Alias Maya 7 Showcase – 2

“bluegfx” and “Alias” are showcasing Alias Maya 7 and Motionbuilder 7 in Belfast
and Dublin next week.

On the 2nd Nov they are in W5 @ Odyssey, 2 Queen’s Quay,Belfast.
2.30pm start

On the 3rd Nov they are in the Clarence Hotel, Temple Bar, Dublin.
2.30pm start

Registration is free but they would like to know numbers in advance.

To register, please go to:
http://www.alias.com/eng/about/events/emea_roadshow/index.shtml

Questions and queries to neilp@bluegfx.com

Alias Showcase – 2

“bluegfx” and “Alias” are bringing Alias Maya 7 and Motionbuilder to Dublin and the Clarence Hotel. 2.30pm start

To register, please go to:
http://www.alias.com/eng/about/events/emea_roadshow/index.shtml

If anyone has any questions contact
neilp@bluegfx.com

Alias Showcase

“bluegfx” and “Alias” are bringing Alias Maya 7 and Motionbuilder to Belfast, W5 @ Odyssey, 2 Queen’s Quay. 2.30pm start

To register, please go to:
http://www.alias.com/eng/about/events/emea_roadshow/index.shtml

If anyone has any questions contact
neilp@bluegfx.com

Gd Shindig

We haven’t had one now in about two months so time to put names to faces, drink and be merry.

Venue: Mahaffys pub on Pearse Street near the dart station at the back of Trinity College in Dublin.

Time: after 7.30pm

Map http://www.dublinpubscene.com/thepubs/mahaffys_map.html

Alias Maya 7 Showcase

“bluegfx” and “Alias” are showcasing Alias Maya 7 and Motionbuilder 7 in Belfast
and Dublin next week.

On the 2nd Nov they are in W5 @ Odyssey, 2 Queen’s Quay,Belfast.
2.30pm start

On the 3rd Nov they are in the Clarence Hotel, Temple Bar, Dublin.
2.30pm start

Registration is free but they would like to know numbers in advance.

To register, please go to:
http://www.alias.com/eng/about/events/emea_roadshow/index.shtml

Questions and queries to neilp@bluegfx.com

Rising Stars In Galway

StarCave Studios in Galway recently awarded 6 interns with certificates on completion of their summer internship programme. 15 interns started the programme in late June and this was whittled down to 6 in the final stages. None of the interns had previous game experience. The interns learned new skills in AI, 3D modelling, Photoshop, the Torque Game Engine and level design. The final 6 interns created a mini-game called ‘Spike’ which will be marketed for publishing in the future. The game will be available for download on the newly revamped StarCave website (www.starcave.com) very soon. The following post-mortem was provided by StarCave and the interns.

Post-mortem
The last week of June 2005 saw 15 Interns arrive at the StarCave office located in the Galway Technology Centre. The Torque Game Engine was selected as the core learning tool given the community support available.

The 15 Interns were divided into two teams and asked to develop a small demo of 4 levels. The same design document was given to both teams. The marketing manager, Niamh Breslin was available every day to help the interns & CEO / Producer, Keith Killilea held weekly meetings with the interns to help guide their progress. By the end of July the two teams had completed their demos. Team 1 came out on top with but only because Team 2 had lost a few members and had to re-double their efforts to deliver.

At the start of August the selected interns were combined into 1 team and set about finishing off the game. Different parts of each demo were merged together, new leaders in art, code & design were assigned and tight guidelines were set by CEO – Producer, Keith Killilea. Key aspects of the programme included bug testing, time management & work flow management. On the 10th of August StarCave was officially launched and the interns showed their two demos to an invited audience.

By the end of August 2005, the interns had successfully produced a small 3D action puzzle game called ‘Spike!’ The game includes 12 levels, dozens of baddies, upgrades and most importantly, fun gameplay.

The five interns: Oliver, Alan, Alan, Sebastian and Brendan, felt that the programme offered an excellent opportunity to work with game development technologies and to experience working in a game development team.

Following the internship programme StarCave offered contracts to the remaining 5 interns. The new recruits have formed a team called Golden Crest that will work on the game “European Adventure Tour, an extension of the Camelot Galway concept. The new game will use the Reality Engine and is aimed at PC and next generation consoles. It will be set in and around various countries throughout Europe, with each country representing a different time in history. Further details of this title will be released at a later date from the Star Cave Studios web site, http://www.starcave.com.

