If you are a social game developer, chances are you’ve heard of the Openfeint network. For those who haven’t, here’s a brief description.

Openfeint is a smartphone gaming platform that makes it easier for developers to offer a unified and social gaming network. Any game that is integrated with the Openfeint network can take advantage of neat social gaming features such as sharing scores, live chats, leaderboards, etc. Openfeint is currently available on iOS and Android platforms. It was recently brought by GREE and has changed its name accordingly to reflect the change.

To date, many popular smartphone games come with Openfeint functionality. Your games should also consider partnering up with Openfeint. Here’s why:

• See an exponential increase in user base

The Openfeint label that accompanies your game makes it all the more popular. For attracting thousands of new users in a short amount of time, the partnership makes sense.

• Observe an exponential increase in daily revenue

You heard that right. By promoting your games with Openfeint, users are more likely to vouch for the quality of your games. That makes them reach out for their wallets sooner rather than later. If you were previously pulling 25$ a day, expect to see it go up to 80-100$.

• Openfeint Promotions like Free App of the Day make you a household brand name

So by now you are more interested in solidifying your credentials as a trusted and creative mobile game developer. The Openfeint platform gives you a golden opportunity to do exactly that. Even if you give away your game for free, you can expect higher returns on your investment down the road.

See how partnering with world-renowned brands can boost your mobile marketplace outreach? Its time you did the same.

Taken from Naughty Dog’s Flickr Page, this is the third game in the series.

Besides photography, I also like to play videogames. One such videogame that I think is one of the best I have played are the Uncharted series on the Playstation 3. It’s made by a game company called Naughty Dog. I recently read an article online that one of the game developers for this company was also into photography and he took this awesome portrait shots of his fellow game developers which looked awesome. It’s a really interesting side to one which most gamers tend to overlook: a candid, personal view of the people behind the games that they play. As someone who wants to get into videogames and photography myself, it’s really inspiring to see somebody doing both and being successful. Here is the link to the article.

Responsibilities:

The Game/App Developer will be responsible for:

• The design, development and implementation of game/ app scripts.
• Finishing tasks on a timely basis.
• Reporting to the Lead Programmer and Project Managers.

Requirements:

• Candidate must possess at least a Bachelor’s/College Degree, any field. Computer Science/Information preferred.
• Required Skills: C#, C or C++
• Must be an expert in Unity 3D engine.
• Must have excellent analytical and logical ability.
• Must be a team player.
• Must be able to work under time pressure and meet deadlines.
• Must be able to work independently.

If you are interested in applying for the position, send your application to careers@dreamlordsdigital.com. Please put the position title that you are applying for on the subject line. Also, include the following in your application:

• Samples of your portfolio or games
• Your complete Resume or CV
• Your cover letter
• Links to website or previous projects

PHP Senior Game Developer

Location:Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga

The Senior Game Programmer is expected to handle more complex tasks and is responsible for passing on technical knowledge from previous projects to the team.

General responsibilities:

• Manage projects and applications
• Manage online shopping cart, e-commerce portals, Social Networking and online game
• Manage database driven websites
• Troubleshoot errors
• Responsible for application performance and monitoring performance issues

Primary requirements:

• Must be from Gaming Company with solid Game Development Background.
• Must have at least 3 to 5 years experience in GAME DEVELOPMENT
• With working experience on PHP (preferably php5) / Mysql / Memcached / Sphinx / APE / JSON / AJAX /API / SVN / JQuery
• Knowledge of object-oriented programming
• Knowledge in advance XHTML
• Knowledge in PHP framework such as CodeIgniter, Zend, Kohana etc. is an advantage.
• Ability to read and edit existing code
• Advance knowledge of Linux and Windows Platform Apache Webservers
• Familiar with Software Development LifeCycle
• Must be aggressive, resourceful and result oriented
• Ability to work independently, a team player
• With pleasing personality, can work well under pressure
• Fluent in verbal and written English
• Must be willing to work in Clark, Pampanga

How to Apply?

