Blog for Dylan Romero at GarageGames.com

Legions Chat with Tim Aste: Today!

Dylan Romero — 2008-03-20T20:02:28+00:00

Tim Aste, Project Director for Fallen Empire: Legions, will be fielding questions about the game at the InstantAction blog via UStream:

blog.instantaction.com/2008/03/legions-chat.html

The barrage begins at 3pm PST. Be sure to ask why there isn't a Spinfusor! Tim loves that question. :)

InstantAction Game Dev Contest Winners

Dylan Romero — 2008-03-10T23:07:15+00:00

The time has come! We're finally ready to announce the winners of the 2008 InstantAction Game Developer Contest.
Without further ado:

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1st Prize Winners

Cannon Battle

Developer:
Mark Thurow

Cannon Battle Video:
Gameplay Vid

Why it won:
Cannon Battle defines the kind of game we're looking for on InstantAction: a quick-play 3D RTS with exceptional core gameplay mechanics and a unique style of play.

Cannon Battle allows you to fire your artillery manually as you construct buildings and conquer territory, combining hectic reactionary tactics with the planning and strategy that RTS games are known for.

Survival/Switching Gears

Developer:
Affectworks

Switching Gears demo:
www.switchinggearsgame.com

Survival .plan:
www.garagegames.com/blogs/45181/14313

Why it won:
Affectworks sent us two very different games, which are both great for very different reasons.

Survival is a first person zombie-pocalypse game where building a shelter to stave off the zombie hordes is key to your survival.

Switching Gears is a platformer with a variety of polished gameplay mechanics set in a comedic robotic world.

What they win:
Each 1st Prize winner will receive one Unity Indie license ($199 USD value) and a Torque Game Engine Advance Indie license with Torsion ($335 USD value).

Grand Prize Winner

Trash: Wasted Earth

Developer:
Inhuman Games/Eipix

Trash info/screens/vids:
www.inhumangames.com/

Why it won:
Trash: Wasted Earth brings to the table everything you can do in a mainstream RTS, but does so in indie style.

Based on the popular indie game Trash, the new version looks to take it to the next level with more options, more units, more players, and improved graphics.

What they win:
The Grand Prize winner will receive one license to Unity Pro with Asset Server ($1,999 USD value) and one Torque Engine Suite, which includes: Torque Game Builder, Torque Game Engine, Torque Game Engine Advance, Torque X Pro, Torsion, Torque Network Libraries, and art content packs ($1340 USD value). Finally, and most importantly, the winner will receive an InstantAction publishing contract.

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Congrats to all our finalists, and to all those who submitted a game. It's amazing how many quality submissions we received on such short notice. Next year's contest promises to be bigger, better, and (probably what you want to hear most) longer, so start planning your submissions!

In the meantime, we're always looking for great games to add to the InstantAction library. Even if your game did not make the cut this time around, we'd love to see your game. Please see our publishing info page for information regarding publishing with GarageGames.

InstantAction is now in public beta, so to check out the site and get a feel for what kind of games we are accepting, register at InstantAction.com and give it a spin.

The finalists for the contest provided some great links to more info about their submissions, which can be found in the comment section of the Finalist Announcement blog: www.garagegames.com/index.php?sec=mg&mod=resource&page=view&qid=1432...

Check out more Unity tools at: Unity Technologies

All winners will be contacted shortly with details

IA Game Developer Contest Finalists

Dylan Romero — 2008-02-21T18:03:12+00:00

We announced the finalists yesterday at GDC, and now I finally have a minute and an internet connection for the first time since the announcement. Without further ado, hear are the 5 finalists for the contest:

CannonBattle
Trash: Wasted Earth
Day of War
Grudgematch
Switching Gears/Survival

Congrats to the finalists, the Grand Prize Winner and the two 1st Prize Winners will be announced next week. Thanks to all for your submissions, but now the show floor is opening so I gotta run!

GarageGames' GDC Schedule

Dylan Romero — 2008-02-13T20:09:50+00:00

We're going to be pretty busy this year at GDC: our booth is 3x bigger, we're showing off InstantAction to the public for the first time, and we're even giving regular presentations at the booth. Here's a full schedule of what GarageGames is up to in San Fran next week...

GarageGames/InstantAction - Booth #5438 - Located at Moscone North

EVERY DAY

Every half hour, feast your eyes on a public demonstration of the entire network. Get a chance to win stuff and sign up for the beta.