1
2
3
4
5

Rising Stars In Galway – 2

StarCave Studios in Galway recently awarded 6 interns with certificates on completion of their summer internship programme. 15 interns started the programme in late June and this was whittled down to 6 in the final stages. None of the interns had previous game experience. The interns learned new skills in AI, 3D modelling, Photoshop, the Torque Game Engine and level design. The final 6 interns created a mini-game called ‘Spike’ which will be marketed for publishing in the future. The game will be available for download on the newly revamped StarCave website (www.starcave.com) very soon. The following post-mortem was provided by StarCave and the interns.

Post-mortem
The last week of June 2005 saw 15 Interns arrive at the StarCave office located in the Galway Technology Centre. The Torque Game Engine was selected as the core learning tool given the community support available.

The 15 Interns were divided into two teams and asked to develop a small demo of 4 levels. The same design document was given to both teams. The marketing manager, Niamh Breslin was available every day to help the interns & CEO / Producer, Keith Killilea held weekly meetings with the interns to help guide their progress. By the end of July the two teams had completed their demos. Team 1 came out on top with but only because Team 2 had lost a few members and had to re-double their efforts to deliver.

At the start of August the selected interns were combined into 1 team and set about finishing off the game. Different parts of each demo were merged together, new leaders in art, code & design were assigned and tight guidelines were set by CEO – Producer, Keith Killilea. Key aspects of the programme included bug testing, time management & work flow management. On the 10th of August StarCave was officially launched and the interns showed their two demos to an invited audience.

By the end of August 2005, the interns had successfully produced a small 3D action puzzle game called ‘Spike!’ The game includes 12 levels, dozens of baddies, upgrades and most importantly, fun gameplay.

The five interns: Oliver, Alan, Alan, Sebastian and Brendan, felt that the programme offered an excellent opportunity to work with game development technologies and to experience working in a game development team.

Following the internship programme StarCave offered contracts to the remaining 5 interns. The new recruits have formed a team called Golden Crest that will work on the game “European Adventure Tour, an extension of the Camelot Galway concept. The new game will use the Reality Engine and is aimed at PC and next generation consoles. It will be set in and around various countries throughout Europe, with each country representing a different time in history. Further details of this title will be released at a later date from the Star Cave Studios web site, http://www.starcave.com.

1
2
3
4
5

Deadlines For Indep Game Festival – 2

Deadlines are fast approaching for modding and student sections of the Independent Games Festival to be held in San Jose, CA in March 2006.

IGF Mod Competition

The IGF’s new mod competition, for which the entry deadline is November 1, 2005 at 11:59pm PDT, will award the most outstanding, independently developed ‘total conversion’ modifications for four major game titles. The game titles are as follows:

* IGF Best Mod – ‘Half-Life 2’ ($2,500)
* IGF Best Mod – ‘Unreal Tournament 2004’ ($2,500)
* IGF Best Mod – ‘Neverwinter Nights’ ($2,500)
* IGF Best Mod – ‘Doom 3’ ($2,500)

IGF Student Showcase

The IGF’s Student Showcase, for which the entry deadline is November 15 , 2005 at 11:59pm PDT, will highlight a total of ten games this year:

* 8 outstanding Student Showcase finalists constructed using all original elements.
* 2 outstanding Student Showcase finalist constructed using large-scale middleware such as graphics engines.

More info on how to enter http://www.igf.com/submit.htm

Deadlines For Indep Game Festival

Deadlines are fast approaching for modding and student sections of the Independent Games Festival to be held in San Jose, CA in March 2006.

IGF Mod Competition

The IGF’s new mod competition, for which the entry deadline is November 1, 2005 at 11:59pm PDT, will award the most outstanding, independently developed ‘total conversion’ modifications for four major game titles. The game titles are as follows:

* IGF Best Mod – ‘Half-Life 2’ ($2,500)
* IGF Best Mod – ‘Unreal Tournament 2004’ ($2,500)
* IGF Best Mod – ‘Neverwinter Nights’ ($2,500)
* IGF Best Mod – ‘Doom 3’ ($2,500)

IGF Student Showcase

The IGF’s Student Showcase, for which the entry deadline is November 15 , 2005 at 11:59pm PDT, will highlight a total of ten games this year:

* 8 outstanding Student Showcase finalists constructed using all original elements.
* 2 outstanding Student Showcase finalist constructed using large-scale middleware such as graphics engines.