Send updated CV to: itpilipinas@gmail.com

For more I.T./I.T. for BPO/KPO jobs, please visit: www.itpilipinas.wordpress.com

Keep in track with the updated job openings, follow us:
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NOTE: No Fees will be collected. Only qualified applicants will be entertained. Your resume is being kept with utmost confidentiality. All questions and inquiries will be answered during interview.

Sehr viele Entwickler und Publisher setzen bei vielen neuen Produkten auf die Vermarktung durch Free2Play. Man kauft sich das Spiel nicht, sondern man kauft sich über sog. Microtransactions Kleinigkeiten im Spiel, das grundsätzlich kostenlos zum Download steht und gespielt werden kann. Ich persönlich unterscheide dabei gerne zwischen “echtem” Free2Play und Free2Play mit Pay2Win. Letzteres führt dazu, dass Spieler, die Geld bezahlen einen spielerischen Vorteil gegenüber den nicht-zahlenden Kunden haben.

Bezahl mich, oder verliere! – Kaufrausch gegen den Gamefrust

Pay2Win gibt es in vielen Bereichen. In gewisser Weise, ist zum Beispiel Diablo3 ein Pay2Win Beispiel, obwohl es NICHT Free2Play ist. Auch viele kompetitive Browsergames dieser Zeit sind auf Pay2Win ausgelegt, denn ohne Echtgeld zu investieren, hat man in den verschiedenen Spielwelten kaum eine Chance wirklich erfolgreich zu sein. Ladders, Freundeslisten und PVP schaffen hier einen Anreiz, möglichst gut sein zu wollen – um dies zu erreichen bedarf es dann auch monetärer Aufwendungen. Ich habe noch nie in einem Browsergame Geld für derartige Boni ausgegeben und werde es auch nicht tun. Im Clientbereich auf den PC gab es bisher relativ selten wirkliche Vorteile zu kaufen (Waffenpacks z.B., für die andere teils Monate fürs Freispielen brauchten).

Pay 2 be cool! – Oh, it’s shiny!

Dann gibt es Free2Play Games, die sich über optische Verbesserungen finanzieren. Man kauft keine Vorteile, sondern lediglich Optische Upgrades für ansonsten frei verfügbaren Content. League of Legends ist ein Beispiel dafür. Man kann sich alle Helden erspielen ohne einen Cent auszugeben (auch wenn man Helden freikaufen kann um Zeit zu sparen – den Held zu besitzen bedeutet aber nicht, dass man ihn spielen kann) – damit die Helden aber richtig cool aussehen, muss man Geld bezahlen und kann sich dann verschiedenste Skins für seinen Lieblingshelden kaufen. Ein System mit dem Riot Games auch von mir bereits einiges an Geld gemacht hat. Ich unterstütze gerne, wenn Ich für etwas bezahle, was mir Spaß macht, ohne dass ich frustriert sein muss, wenn ein Gegenspieler sich noch mehr gekauft hat, denn er hat keinen spielerischen Vorteil dadurch.

I’m hooked! – Wo ist der Haken?

Free2Play ist toll – keine Frage. Die meisten Spieler, die ein Free2Play Spiel ernsthaft spielen, geben am Ende weitaus mehr Geld für das Produkt aus, als hätten sie einmalig 40-50€ auf den Tresen gelegt. Der Publisher spart sich meist ausserdem teure Kosten für Spielepackungen und das Vermarkten des Produkts sollte auch einfacher sein, wenn potentielle Spieler das Spiel einfach runterladen können und direkt loslegen. Wo ist also das Problem?

Das Problem kann man beim nochmaligen Lesen der letzten Zeilen ganz einfach erkennen: Nahezu alle Vorteile liegen NICHT beim Kunden. Der große Vorteil für Kunden, dass sie das Spiel gratis spielen können, wird aber zumeist durch die verminderte Spielqualität, wenn man wirklich gratis spielt, gemindert. Versteht mich hier bitte nicht falsch: Free2Play können großartige Spiele sein und nur weil es kostenlos ist, muss es nicht schlechter sein als ein konventionelles Kaufspiel – das Problem liegt bei Spielen, die ihr wahres Potential erst bieten, wenn man viel Geld investiert.