WEDNESDAY - FEBRUARY 20

11:30 - Fallen Empires: Legions
Presented by members of the Legions development team. Show attendees will get an exclusive firsthand look at the highly anticipated FPS.

If you miss this one, it will be repeated Thursday at 2pm

2:00 - Alex Seropian presents: Cyclomite
Alex Seropian and his team at Wideload Shorts show off their latest game project. This is the first ever showing of this innovative multiplayer party game. Don't miss your chance to play it.

If you miss this one, it will be repeated on Thursday at 11:30pm

3:00 - Torque: Present and Future
Matt Fairfax, Engine Developer and Game Programmer for GarageGames, will showcase the latest updates to Torque game creation technology. In addition to presenting new functionality to Torque for PC development, Torque projects are now portable for publishing games on the Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Wii. GarageGames is an approved middleware for both platforms with multiple titles shipped on consoles.

If you miss this one, it will be repeated on Thursday at 1:00pm

4:30 - Developers Wanted
Randy Dersham, Director of Publishing for InstantAction.com, tells the crowd how they can land a publishing contract with InstantAction. He's walking in the building with contracts, so be prepared to stalk this presentation!

If you miss this one, it will be repeated on Thursday at 4:30pm

4:00 - 2008 InstantAction Developers Contest Announcement and Booth Crawl
We'll also be announcing the finalists for the InstantAction Developer Contest on Wednesday at 4pm at the booth. Stop by to check out the games that made the cut, but stay for the booze: the GDC Booth Crawl begins soon after the finalists are announced and GG will be one of the many enablers on the show floor.

Contest submissions are due Feb 18th and should be sent to GameDevContest08@garagegames.com

For info on the contest, hit the links:
InstantAction Blog.
Official Contest Rules

GarageGames Beyond the Booth

Thursday - 8:00-10:00pm GarageGames Suite Night
To snag an invite to our Suite Night party, email events@garagegames.com with "Suite Night" in the subject line.

Ben Garney: Live!
Check out Ben's plan for details: www.garagegames.com/blogs/8863/14283

The End

Look forward to seeing you all in San Fran!

One Week Left... InstantAction Game Dev Contest

Dylan Romero — 2008-02-04T21:52:50+00:00

That's right, just one week left in the InstantAction Game Developer Contest. Put the finishing touches on those submissions and get them to gamedevcontest08@garagegames.com before I get into work on Monday, February 10th.

As one final incentive for those waffling on whether or not they're ready to submit there game to the contest, I give you:

the InstantAction Cup-O-Noodle t-shirt!

As modeled by the lovely Derek Bronson:

First introduced at IGC 2007, these 100% cotton tees are the last word in game developer style, providing the comfort and durability to withstand 16 hour programming sessions. Coming in a stylish tree bark brown... Ok, enough of that.

Each finalist announced at GDC this year will receive an InstantAction t-shirt. Soon after GDC we'll announce the 2 runner-ups and the Grand Prize winner.

For all the contest updates, including the full prize list, head over to the InstantAction Blog.

Official Contest Rules

2008 InstantAction Game Developer Contest

Dylan Romero — 2007-12-06T19:20:57+00:00

Much of the news regarding InstantAction has been focused on gamers, but that doesn't mean we don't want to get developers in on the action.

With that in mind, we bring you the 2008 InstantAction Game Developer Contest. This is a great opportunity to win publishing contract from GarageGames and be among the first to get your game on a next generation online platform. Read on for all the juicy details.

Independent game developers, this is your chance to turn your dream game into reality by winning a publishing contract for the InstantAction.com game platform. The winning entry will join games made by other well-known industry heavyweights. Finalists will be announced at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, with the winner being announced shortly thereafter.

InstantAction is all about bringing fun, top-tier games to the already large and growing audience of online gamers. We're looking for submissions that are innovative and eye-catching, but more importantly, easy to pick up and enjoy immediately. Another main focus of InstantAction is community. As such, all submissions are required to be multiplayer games or include an extensive multiplayer component.

More details and prize categories will be announced soon. Questions? Respond in the comments sections and we'll answer as soon as we can, or send questions to ContestQuestions@garagegames.com.

Send all submissions to GameDevContest08@GarageGames.com. Read below for contest details, including terms, conditions, and prizes.

