=========================== IGDA Newsletter - July 2006 =========================== ================= Table of Contents ================= 0: A Word From Brian Reynolds 1: 2006 Casual Games White Paper 2: Book: "Game Writing: Narrative Skills for Videogames" 3: Event Action: Brighton, DGXpo, SIGGRAPH soon... 4: Columns Update 5: Chapter Meetings/Reports x: Logistical Bits & Unsubscribe Info ================= ============================= 0: A Word From Brian Reynolds ============================= Greetings fellow developers! I hope this month's newsletter finds you relaxing a bit in the summer heat, or at least not crunching too hard. As you prepare yourselves for yet another hectic fall and "holiday" season, it might also be a good time to think about ways to get involved in the IGDA community in the coming year. Our developer's association is growing rapidly, and there are all sorts of opportunities both to share knowledge with and learn from your fellow developers. One great way to combine learning with volunteering is to join one of our Special Interest Groups (SIGs). These autonomous and highly self-motivated groups bring together developers with a common interest in one of a whole variety of topics, ranging from (for example) IP Rights to Artificial Intelligence to Women in Game Development. The new white paper from the Casual Games SIG this month, as well as the new Game Narrative book from the Writers SIG, are great examples of the valuable work these groups are doing. Joining a SIG, getting involved in the discussions, and perhaps volunteering to help out with some of the ongoing work, are marvelous ways to pick up tips from fellow developers and make new contacts with other folks involved in your field, all while giving something back to the community. So check out our Special Interest Groups and get involved: http://www.igda.org/SIGs/ Keep on gaming! - Brian Reynolds Chairperson, IGDA President, Big Huge Games ********************************************************************* Ad: The 4th Annual Austin Game Conference, September 6-8 in Austin ** ********************************************************************* The Austin Game Conference program covers everything from MMOGs to digital distribution and offers lectures and workshops conducted by industry veterans and luminaries. Keynote speakers include: - Michael Dell, Chairman - Dell Computer - Rob Pardo, Lead Designer - World Of Warcraft, Blizzard Entertainment - Jon Landau, Academy Award winning producer of the movie Titanic - Vernor Vinge, Hugo Award Winning Science Fiction Writer Also just added, the Dell Precision ArtZONE training center. Register now and save $100, conference details are available online: http://www.GameConference.com/ ********************************************************************* ================================ 1: 2006 Casual Games White Paper ================================ The IGDA Casual Games SIG is very pleased to announce the availability of the 2006 Casual Games White Paper. The 116 page report freely available online: http://www.igda.org/casual/ This year's paper represents the combined knowledge of nearly 40 professionals in the casual gaming space, spanning all aspects of the industry including developers, publishers, portals, tool providers and more. All aspects of the document have been updated from last year. Highlights include the Business Models section with up to date information on how casual game companies are making money today. The Publishing section contains results from a publishing survey of over 50 players in the space. These results provide information about how games are actually brought to market. Among other things this survey shows how companies earn their revenue, what genres of games perform the best, and typical royalty rates. The contents of the paper are also available in a perpetually updated form on the IGDA wiki: http://www.igda.org/wiki/index.php/Casual_Games_SIG/Whitepaper ******************************************************** ** Ad: Women In Games International Announces Keynote ** ******************************************************** - Seattle, September 16 Women In Games International announces Bonnie Ross, Director of Production for Microsoft Game Studios as the keynote speaker for their next regional conference, "The Balancing Act: Game Industry Careers and Quality of Life." Bonnie Ross will present her keynote address, "Managing Insanity: How to be Director of Production for one of the largest publishing teams in the game industry and also have a life." Scheduled for Saturday, September 16 at the Microsoft campus in Redmond, this half-day conference will include a keynote, panels, round table discussions and a reception. To register online, visit: http://www.womeningamesinternational.org/ ******************************************************** ======================================================== 2: Book: "Game Writing: Narrative Skills for Videogames" ======================================================== Members of the IGDA's Game Writers SIG have collaborated to create the newly release book, "Game Writing: Narrative Skills for Videogames", published by Charles River Media. SIG chair, and the books's editor, Chris Bateman has a personal blog post