More info on how to enter http://www.igf.com/submit.htm

Cfp – Games And Learning – 2

Call for Papers: Special issue on Digital Games and Learning “Learning, Media and Technology” Guest Edited by Liam Murray (University of Limerick) and Cathlena Martin

Learning, Media and Technology is a peer-reviewed journal that provides a
forum for international debates on a diverse range of media used to support
formal and informal learning. Contexts for learning include: early years
education to higher education, as well as in the home, the community and the
workplace.

In 2006 we would like to publish a themed special issue on digital games and
learning. The use of games created in digital media can provide a powerful
means of supporting learning both formally in the context of schooling and
homework, and informally through personal interest and leisure activities.
Digital games provide opportunities for learners to experiment, explore,
collaborate, develop new skills such as strategic thinking, and engage
deeply with a wide variety of challenging scenarios, simulations and
situations. The penetration of connectivity into homes as well as schools, and increasing access to broadband, has meant that young people and learners of all ages can participate in multi-player online gaming activities. This turn can contribute to the development of new social skills through online learning communities.

We would welcome interdisciplinary contributions on any aspect of digital
games and learning, including:
· The role of edutainment in formal contexts
· Informal learning and digital games
· Young people as creators of digital games
· The impact on learning of multi-player digital games and online communities
· New pedagogies for integrating digital games within formal curricula
· Digital games and media literacy

Please send contributions by October 31st 2005 to Trish Gladdis, Institute
of Education, Manchester Metropolitan University, 799 Wilmslow Road,
Didsbury, Manchester, M20 2RR UK
Tel: +44 (0) 161 247 2010
Fax: +44 (0) 161 247 6830
Or submit by Email: lmat@mmu.ac.uk

Cfp – Games And Learning

Call for Papers: Special issue on Digital Games and Learning “Learning, Media and Technology” Guest Edited by Liam Murray (University of Limerick) and Cathlena Martin

Learning, Media and Technology is a peer-reviewed journal that provides a
forum for international debates on a diverse range of media used to support
formal and informal learning. Contexts for learning include: early years
education to higher education, as well as in the home, the community and the
workplace.

In 2006 we would like to publish a themed special issue on digital games and
learning. The use of games created in digital media can provide a powerful
means of supporting learning both formally in the context of schooling and
homework, and informally through personal interest and leisure activities.
Digital games provide opportunities for learners to experiment, explore,
collaborate, develop new skills such as strategic thinking, and engage
deeply with a wide variety of challenging scenarios, simulations and
situations. The penetration of connectivity into homes as well as schools, and increasing access to broadband, has meant that young people and learners of all ages can participate in multi-player online gaming activities. This turn can contribute to the development of new social skills through online learning communities.

We would welcome interdisciplinary contributions on any aspect of digital
games and learning, including:
· The role of edutainment in formal contexts
· Informal learning and digital games
· Young people as creators of digital games
· The impact on learning of multi-player digital games and online communities
· New pedagogies for integrating digital games within formal curricula
· Digital games and media literacy

Please send contributions by October 31st 2005 to Trish Gladdis, Institute
of Education, Manchester Metropolitan University, 799 Wilmslow Road,
Didsbury, Manchester, M20 2RR UK
Tel: +44 (0) 161 247 2010
Fax: +44 (0) 161 247 6830
Or submit by Email: lmat@mmu.ac.uk

Teaching Game Design – 2

A one day course on teaching game design will be held at the University of Abertay, Scotland on the 3rd of November.

Attendance is £75 before the 27th of Oct.

for bookings and further information see http://www.ics.heacademy.ac.uk/Events/Gaming/index.shtml

Darklight Symposium – 2

Darklight takes place from the 27-28th of Oct this year.

Oct 27th sees a making movies for the small screen workshop. Cost 40 euros.

Oct 28th see a free one day symposium with talks onthe legal implications of creating and distribution you own contnent and the impact and evolution of citizen media.

for booking see www.darklight.ie

or events@darklight-filmfestival.com

Golden Ticket Computer Game Competition

Time: Wednesday, December 14th at 5pm
Venue: Computing Labs, D-Block, South Building, UU Coleraine

In association with GameTheWorld, the School of Computing and Information Engineering at Coleraine is hosting a computer games playing competition. The competition is open to all university and 16-18 school students and the winner will receive a Golden Ticket entitling the recipient to a week’s free play on any of the GameTheWorld locations.