Open the floodgates!

Das andere große Problem bei Free2Play ist die Spielerbindung. Wenn ich ein Free2Play Spiel spiele, höre ich sofort auf, wenn es anfängt mich zu nerven – meist denke ich danach nie wieder an das Spiel, egal wie gut es sein könnte. Während ich früher auf Grund von Tests oder Berichten von Freunden in Vorleistung ging und im Laden ein neues Spiel erstand, habe ich dieses Spiel meist auch richtig gespielt – trotz Bugs oder nervigen Quests, die ich am liebsten übersprungen hätte. Durch die Flut an Neuen und weiteren (und zumeist auch ähnlichen) Free2Play Titeln verwäscht sich der Markt selbst zu einem schwammigen Einheitsbrei. Spieler sind wesentlich freier in der Wahl dessen, was sie spielen, denn sie sind nichtmehr durch den Geldbeutel dazu limitiert nur wenige Spiele pro Jahr zu spielen. Allerdings verschwinden damit auch potentielle Superhits in einer Masse an anderen Spielen, die den Markt überschwemmen. Die überwältigende Auswahl an kostenlosem Spielzugang führt zu höherer Fluktuation zwischen den Spielen und Communities, die z.B. Counterstrike früher so enorm stark werden ließen, oder aktuell auch DayZ. Schon wenige Monaten nach dem ersten Hype um DayZ wurden bereits mehrere “Zombieklone” angekündigt. Größtenteils natürlich Free2Play. Ähnliches lässt sich bei den Moba Games (League of Legends, DotA2, HoN, etc.) betrachten. Während League of Legends inzwischen zum meistgespielten Onlinegame dieses Planetens wurde, wollten und wollen immernoch viele auch ein Stück vom Kuchen abhaben. Doch wie lange ist die Lebensdauer eines solchen Titels, wenn er nicht gerade ein Blockbuster von Valve ist. Die meisten Free2Play Titel, die so entstehen, führen ein Nischendasein. So passierte es auch bisher jeder World of Warcraft Konkurrenz – egal wieviele Millionen in das Projekt gepumpt wurden – sie endeten als Free2Play Nischenspiel-MMO, dass gerade so über die Runden kommt. Bestehende Communities (WoW, LoL, etc.) dominieren den Markt – kopierende, teils einfallslose Konkurrenz verschwindet im Nischendasein. Free2Play wird dies in großen Teilen verschlimmern.

Let’s play some Monopoly! – Der Markt und seine Opfer

Wer heute ein Spiel mit Free2Play System auf den Markt wirft, hofft auf Quantität statt auf Qualität bei den Spielern. Er will keine große Community um das Produkt aufzubauen, er braucht keine großen Enthusiasten als Fans – UND er will vermutlich einfach nur relativ schnelle Erfolge für sein Produkt – wenn der Erfolg ausbleibt, hat man ja noch 2-3 andere Free2Play Spiele des selben Systems in der Warteschleife. Neben den großen Monopolisten im Onlinegaming LoL und WoW platzieren sich viele der Anderen freiwillig in eine Nische, mit der Anforderung lang genug zu überleben, um Gewinn abzuwerfen. Kaum jemand spielt freiwillig in einem kleinen Onlinegame allein, wenn seine Freunde bei einem der Großen mitspielen. Mundpropaganda und soziale Zwänge waren es, was Farmville einst so stark machte – wobei dieser Erfolg von Zynga darauf beruht(e), dass ihre kleinen Spiele ein quasi-Monopol auf Facebook besaßen. Heute hauen Facebookspiele doch Keinen mehr vom Hocker und das Überangebot an x-ville Klonen ist eher ermüdend als aufbauend. Das Selbe droht jetzt auch dem Clientbereich.