Terms & Conditions:

1) Submission Deadline: All entries must be submitted by February 18, 2008 to the following email address: gamedevcontest08@garagegames.com.
2) All entries must include at minimum a playable demo to be considered.
3) All entries must be multiplayer, or include an extensive multiplayer component.
4) All entries must be playable on Windows XP or Vista.
5) Contestants are free to use the technology of their choice for the creation of their game.
6) Entries may include games in progress or previously completed games.
7) Entries must be submitted in .zip or similar file types.
8) Entries must come with a short description of the game, including "How to Play" instructions.

Prizes:

Grand Prize - An InstantAction.com publishing contract.

- A license to Unity Pro with Asset Server ($1,999 USD value)

- Torque Engine Suite: Torque Game Builder, Torque Game Engine, Torque Game Engine Advance, Torque X Pro, Torsion, Torque Network Libraries, and art content packs ($1340 USD value)

Second Prize - Unity Indie license ($199 USD value)

- Torque Game Engine Advance with Torsion from Sickhead Games ($335 USD value)

Third Prize - Unity Indie license ($199 USD value)

- Torque Game Engine Advance with Torsion from Sickhead Games ($335 USD value)

Other Prizes - To be announced soon! Prizes will include hardware and software from some of the tech industry's top brands. Stay tuned to GG or the InstantAction Blog for updates on new prize categories in the coming days.

Bonus - Unity Technologies will be offering extended trials to any registered participant that wants to use Unity.

**Click here for full Official Rules**

The contest questions forum thread is located here.

The Truth About Game Development

Dylan Romero — 2007-05-30T18:38:49+00:00

Kloonigames, a blog specializing in experimental gaming, has featured a simple game called The Truth About Game Development. The game mocks the often subpar working conditions plaguing the game industry.

The employees in TAGD are called 'slaves' and the development of the game's game (confusing, I know) resembles that of a vast monument being constructed through backbreaking physical labor. As the slave driver--er, manager--of the project, you have the option to turn down employee suggestions, and even kill some of your slower workers to motivate the others to work harder.

As pessimistic as this game may be about the industry, I find its humor and relatability to much of the GG community deems it worthy of mentioning. Many of you are current or former employees of game studios, but the vast majority of GGers are indie developers. Eeking out an indie living may not seem so bad after giving this game a spin.

For the record, GarageGames rarely kills employees for their impudence.

Human Players Being Tapped to Enhance Artificial Intelligence

Dylan Romero — 2007-05-01T00:51:31+00:00

And they're using Torque 1.4 to do it!

Artificial Intelligence, or AI for short, has long been a challenging part of game development. Accurately simulating the complexity of human interaction is precisely what The Restaurant Game, a research project at the MIT Media Lab, is trying to accomplish. By leveraging thousands of actual human interactions within the project, the researchers behind it hope to algorithmically combine these experiences to create a new game with more nuanced, human-like AI.

Every person who participates in the project will receive credit as a "Game Designer," so if you're looking to pad your resume in twenty minutes or less, look no further. Intrigued by the inflated sense of self worth these credentials would surely bring me, I decided to try the game for myself.

To keep the research as accurate as possible, a tutorial must be completed before the player is allowed to play with--or against, depending on how combative your personality is--a real person. The tutorial is relatively short and simple. It gives you instructions on how to order food, pay your bill, and other stuff you probably know how to do if you've ever eaten or spent money. A dialog box pops up whenever the mouse is hovering over an object, and a bunch of possible interactions (such as "pick up" or "eat") with said object are presented. Despite being a tutorial, the player is still provided with the complete freedom to verb any noun in the scene.

Seeing as it was just a tutorial, and consequently of no research value to MIT, I decided to verb as many unexpected nouns as possible. Within moments I was sitting on the bartender's head and eating out of the trash. Delicious.Trying to pick up another person results in a disturbing grunt/groan hybrid that I can only assume symbolizes an extreme effort. A Dr. Suessian ability to stack objects is also possible, as anything that does not cause the aforementioned inhuman, gutterel cry can be piled high, to the sky, plates and glasses, piled sky high.

When you enter the game itself, a list of available servers is displayed in which two people enter--the first as a waitress, the second as a customer--and interaction ensues. Players can talk to each other by typing out questions, food orders, and bad pick-up lines. After each person has played their part, the customer can walk outside and conclude the demo.