For more details see the UUC’s computer game website.
Computer games website at UUC: games.infc.ulst.ac.uk
Computing at Coleraine portal: www.infc.ulst.ac.uk/informatics/cie
Or contact Dr Darryl Charles for further details: dk.charles@ulster.ac.uk
GameTheWorld website: www.gametheworld.com

Getting A Job In The Games Industry

Time: 6pm
Venue: Lecture Room TBA, Central Buildings, University of Ulster, Coleraine

Tony Kelly talk on game development and how to get started in the industry, placing particular emphasis on the local possibilities. Tony is the founder & co-ordinator of the Irish chapter of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA), and a member of Digital Games Research Association (DIGRA) – as well as a member of the IGDA’s Production SIG. Tony worked for Intel for over 5 years as a Senior Producer for the IT Innovation group, where he set up and ran a Serious Games & Simulations team. He now works as a Producer for Torc Interactive, a games & middleware developer in Donegal.

Computer games website at UUC: games.infc.ulst.ac.uk
Computing at Coleraine portal: www.infc.ulst.ac.uk/informatics/cie
Or contact Dr Darryl Charles for further details: dk.charles@ulster.ac.uk

Teaching Game Design

A one day course on teaching game design will be held at the University of Abertay, Scotland on the 3rd of November.

Attendance is £75 before the 27th of Oct.

for bookings and further information see http://www.ics.heacademy.ac.uk/Events/Gaming/index.shtml

Kapooki Games Closes Its Doors – 2

Kapooki Games closed its doors after failing to find a publisher for its title ‘Big Top’.

Founded in 2000 by Michael Griffin the company has received investment from Enterprise Ireland and Trinity Campus Companies Venture Capital Fund.

The company has released some mini games and an online pc game called ‘Lorgaine: the Black Standard’ was released in 2002 via T-mobile in Germany. Subsequently the company turned to console and PC game development.

The company had actively supported gd.ie and the local IGDA chapter.

For more details, see:

Forum link

Kapooki Games Closes Its Doors

Kapooki Games closed its doors after failing to find a publisher for its title ‘Big Top’.

Founded in 2000 by Michael Griffin the company has received investment from Enterprise Ireland and Trinity Campus Companies Venture Capital Fund.

The company has released some mini games and an online pc game called ‘Lorgaine: the Black Standard’ was released in 2002 via T-mobile in Germany. Subsequently the company turned to console and PC game development.

The company had actively supported gd.ie and the local IGDA chapter.

For more details, see:

Forum link

Ware It Well – 2

Not only are these invisible middlemen still wearing short trousers – they’re barely two years old – but their core is as Irish as Molley Malone’s wheelbarrow. Pavel Barter asked DemonWare CEO Dylan Collins how a small start-up became the backbone of multiplayer gaming.

“DemonWare… what do they do?” The standard reaction of gamers when asked about this Dublin-born business is one which the team must surely appreciate. DemonWare’s role is to remain unseen and unheard, to enhance liaison between players and make a developer’s task less painful. Although networking technology is but a phantom for gamers, for developers and publishers it is the new physics or AI.
What do they do? DemonWare assist all the major platforms – publishers like Atari, games like Starship Troopers – and are working to deliver a multitude of titles on next generation consoles including the PSP and Xbox360. In gaming’s global village, these guys matter.

DemonWare was officially launched in mid-2003. CEO Dylan Collins explains: “Prior to that myself and [CTO] Sean Blanchfield had a wireless software company, Phorest, which we started in Trinity College. We sold the company and were exploring opportunities in the game space because it was exciting and, after all, our background was in networking. After a lot of flying around the world and talking to various studios, we recognised the opportunity for network middleware. Our bet was that the future of gaming will be multiplayer and online.”

Not that Collins and Blanchfield were exactly inventing the wheel – GameSpy was already working on networking assets such as peer-to-peer matchmaking, statistics, security, and voice chat. “They were doing a good job too,” admits Collins, “but we saw a niche for something a little deeper in the network space, a more comprehensive network layer.”

The start-up team (ex-Havok employees and Trinity grads) initially built around GameSpy, but only after publishers repeatedly approached them asking “can you do lobby services?” did they decide to take their competitors head on, securing external venture capitalist investment and moving into an office on Dublin’s Abbey Street. Mid-2003, DemonWare was officially launched.

“In that first year we attended a lot of conferences, more listening than talking to ensure that we were creating what developers wanted. We became a middleware partner with Sony and Xbox and that gave people a lot of confidence in us. We also made it a priority to respect everyone’s needs and deadlines. The most important thing for any studio is that their game is shipped on time.”