Nun mögen viele Entwickler und/oder Publisher nun sagen: Der Markt bekommt das, was er verdient. Natürlich haben Blockbuster wie WoW und LoL über Jahre die Spieleindustrie revolutioniert und verändert. Wenn Jemand 10-13€ im Monat für World of Warcraft zahlt, dann wird er eher nicht dazu bereit sein, auch jeden Monat die neusten zwei Releases von EA zu kaufen und das neue Spiel von Ubisoft. Es fehlt vielleicht nichtmal an der Kaufkraft, sondern schlichtweg an der Zeit. Wenn der Mensch 8h täglich schläft, 8h arbeitet und mindestens 4h Hausarbeit, Einkäufe etc. erledigt dann bleibt eben nicht mehr viel Zeit für mehr als ein Spiel. Wenn jemand über Monate mit  seinen Freunden in League of Legends verschiedenste Helden gekauft hat und diverse Skins, so wird er eher nicht zu DotA2 wechseln und sein LoL Investment einfach in der Ecke liegen lassen.

The Internet has bored me, take it away immediately…

Viele Spieler sind an ihr aktuelles Spiel gebunden, sei es durch finanzielles oder soziales Commitment. Um dieses Commitment zu lockern und die wertvolle Spielzeit von den großen Marken abzuziehen, bedarf es kreativer, neuer Ideen und einer ganz besonderen Qualität. Leider scheint mir, dass die meisten Entwickler nicht mehr bereit sind, diesen Kampf gegen das Establishment weiterzuführen und wirklich etwas Frisches zu präsentieren.  Nur weil man alte Ideen als Free2Play neu verwirklicht, macht es diese alten Ideen nicht wieder spielbarer – aber dies ist vermutlich auch nicht der Anspruch – leider. Free2Play verleitet anscheinend dazu, Spielequantität vor Qualität zu setzen. Während man früher die 50€ oder 100DM für ein Spiel irgendwo rechtfertigen musste vorm Kunden, so ist bei Free2Play kein Realwert da, den der Kunde einfordern kann – stattdessen baut man darauf, irgendwen (am Besten so viele wie möglich) zu finden, dem das Spiel so gefällt, wie es eben ist. Und von diesen Spielern sollen ein paar Wenige dann auch bereit sein, Geld zu zahlen – manchmal auch einfach nur, damit das Spiel komplett spielbar ist und alle Features auch nutzbar.

Same sh*t, different game…

Ich persönlich bin Idealist, was Spiele angeht. Ich bin mit Spielen aufgewachsen und habe sehr viel gespielt. Einer der Gründe, wieso ich aktuell nicht in der Spielebranche arbeite, ist auch, dass ich zu idealistisch denke und arbeite. Ich möchte kein halb-gares Produkt bauen, dass dadurch, dass es die Spieler nervt Gewinn erzeugt (Pay2Win). Ich würde viel lieber an einem Spiel arbeiten, dass durch Spielspaß und enthusiastische Fans Gewinne einbringt, wo die Leute es Spielen, weil sie Spaß daran haben. Ich würde gerne frische, neue Ideen umsetzen und nicht Ideen umsetzen, die eh schon da waren, nur anders aussehen.

The price to play…

Für mich ist Free2Play ein Fluch, da die Spiele danach entwickelt werden, wie sich Spielinhalte am besten vermarkten lassen, statt danach, ein wirklich gutes Spiel abzuliefern. Ich hätte gerne ein sauberes, klares Spiel, dass von jeglichen Kosten abgekoppelt ist (ausser des Kaufpreis’) als ein Spiel, dass alle 5-10 Minuten von mir verlangt, Geld auszugeben. Wurde vor Jahren Werbung in Spielen als Skandal angesehen, wird es aktuell zur Norm, das Spiel selbst als einzige große Werbeplattform zu benutzen – inklusive Shop, in dem man die angepriesene Ware kaufen kann.

Fazit

Free2Play ist ein Segen für viele Entwickler und Publisher, die anscheinend keine Chance sehen auf einem Markt mit wenigen Blockbustermarken, ihr Produkt wirtschaftlich positiv zu platzieren. So wird aus dem Spiel ein Verkaufsshop und aus dem Verkaufsshop ein Free2Play Spiel.