to announce the release: http://onlyagame.typepad.com/only_a_game/2006/07/game_writing_na.html From the back of the book: "This unique collection of practical articles provides the foundations to the craft of game writing. The articles detail aspects of the process from the basics of narrative and non-linear narrative to writing comedy for games and creating compelling characters. Throughout the articles there is a strong emphasis on the skills developers and publishers will expect a game writer to have. The book is suitable for both beginners and experienced writers, and is a detailed guide to all the techniques of game writing. This book is an essential read for anyone wishing to get into this exciting field, particularly for new game writers wanting to hone their skills, and film and T.V. scriptwriters who want to learn how to transfer their skills to the games industry." *********************** ** Ad: SIGGRAPH 2006 ** *********************** 30 July-3 August, Boston Enjoy 5-days of real-world, real-time graphic, interactive twingularity. SIGGRAPH 2006 is where thousands of interdisciplinary superstars and game developers find the products and concepts they need to create opportunities and solve problems. Don't miss more than 250 exhibitors in the largest international display of next-generation tools required for world-class achievement in computer graphics and interactive techniques. http://www.siggraph.org/s2006/ *********************** ================================================== 3: Event Action: Brighton, DGXpo, SIGGRAPH soon... ================================================== Recent and upcoming event action includes: - Sandbox Symposium and SIGGRAPH: The IGDA will be at these joint ACM events with several panel sessions and a game developer "birds of a feather" gathering. Details online: http://sandboxsymposium.com/ http://www.siggraph.org/s2006/main.php?f=conference&p=birds http://www.siggraph.org/s2006/main.php?f=conference&p=panels&s=panel5 http://www.siggraph.org/s2006/main.php?f=conference&p=edu&s=2 - Develop @ Brighton / Women in Games trip summary and photos: http://www.igda.org/blogs/realitypanic/archives/001735.html - Digital Game XPO trip summary and photos: http://www.igda.org/blogs/realitypanic/archives/001634.html ================= 4: Columns Update ================= Monthly columns have been updated: Famous Last Words ----------------- "15% of What?" - Subcontractors need to know exactly what they are getting paid... http://www.igda.org/columns/lastwords/lastwords_Jul06.php Culture Clash ------------- "Stars upon Thars - Games and Hollywood" - A look at the disconnect between game writing and Hollywood http://www.igda.org/columns/clash/clash_Jul06.php The Games Game -------------- "Tools of the (Design) Trade" - Covering the tools that a game designer uses in the game dev process http://www.igda.org/columns/gamesgame/gamesgame_Jul06.php =========================== 5: Chapter Meetings/Reports =========================== Complete list of chapter reports and upcoming meetings: http://www.igda.org/chapters/updates.php Japan Wednesday, August 30 > 3rd IGDA academic day at CEDEC, Aug 31 http://cedec.cesa.or.jp/ Denmark Tuesday, August 29 > Social meeting http://www.igda.dk/ Manila Saturday, July 29 > Q3 2006 Chapter Meeting http://www.igda.org/manila Japan Report, July 21 > What is the next stile of online game? http://www.itmedia.co.jp/news/articles/0607/24/news032.html Hamburg Report, July 21 > Beach Barbecue Report http://www.igda.org/hamburg/reports.htm Japan Report, July 15 > How use Japanese animation technology to games for growing the productivity http://www.rbbtoday.com/news/20060723/32515.html Las Vegas Report, July 11 > July Meeting Recap http://www.igda.org/lasvegas/archives/2006/07/july_meeting_re.html Hamar Report, July 10 > Chapter Newsletter http://www.igda.org/hamar/newsletters/igda_hamar_newsletter_july2006.htm Japan Report, July 7 > How make a collaboration development between Asian countries http://www.4gamer.net/news.php?url=/news/history/2006.07/20060710195415detail.html Japan Report, July 1 > Independent developer strategy for the next generation http://www.rbbtoday.com/news/20060703/31952.html Chicago Report, July 1 > "Bringing authenticity to the game" with Kudo Tsunoda, GM of EA Chicago http://www.igda.org/chicago/200606.htm Japan Report, June 30 > Game research, what are difficult and critical points in Japan? http://www.rbbtoday.com/news/20060703/31951.html San Francisco Report, June 28 > Tomb Raider: Legend Postmortem, Crystal Dynamics http://www.igda.org/sf London Meeting, June 28 > Is There A Future For Mobile Gaming? http://www.igda.org/london/ Albany Report, June 28 > Developers Discuss Quality of Life with Erin Hoffman (aka "ea_spouse") http://www.igda.org/albany/archives/2006/06/meeting_report_3.html South Florida Report, June 27 > Next Generation Game Art Creation (Zbrush) http://www.igda.org/miami/meetings/2006-06.php ================== 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: - A K Peters - Austin Community College - Go3 Electronic Entertainment Expo - Interactive Studio Management - IPPO Y.K. - MobyGames - nVidia 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). 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