DemonWare launched their first product at the Game Developers Conference 2004. Onlookers were shocked as to how fast the company moved in such a short space of time, but theirs was an experienced team that learned from past mistakes in other companies. Furthermore, their timing was better than a Swiss wristwatch since multiplayer gaming on consoles was only just beginning to take off. According to Collins, “some studios didn’t have any experience [in networking middleware], others had bad experiences building their own and wanted to outsource.”

DemonWare touts two products. The first is State Engine, a complete networking layer which is easily dropped into a game and looks after communication between computers or consoles. The other product is Matchmaking + (famously advertised on a DemonWare t-shirt by a couple of copulating bunnies), a lobby service that gives players access to user management, stats and downloads. Want to track an online gaming session, communicate with other players, or access feedback? Matchmaking + covers it all.

“We looked at how GameSpy went about their solution and thought, we can invent something that’s easier to use,” says Collins. “To this day, the reason a lot of developers and publishers buy our tech is because it’s easy to use and assemble – they can focus on great gameplay while we look after the plumbing.”

Both products are buried in a number of AAA titles released across all console platforms in 2005; combine that with a new DemonWare office in Vancouver and it’s evident that this Irish business is still on the rise. “It’s pretty cool to see a new title rolling in every couple of weeks and think, ‘wow, I played the last game in that series!’ What was initially a small Irish company is going out there and competing on a global market stage.”

DemonWare will remain in Ireland indefinitely, although Dylan Collins recognises the irony of operating an online connectivity business in a country which has broadband penetration levels on par with the Sahara Desert. “We’re staying here,” he laughs. “The labour pool is pretty good, we’ve strong links with Trinity, and at this stage, what with Havok and ourselves, publishers know that Ireland has a great middleware scene. The disadvantages, of course, is that Ireland is definitely becoming more expensive.”

image2

Having been chased by a T-Rex on a rollercoaster with Sean Blanchfield, locked in a Santa Monica pool duel with Dylan Collins, raced through San Francisco while fed whiskey on a DemonWare tram, and nearly abducted by screaming lunatics in a DemonWare limousine, I can safely say no one does public relations quite like this company. When asked about their PR plans for GDC 2006, Collins mutters something about “military involvement”. Want to know what DemonWare do? They throw one hell of a party.

More info: http://www.demonware.net/news.html

Demonware Middleware In Cod2 – 2

It has been a good week for Irish companies. First the release of Dreadnought by Torc Interactive and AMD and now we hear that Activision will be using Demonware’s State Engine Multi-Player technology for Call Of Duty 2: Big Red One.

According to Demonware’s website their ‘State Engine middleware will be used to deliver seamless, state-of-the art, 16-player, cross-platform, multiplayer online gaming to players worldwide. Developed by Treyarch/Gray Matter LLC, Call of Duty 2: Big Red One will be released this Autumn for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, Xbox® video game system from Microsoft and Nintendo GameCube™ and carries a “T” (for “Teen”) rating by the ESRB.’

“By utilizing DemonWare’s middleware, the development team is able to focus on creating great gameplay experiences while knowing that the technical aspects of the multiplayer component are managed,” said Chuck Huebner, Head of Activision’s Worldwide Studios. “When Call of Duty 2: Big Red One ships this Fall, 16 players will be able to engage in explosive Local Area Network (LAN) and Internet multi-player action on their Xbox or PlayStation 2 gaming systems, quickly and seamlessly.”

For more see http://www.demonware.net/news.html

Ware It Well

Not only are these invisible middlemen still wearing short trousers – they’re barely two years old – but their core is as Irish as Molley Malone’s wheelbarrow. Pavel Barter asked DemonWare CEO Dylan Collins how a small start-up became the backbone of multiplayer gaming.

“DemonWare… what do they do?” The standard reaction of gamers when asked about this Dublin-born business is one which the team must surely appreciate. DemonWare’s role is to remain unseen and unheard, to enhance liaison between players and make a developer’s task less painful. Although networking technology is but a phantom for gamers, for developers and publishers it is the new physics or AI.
What do they do? DemonWare assist all the major platforms – publishers like Atari, games like Starship Troopers – and are working to deliver a multitude of titles on next generation consoles including the PSP and Xbox360. In gaming’s global village, these guys matter.

DemonWare was officially launched in mid-2003. CEO Dylan Collins explains: “Prior to that myself and [CTO] Sean Blanchfield had a wireless software company, Phorest, which we started in Trinity College. We sold the company and were exploring opportunities in the game space because it was exciting and, after all, our background was in networking. After a lot of flying around the world and talking to various studios, we recognised the opportunity for network middleware. Our bet was that the future of gaming will be multiplayer and online.”