Can this project successfully improve current standards of AI? Or will the AI come out biting countertops and running out with the cash register? (I may or may not have done the latter.) Or is that perhaps exactly the kind of success the project is looking for? What's more realistic than the complicated and unpredictable nature of your average human being? The idea of interacting with an in-game AI that is similar to humans is almost as frightening as actually stepping outside and interacting with real people on the streets. I shudder to think.

It's important to know that the project isn't being run by some schlub, either. The lead developer responsible for the project is Jeff Orkin, a game industry vet who has previously worked on award-winning AI systems for F.E.A.R. and No One Lives Forever 2. The man certainly has credentials. Then again, I have credentials now too! Thanks Jeff!

For more information or to try the game yourself, click here.

Forums Up on GGE

Dylan Romero — 2007-03-30T22:46:42+00:00

The Great Games Experiment now has forums!

The forums are tightly integrated with GGE and replace the old group discussion modules as well as provide a new place for general discussion and feedback. You can send messages, give kudos, and invite friends from inside a thread; no need to view the user's profile first. Of course you can easily view their profile if you wish, check out all of their posts, or mute them if they are getting on your nerves.

Full GGE Code is supported in posts so you can easily link to games, groups, and users.You can also embed your XBOX Live gamertag, show YouTube videos and more. Another great feature of these forums is that they are tag-based, just like GGE. If you have spent any time browsing games on GGE, then you will already be familiar with tag-based browsing. The tags allow you to easily search up the topics you care to read about.

So, go ahead, have fun, and be sure to post bugs and suggestions in the Feedback category.

On Stories in Games and Kleptomaniacal Parrots

Dylan Romero — 2007-03-16T21:33:24+00:00

Save a few minor tweaks, I've finally completed a writing side project I've been working on for a game called The Pirate Tales. This marks my first completed story for a game. Let me rephrase that: this marks my first completed story for a completed game.

What I did: For someone who likes to dabble in nearly every aspect of the creative side of game development, I found this project to be quite rewarding. Not only did I choose the story, but I got to have a say in the character design, level design, and music. The Andresen brothers (who started the company - TwinTale Entertainment - that is developing the game) were explicit in their desire to have the story become fully integrated into gameplay - which is not something you typically see out of a puzzle game.

In order to make this work, I had to choose which combination of four objective types (clear tiles, plunder treasure, defeat enemies, collect story piece) would be included in each level based on what was happening in the story. The result in 100 levels, or "chapters," of story-infused gameplay.

Having the gameplay and art run directly through the story made my job simultaneously easier and harder: easier in that I didn't have to adjust the story to the art or changing gameplay mechanics (and because my lame one paragraph descriptions of how the characters and scenes should look turn into ridiculously good art by Nauris Krauze and Blake Lowry), but harder in that I become responsible for so much more than just the story.

However, the most trying aspect of making a game in this fashion is that it goes against my core beliefs in what makes a game. Despite being a writer, I'm a firm believer that gameplay comes first. If the story gets in the way of the gamplay experience at all, dump it like your junior high girlfriend after she got braces.

That's what made writing the story for this game so difficult. I didn't want to sacrifice the intuitive gameplay that's at the heart of the Pirate Tales in order to tell a story about a love-sick deckhand and a kleptomaniacal peg-legged parrot. I wanted to do both, dammit!

If GDC taught me anything, games are all about immersion. That's a big reason why Nintendo's been so successful with inferior technology, and why the biggest lines at GDC revolved around technology aimed a making gamers forget that they're using a controller, looking at a screen, or even playing a game at all.

I would go as far as to say most games shouldn't even have a full-fledged story. Start with a quick explanation of what's happening so the gamer can center him/herself in the world you've created, and then let the gameplay help the player tell their own story based on their experience playing the game. That's right, actually let the player play the game. Cutscenes and extensive dialogue pull the player back into reality (horrible, horrible reality) by cutting them off from their character, whether that character be a hulking, chain-gun toting, militant leviathan, or a cursor used to match like-colored bubbles.

Well, The Pirate Tales may make me kind of a hypocrite based on that rant, but another principle of making games is to do something different than previous iterations of games similar to yours. Within the puzzle genre, how many games are based around a storyline (rhetorical question, I don't want any wise guys proving me wrong by citing dozens of examples)? And hopefully this .plan lets you know that the story wasn't included merely as self-indulgence for my writer soul. That's what newsletters are for.

Speaking of my day job, GarageGames will be publishing The Pirate Tales (a TGB game) sometime in the near future.