=============================== IGDA Newsletter - February 2006 =============================== ================= Table of Contents ================= 0: A Word From Bob Bates 1: IGDA@GDC Update: Cocktail Reception, Scholars, Networking Tips 2: Contract Walk-Through v3: Focus on Quality of Life 3: Call for Nominees: 2006 Board of Director Elections 4: SIG Updates: Generic Trademarks, AI News, Casual Business 5: Columns Update 6: Chapter Meetings/Reports x: Logistical Bits & Unsubscribe Info ================= ======================== 0: A Word From Bob Bates ======================== Dear Members and friends, As Chairperson of the IGDA's Board of Directors, I get a lot of emails and calls from people who think I actually run the organization. Nothing could be further from the truth. Most of those emails get forwarded either to Jason Della Rocca, our Executive Director, or to Rudy Geronimo, our Community Manager. But, as Jason constantly reminds me, most of the org's work actually gets done by an incredibly active group of volunteers. Jason recently forwarded me a list of them, and it has nearly 500 names. Check it out: http://www.igda.org/community/volunteers.php Our organization is more "bottom-up" than "top-down." Most of the chapters and SIGs were started by members who saw a need and moved to fill it. Our committees and white papers are in the hands of people who are willing to devote time to a topic they care about. So if you think there's something that the IGDA should be doing, step right up! Tell us what needs to be done, and join this group of volunteers who are trying to make the careers and lives better for developers everywhere. Happy gaming! - Bob Bates Chairperson, IGDA ************************* ** Ad: Autodesk at GDC ** ************************* Join Autodesk at GDC 2006 and find out why our 3D solutions are the weapons of choice for next-generation games development. Expand your mind and learn more about how to use our animation products - Autodesk 3ds Max, Autodesk Maya, and Autodesk MotionBuilder. Stop by our booth #526 where we'll be featuring content from High Moon Studios, Monolith, Microsoft Game Studios and more, and be sure not to miss one of our many training sessions. http://www.autodesk.com/gdc2006 ************************* ================================================================= 1: IGDA@GDC Update: Cocktail Reception, Scholars, Networking Tips ================================================================= Some quick updates on various IGDA activities and initiatives for GDC: * New Member Cocktail Reception + Annual Meeting: http://www.igda.org/events/agm06.php * GDC Student Scholarship Recipients Announced: http://www.igda.org/scholarships/recipients.php * Article: Top 12 Networking Tips & Tricks For GDC: http://www.igda.org/articles/mmencher_networking06.php For complete details and updates on the IGDA's activities, please jump online: http://www.igda.org/events/#gdc ****************************************************** ** Ad: I3D 2006: Symposium on 3D Graphics and Games ** ****************************************************** March 14-17, Redwood City, CA I3D is the leading-edge conference for real-time 3D computer graphics and techniques that combine 3D computer graphics with human interaction. It brings academia and industry together the week before GDC at the Electronic Arts campus in nearby Redwood City, CA. Highlights: Featured speaker Will Wright (Maxis); Posters and demos room; Hosted by Electronic Arts Sponsors: ACM SIGGRAPH, ATI, Hewlett-Packard, Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories http://www.i3dsymposium.org ****************************************************** ===================================================== 2: Contract Walk-Through v3: Focus on Quality of Life ===================================================== The Contract Walk-Through 3rd release focuses on contract clauses that impact quality of life, including the following topics: - Strategic Use of Planning - Managing Change Orders and "Feature Creep" - Responsibility for Delay - Marketing Requests - Outsourced Assets - Acceptance of Deliverables All members and registered users can download the Contract Walk-Through v3 online: http://www.igda.org/biz/contract_walkthrough.php ******************************************************** ** Ad: EMotion FX 3: Realtime Character Animation SDK ** ******************************************************** The new EMotion FX 3 delivers character animation quality and performance on Xbox 360 and PC. Rapidly add support for animated objects and characters using a multi-platform object-oriented C++ API that integrates with any game engine. Take advantage of multi-processor and multi-core processors. EMotion FX 3 includes facial animation and automatic lipsync generation support, Max and Maya exporters, instant preview plugins and batch exporters. Evaluations available online from March 20th: http://www.emotionfx.com/ ******************************************************** ====================================================== 3: Call for Nominees: 2006 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 late 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 Wednesday, March 8th. 