Für die meisten Spieler ist Free2Play ein zweischneidiges Schwert – und beide Schneiden tun weh. Einerseits stärkt es die etablierten Marken durch den Einheitsbrei an Free2Play Produkten, andererseits sinkt die allgemeine Qualität der verfügbaren Spiele durch die zwangsweise Verknüpfung von Monetarisierung und Gameplay.

Game Designers & Developers - Houston, TX

Any PlayStation fans out there?  Wolf Game Studios have 2 very exciting projects coming up and need help from both game designers and developers.  And yes, you will be working on a new game for PlayStation 3 and other consoles.  Not a bad opportunity right?  If you’re interested get in contact now.

Pattern Maker – MA

William is looking for a pattern maker to help him bring his ideas to life.  He needs someone who is experienced working with denim and can easily create a pattern ready for production. Up for the challenge?  Apply here!

Artist – San Antonio, TX

Consider yourself a skilled artist?  Deanna is looking for someone to recreate two pictures into hand drawn masterpieces.  If this is your area of expertise send on some work examples to Deanna today.

Crisis Intervention Volunteer – Bristol, VA

The Crisis Centre in Bristol is in need of new volunteers to work on the phones.  If you’re willing to give some time to a very worthy cause, and think you can help people in crisis, send Della a message today to see how you can get involved.

Horse Groom - Walden, NY

If you love horses you’re going to love this opportunity!  Helen needs help looking after her 25 horses!!  And experience isn’t essential as she’s willing to train people with a love for these great animals.  If you’re interested in helping out at Helen’s fun and friendly farm apply now!

Search all opportunities on SkillPages to find one that matches your skills!

Adam Badowski had this to say about receiving the awards:

“I just want to say thank you to all our fans. It’s really a great thing to know, that our team’s hard work provided entertainment to so many people and that our vision of RPGs appeals to so many gamers, Again – thank you all!”

Here is the full list of awards received by the Witcher 2 Assassins of Kings:

Best European Art Direction
Best European Game World
Best European Game
Best European Game Design
Best European Special Edition
Best European Character Design

CD Projekt Red are a game developer based in Warsaw, Poland responsible for the critically acclaimed Witcher series based on the novels of Andrzej Sapkowski. They are currently working on a new RPG called ‘Cyberpunk’ in-conjunction with other unannounced projects.

(Originally published at Digital Noob)

Here’s the basic rundown: You have black and white cards. The black cards contain part of a sentence and the white cards will complete that sentence. However, you get to choose which white card you want to put down. There always needs to be ten white cards in your hand at all times. Black card: “__________. High five, bro!” Potential white card option: “Penis Envy”. If there are, let’s say, 12 white cards, the person who placed the black card on the table picks the card they like the best. Make sense? I know it’s kind of confusing, but you have to play the game to really understand. The card combinations are endless

The sentences on the cards have been quoted from Cards Against Humanity, LLC.

Now when you have a room full of nerdy guys and only two girls, things can get really funny. Mix pizza and alcohol and you have the perfect Cards Against Humanity night. We were laughing almost every turn, and the boys were relating some of the topics to video games or whatever else came across their mind. We spent about three and a half hours just playing, with little breaks for more drinks and other things. But let me tell you, it’s worth it, no matter where you are or how many people you may have at your shindig, playing this game is always a hit. I keep the game and first expansion in the trunk of my car at all times.

The topics are so not politically correct, which is why this game is such a hit. Another cool thing? If you go onto their website, you can create your own deck of black and white cards. They now have the original game along with the first expansion. Also, there are different language options, which makes this game a potential international best-selling card game.

To purchase the game, you can try calling your local game shop, but I bought mine through Amazon as well as the first expansion. For about $35-$40 (for both), it’s worth it.

Now go out, buy the game, and start playing!

Here is a little bit of context for you before I dive right into the main section of this post. A few days ago, I was discussing with a coworker of mine how when we start having kids, they will have no idea what a VHS is, let alone the old video game consoles I grew up playing. They won’t know about Super Nintendo and the first console I ever really got into playing: Nintendo 64, most commonly known as an N64.

