nominations are due by Thursday, February 22nd. The game industry is still developing both as a business and an art form. Influencing the industry's growth in positive directions requires leadership. If you care about making games and feel you could serve the IGDA, we strongly encourage you to contact us about your candidacy. If you know someone you feel would contribute well, please contact that person now and encourage him or her to run for an IGDA board seat. Please review the complete details on the election and submission process: http://www.igda.org/board/elections.php http://www.igda.org/board/IGDA_Election_Manual.pdf =================================================== 3: Mentors Needed > GDC Student Scholarship Program =================================================== The IGDA is looking for experienced attendees of the Game Developers Conference to volunteer some time to serve as a mentor to a GDC Student Scholarship recipient. It is a huge opportunity for these students, but the experience is somewhat overwhelming due to the scale/scope of GDC. We assign a mentor to each of the 25 scholars. If you're an industry pro and a pro at attending GDC, here's what you'd need to commit to: - spend at least 1-hour each day (Wed/Thu/Fri) with your assigned student - attend the Scholarship orientation meeting Tuesday (March 6th) In spending time with a student, the hope is that you'll provide advice on how to navigate GDC, give some development tips and career advice, introduce them to your industry friends, and just generally make the scholar's experience more valuable, and welcoming. If you would like to volunteer to be a mentor, please contact Rudy Geronimo (rudy@igda.org). Note that best efforts will be made to match each mentor with a student's given discipline, etc. ================= 4: Columns Update ================= Monthly columns have been updated: Famous Last Words ----------------- "No Royalty Deals" - Suggestions to improve development deals http://www.igda.org/columns/lastwords/lastwords_Jan07.php Culture Clash ------------- "Bound Within a Nutshell - Inspirations for game fiction" - Inspirations for good game narratives http://www.igda.org/columns/clash/clash_Jan07.php The Games Game -------------- "Can You Jump the Cubicle Gap?" - Looking at horizontal job moves http://www.igda.org/columns/gamesgame/gamesgame_Jan07.php =========================== 5: Chapter Meetings/Reports =========================== Complete list of chapter reports and upcoming meetings: http://www.igda.org/chapters/updates.php Japan Thursday, February 22 > Asia Online Game Conference 2007 grand opened http://www.igda.jp/modules/news/article.php?storyid=1045 Denmark Friday, February 2 > Nordic Game Jam 2007 http://www.diginet.org/o.o.i.s?id=1040&news_item=488 Chicago Thursday, February 1 > One Size Does Not Fit All: Next-Gen Development from three different perspectives http://www.igda.org/chicago/next.htm Malaysia Friday, January 26 > Chapter Meeting http://www.igda.org.my/?p=23 Montreal Friday, January 26 > Members-Only "Just Because" Party http://www.igda.org/montreal/archives/2007/01/janaury_26th_me.html Finland Report, January 23 > Look back at 2006 - What a Record-Setting Year for Finnish Game Industry http://igda.fi/?p=58 Finland Report, January 5 > With Average Attendance of 146, Final Figures for Fall of 2006 Show Tremendous Growth for IGDA Finland http://igda.fi/?p=59 Japan Report, December 16 > AI seminar series vol.1 report http://www.rbbtoday.com/news/20061218/36968.html ================== x: Logistical Bits ================== Unsubscribe/Subscribe to Newsletter ----------------------------------- You can unsubscribe or update your newsletter subscription details via your MyProfile page: http://www.igda.org/membership/myprofile.php If you need help, contact us. Thanks to our Partners ---------------------- The IGDA extends its sincerest thanks to all our Partners! Especially those who just joined us, or recently renewed their commitment to support the game development community: - BigWorld Technologies - Chapman University, Extended Education - Charles River Media/Course PTR (Thomson Learning) - Houston Community College - Softimage - TechExcel Without their support the IGDA simply would not survive - let alone thrive. Further details and a complete list of Partners are available online: http://www.igda.org/partners Contact Information ------------------- Please contact us if you have questions, comments or input: http://www.igda.org/contact.php RSS Feeds for IGDA News and Chapter Updates ------------------------------------------- The IGDA web site has RSS feeds for IGDA news (eg, org announcements, committee work, etc) and chapter updates (eg, upcoming meetings, event reports). Those using RSS readers can point to: IGDA News: http://www.igda.org/igda_news_rss.php IGDA Chapter Updates: http://www.igda.org/igda_chapters_rss.php ------- - end - ------m