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 ************************************************ ** Ad: Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3Expo) ** ************************************************ Conference Program May 9-11; Exposition May 10-12 One place. One entire industry waiting for you. One dynamic educational program that will guide you toward the most promising opportunities within the interactive entertainment industry today. It's the E3 2006 Conference Program. Industry executives and renowned creative talent will share their knowledge and views of the future, and supply you with tips and strategies to perfect your business plans and keep you one step ahead of the competition. Register now to take advantage of early bird prices. IGDA members enjoy a 20% discount until April 7, 2006. http://www.e3expo.com/ ************************************************ ============================================================ 4: SIG Updates: Generic Trademarks, AI News, Casual Business ============================================================ * The IP Rights SIG blog discusses "generic" trademarks and the recent news of the Red Cross' interest in the game industry: http://www.igda.org/ipr/archives/2006/02/i_a_trademarks.html * The AI SIG has posted their winter'06 newsletter: http://five.pairlist.net/pipermail/gameai_news/2006/000003.html * The Casual Games SIG recently released the latest issue of the Casual Games Quarterly with a focus on the business of casual games: http://www.igda.org/casual/quarterly/1_2/ *********************************************************************** ** Ad: Attend GDC:06, and Get a First-hand Glimpse of What's Next... ** *********************************************************************** March 20-24, San Jose, CA GDC:06 will focus on next-gen game development, and how it will revolutionize every aspect of the gaming industry. From increased production complexity, team sizes, and budgets to new ways to reach the mass market, GDC:06 will answer the questions critical to the industry's success. Including platform keynotes from the presidents of Sony and Nintendo, and visionary addresses by luminary Will Wright and Battlestar Galactica writer and producer Ron Moore. Register online today: http://www.gdconf.com/register/ *********************************************************************** ================= 5: Columns Update ================= Monthly columns have been updated: Famous Last Words ----------------- "The Common Case of Missing Royalties" http://www.igda.org/columns/lastwords/lastwords_Feb06.php Culture Clash ------------- "Silly Rabbit, Trix are for Kids - 'Game' is a four-letter word" http://www.igda.org/columns/clash/clash_Feb06.php The Games Game -------------- "A Focus on Better Production" http://www.igda.org/columns/gamesgame/gamesgame_Feb06.php =========================== 6: Chapter Meetings/Reports =========================== Complete list of chapter reports and upcoming meetings: http://www.igda.org/chapters/updates.php Birmingham Thursday, March 16 > Design to Market Roundtable - Engine/Ingenuity Lecture http://www.igda.org/birmingham/ Berne Thursday, March 2 > 2nd Berne Chapter Meeting (Mobile Game Dev) http://www.igda.org/berne/archives/2006/02/2nd_berne_chapt.html Montreal Wednesday, March 1 > Full Auto (Xbox 360) Design Lecture + Social http://www.igda.org/montreal/index_e.htm#next Israel Tuesday, February 28 > Key Trends in the US gaming category http://www.igda.org/israel/images/invite.jpg North Carolina Triangle Tuesday, February 28 > Networking Social @ Flying Saucer http://www.igda.org/nctriangle Brisbane Sunday, February 26 > Big BBQ for developers, friends, and family http://www.igda.org/Forums/showthread.php?threadid=20517 Columbus Saturday, February 25 > Guest Speaker - Howard Dortch of HyperKat Games http://www.igda.org/columbus/ Phoenix Saturday, February 25 > Chapter Meeting for 2006 February http://igda-phx.org/calendar.php?id=62 Seattle Report, February 16 > Fun versus Offensive - Balancing the Cultural 'Edge' of Content for Global Games http://www.igda.org/seattle/reports/02_2006r.htm San Francisco Report, February 15 > Confessions of Five Casual Game Makers http://www.igda.org/sf Paris Report, February 13 > Game-Related Schools http://igda.paris.free.fr/paris/reports/reports_2006/chapter_report_jan06.htm Manila Report, February 11 > IGDA Manila Chapter Q1 2006 Meeting Report http://www.igda.org/manila Kiev Report, February 11 > 3rd Meeting of Kiev IGDA Chapter http://www.igda.org/kiev/2stmeetingreport.phtml Colorado Report, February 6 > NeoPets: The Darkest Faerie Postmortem http://coloradogamedev.org/ New Jersey North Report, February 4 > Leading NJ-area developers gather for the 2005 Advisory Board Recap Meeting http://blender.rutgers.edu/~njigda/meetings/2006/2006adv.php Birmingham Report, February 4 > Meeting Update - B'ham - 38 Attended lecture - Jan. 31 http://www.igda.org/birmingham/ ================== 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: - GameJobs.com - GarageGames.com - Houston Community College - Southwest - Hybrid Graphics - IBM - Intel - Mary-Margaret.com - Phenomblue - SN Systems - The Guildhall at SMU - Tira Wireless 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 - -------