As a kid, I spent a lot of time playing my N64 with my dad, but mostly with my friends. One of my favorite games to play was Banjo-Kazooie; always competing with my friends to see who would get to the Witch’s Tower first. I’d always try and win, of course, and did most of the time.

However, the game I played the most was Mario Kart 64. Now, this isn’t the original Super Mario Kart, which was launched for the Super Nintendo back in 1992, which I never played, but Mario Kart 64 got me hooked.

First thing’s first in Mario Kart 64: which character did you want to play as? The characters ranged from Mario to Toad to Yoshi to Bowser and we can’t forget about Peach. It’s always a competition when it comes to selecting Yoshi. Of course Yoshi is the go-to character. But what people fail to realize is that it doesn’t matter who you play as, it’s the skill you have when playing the game. Let me tell you that I kicked major butt back in the day, regardless if I was Yoshi or Toad.

The different go-kart courses and levels range from easy to hard and the power-ups really help. Remember those little question mark glowing box things? Yea, that’s what I’m talking about. I do have to say, that my favorite course to play was Rainbow Road. As a kid, I just thought it was pretty because it was a rainbow and in the night sky, but looking back on it, it was psychedelic awesomeness that Nintendo put into their game. Not to mention that the star-shaped rails were pretty amazing.

Now, I mean, the N64 had a bunch of other great games, but Mario kart 64 is the one that stands out whenever anyone mentions the game console. Memories flood back and I feel like a kid again. If any of you still have that Nintendo 64, hang on to it. It’s a great game console with outstanding games.

Just remember when you start up Mario Kart: pick Yoshi first.

*Note that the link provided for Mario Kart 64 is for the Nintendo Wii. I was unable to find the webpage for the N64.

Markus Persson, also known as “Notch,” is the developer and creator of Minecraft. The open-world sandbox game focuses on building, crafting, and mining within a randomly generated virtual world, and versions of it are available on an array of devices: PC, Android, iOS, and Xbox 360.

Minecraft is one of the most popular online games to emerge in the past half-decade and now has more than 36 million players (including 6.8 million paying customers), who play a browser-based version, a downloadable PC version, and most recently, an Xbox 360 edition. Its popularity is particularly impressive given that it uses a graphics engine that looks like it was borrowed from Castle Wolfenstein in 1993.

Persson took to the popular social news sharing site, Reddit, today to engage in an “Ask Me Anything” discussion thread, where famous people allow the community to ask any question within a specific period of time. The subjects of these “conferences” then take some time to answer inquiries that they find relevant, and the whole conversation — threaded across various responses and comments — is left up on Reddit for perusal later.

At this point already, users have posted 4,468 comments in the discussion covering a wide diversity of topics, including Persson’s opinion on the second-hand success revolving around his hit game, like the Minecraft Coder Pack and YouTube videos starring Minecraft. Below is a collection of selected questions and responses edited for clarity.

Searge
What is your personal opinion about the MCP project and it’s ability to decompile the game and make the source code kind of available to everyone? And how much do you think the fact that modding is made easy by systems like bukkit and MCP (and the number of available mods) affects the sales of Minecraft?

Notch
Personally, I used to feel threatened by it as I felt it challenged my “vision,” but on the other hand, I also know how wonderful mods are for games. We decided to just let it happen, and I’m very happy we did. Mods are a huge reason of what Minecraft is.

KillaMarci
Seeing as the YouTube community boosted Minecraft so much, do you watch any Minecraft YouTubers yourself regularly? Has any big company ever tried to “buy” Minecraft away from you or buy Mojang entirely? Is it true that you got bored of Minecraft and that’s why you left the lead developer position? If so, do you still get the urge to do some Minecraft coding now and then?

Notch
Yes, but I usually gravitate to their non-minecraft videos. Watching videos of Minecraft can feel weird after a while. Yes. We said no. I didn’t really get bored; I just wanted to move on to other things. I don’t get the urges to go back anymore, but about a month after I left, I missed it a lot. I tried not to let Jens [editor's note: Jens Bergensten, now lead programmer for Minecraft] know that, though.