Not that Collins and Blanchfield were exactly inventing the wheel – GameSpy was already working on networking assets such as peer-to-peer matchmaking, statistics, security, and voice chat. “They were doing a good job too,” admits Collins, “but we saw a niche for something a little deeper in the network space, a more comprehensive network layer.”

The start-up team (ex-Havok employees and Trinity grads) initially built around GameSpy, but only after publishers repeatedly approached them asking “can you do lobby services?” did they decide to take their competitors head on, securing external venture capitalist investment and moving into an office on Dublin’s Abbey Street. Mid-2003, DemonWare was officially launched.

“In that first year we attended a lot of conferences, more listening than talking to ensure that we were creating what developers wanted. We became a middleware partner with Sony and Xbox and that gave people a lot of confidence in us. We also made it a priority to respect everyone’s needs and deadlines. The most important thing for any studio is that their game is shipped on time.”

DemonWare launched their first product at the Game Developers Conference 2004. Onlookers were shocked as to how fast the company moved in such a short space of time, but theirs was an experienced team that learned from past mistakes in other companies. Furthermore, their timing was better than a Swiss wristwatch since multiplayer gaming on consoles was only just beginning to take off. According to Collins, “some studios didn’t have any experience [in networking middleware], others had bad experiences building their own and wanted to outsource.”

DemonWare touts two products. The first is State Engine, a complete networking layer which is easily dropped into a game and looks after communication between computers or consoles. The other product is Matchmaking + (famously advertised on a DemonWare t-shirt by a couple of copulating bunnies), a lobby service that gives players access to user management, stats and downloads. Want to track an online gaming session, communicate with other players, or access feedback? Matchmaking + covers it all.

“We looked at how GameSpy went about their solution and thought, we can invent something that’s easier to use,” says Collins. “To this day, the reason a lot of developers and publishers buy our tech is because it’s easy to use and assemble – they can focus on great gameplay while we look after the plumbing.”

Both products are buried in a number of AAA titles released across all console platforms in 2005; combine that with a new DemonWare office in Vancouver and it’s evident that this Irish business is still on the rise. “It’s pretty cool to see a new title rolling in every couple of weeks and think, ‘wow, I played the last game in that series!’ What was initially a small Irish company is going out there and competing on a global market stage.”

DemonWare will remain in Ireland indefinitely, although Dylan Collins recognises the irony of operating an online connectivity business in a country which has broadband penetration levels on par with the Sahara Desert. “We’re staying here,” he laughs. “The labour pool is pretty good, we’ve strong links with Trinity, and at this stage, what with Havok and ourselves, publishers know that Ireland has a great middleware scene. The disadvantages, of course, is that Ireland is definitely becoming more expensive.”

image2

Having been chased by a T-Rex on a rollercoaster with Sean Blanchfield, locked in a Santa Monica pool duel with Dylan Collins, raced through San Francisco while fed whiskey on a DemonWare tram, and nearly abducted by screaming lunatics in a DemonWare limousine, I can safely say no one does public relations quite like this company. When asked about their PR plans for GDC 2006, Collins mutters something about “military involvement”. Want to know what DemonWare do? They throw one hell of a party.

More info: http://www.demonware.net/news.html

Demonware Middleware In Cod2

It has been a good week for Irish companies. First the release of Dreadnought by Torc Interactive and AMD and now we hear that Activision will be using Demonware’s State Engine Multi-Player technology for Call Of Duty 2: Big Red One.

According to Demonware’s website their ‘State Engine middleware will be used to deliver seamless, state-of-the art, 16-player, cross-platform, multiplayer online gaming to players worldwide. Developed by Treyarch/Gray Matter LLC, Call of Duty 2: Big Red One will be released this Autumn for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, Xbox® video game system from Microsoft and Nintendo GameCube™ and carries a “T” (for “Teen”) rating by the ESRB.’

“By utilizing DemonWare’s middleware, the development team is able to focus on creating great gameplay experiences while knowing that the technical aspects of the multiplayer component are managed,” said Chuck Huebner, Head of Activision’s Worldwide Studios. “When Call of Duty 2: Big Red One ships this Fall, 16 players will be able to engage in explosive Local Area Network (LAN) and Internet multi-player action on their Xbox or PlayStation 2 gaming systems, quickly and seamlessly.”

For more see http://www.demonware.net/news.html