SethBling
There are now dozens, maybe hundreds, of people making a living from Minecraft’s secondary market via YouTube, etc. What do you think of this secondary market? Do you have any insights on how the secondary market and Minecraft’s market have interacted with and fed each other?A side note: Thank you for enabling me to have one of the best jobs in the world!

Notch
It all kind of emerged organically. There’s probably a lot more we could do to support it more, so we’ll probably look more into that in the future. We’ve recently started partnering up with cool iOS apps by giving them more exposure and letting them brand themselves “official” in exchange for bags of money.

What else does Persson do for fun? Several users wanted to know.

ZedHeadEd
If you dont mind me asking, do you still play Minecraft for fun?

Notch
Unfortunately not. I used to play it quite a lot and find minor things to tweak, and now that I’m trying to stay out of development of it, the temptation to start “suggesting” things to Jeb is too strong. Besides, TF2 [editor's note: Team Fortress 2, a popular, online, team-based shooter].

MarioBGE
Heh, I recently joined a random TF2 server with you playing on it, and damn, you’re good. Also, thank you for creating Minecraft.

Notch
Haha, thank you!

SirHephaestus
Hi Notch, I was wondering: What do you do at home when you’re not working?

Notch
I refresh Reddit over and over and over in like four different windows.

Some users asked about Persson’s current involvement in the game as well as his experience developing it, and then Persson turned it over to Bergensten.

SuperAccordionDude
What do you think about the latest updates of Minecraft? Are they still true to your vision of the game?

Notch
Other than a few minor things, they’re exactly in line with my vision. The adventure mode stuff is looking amazing, and the way the team managed to finally properly split client from server is wonderful for the game. Jens told me some of his plans for 1.4 and beyond, and hopefully it will allow for more competitive gameplay — something I’ve always wanted to see.

DeadComma
What are the minor things?

Notch
They’re adding more half blocks!! And the script block? Feels impure. Stuff like that.

supercalu
Where did you get the idea for the way villagers look?

Notch
They’re inspired by the shop keepers in Dungeon Master 2 [pictured right].

robhoward
How much do your (Mojang’s) lawyers interfere/alter what you say in public?

Notch
None. I think they find it amusing. They’re great guys, by the way. They’ve been working as lawyers for game devs for many years and have lots of connections, and they like unconventional ways to resolve issues.

Other users focused on the more technical aspects of development, like using JavaScript or Persson’s new game, 0x10c.

daesoph
How much have you actually worked on 0x10c?

Notch
I’ve spent a lot of time on the DCPU specification and implementation, and fleshing out the game world, trying to come up with fun scenarios that I want happen in the game. Actual game content — not much at all. I did some live-streamed development and felt a constant pressure to move ahead fast, which built more hype that I intended and made me feel like I was rushing the game. Now I’m working slower on it until after PAX when I can recruit some other devs internally to help out, and I’m trying to talk less about it. My public enthusiasm for it builds way more hype than I want it to.

Zarutian
Someone had to ask, so why not me: Why Java?
By the way, I am addicted to Minecraft. Keep up the good work

Notch
I had been working primarily in Actionscript 3 and Java for five years when I started work on Minecraft and chose the language I felt most comfortable with. Specifically, my favorite tool in Java is hot code swapping in debug mode, meaning I can edit the code while the game is running and immediately see the results in the running game. This is super great for rapid tweaking. Java is not the fastest language out there, but I doubt I would’ve finished Minecraft if I did it in a language I enjoyed less, so I’m happy with the choice. Of course, when it came to putting the game on other platforms, we had to port large portions of the codebase — once for mobile phones, and then we had help from 4j to port it for XBLA.

Eiyeron
Just how do you enable correctly hot-swapping in eclipse? I ever wanted to know since the Prelude of the Chambered live.

Notch
Run the program in debug mode, edit the code, and save. It does not work for stuff that changes the class structure, but it does work for code within methods. Code is only swapped out when the thread enters the method, so a while(true) loop will never get swapped out.

And then, of course, the random, funny questions would pop up from time to time:

mollstam [editor's note: a Minecraft developer]
What is the name of your beard?

Notch
Steve?

TwirledOriole
And just out of curiosity, what gender is it?

Notch
Extremely male.

scottyb2023
If you were able to create a game console, what would be the main feature?

Notch
Laser turrets.

bumpfire
Do you use shampoo or shower gel for your beard?!

Notch
Sometimes. I used conditioner once, and it was glorious.

And finally, a question about Persson’s favorite time playing the game he created:

ChaosRegiert
Since you are going to be flooded with questions…and right now, I don’t have anything to ask that others won’t also ask hundreds of times….I’d love to hear your favorite anecdote about Minecraft or the development of Minecraft. What is the story that you like to tell people? If there is nothing asked in particular — but some kind of entertaining story expected. At parties. Or at the bus station, whatever. I just started recently. Love the game. Thank you!

Notch
The most fun I’ve ever had playing the game was back before infinite worlds when water had a constant volume. I joined some random server and kinda emergently just started to build a castle with a few people. I built some pretty good looking stables, then we got started on the moat and accidentally flooded it too early. In an attempt to get rid of the water, I dug down and fell into a cave, which proceeded to get flooded as well. It was not a pretty castle.

Obviously, a ton more questions and answers reside in the original thread, but it’s touching to see someone as “big and famous” as Markus Persson taking the time to engage people he’s never met in a setting that isn’t about marketing a new game or selling a current one.

[Source: Reddit]

Level Up is not like your typical video game store. When you think of video games you usually think of GameStop. The store is independently owned, which means more options for promotions, creativity, and anything else you think of.

The Vibe

The vibe of Level Up Video Games is completely different than any other video game store I’ve been in. The moment you walk into the store, there are display cases to your right. On one side of the display case you have “The History of Video Games” which includes all the different game consoles that were sold over the decades. The walls are lined with an extensive amount of video games for not only the current generation systems, but also the old retro systems, like Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo, and Atari!  The coolest thing about Level Up? The fact that you can trade-in your old or new video games and consoles for store credit. I even asked if I could trade-in my old PlayStation 2. They’ll take things if they don’t already have a lot of them, including used games. The price they give you is a decent one, too. Definitely worth looking into if you’re not using your old console or playing the games that go with it.

What I like about Level Up the most is that the people that work there are incredibly friendly. I’m not just talking about Max, but his coworkers. I haven’t met the owner yet, but I’m sure I will soon. The overall environment of Level Up is friendly. Employees take the time to see if you need help and give suggestions when asked.

It’s a great independent game store if you’d like an alternative to the usual GameStop and happen to be around the Santa Cruz area. They used to be located in Tucson, Arizona but moved to Santa Cruz earlier this year.

Some Fun Stuff

This past Saturday, Level Up held its Halo 2 Tournament. I wasn’t there because I was working up in Marin, but Max was helping run the event and he said it was a great turnout. Lots of people showed up (18 teams of two), including a team from the South Bay.

For all you girls of game developers out there who don’t know what Halo 2 is about, I’ll fill you in since I’ve done my research. Halo 2 is a first-person shooting game created by Bungie studios. It was released on the original Xbox system in 2004, and was the sequel to Halo: Combat Evolved. Lots of fighting, lots of team play and lots of competition, especially through XBox Live and system link.

So, the tournament lasted about two hours and two-player teams played against each other until it was two teams left in the final round, best of three matches. A local Santa Cruz team using the name “Battle Cruz” won the tournament, receiving a prize of store credit amongst other things.

For a video game store, this one is the coolest I’ve ever been to. It’s worth going to if you ever find yourself wandering down Pacific Avenue in downtown Santa Cruz.

Max Weinberg contributed to this post.

IF YOU GO:
113 Locust Street,
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Ph. 831.295.6329

Hours:
11am-7pm Mon-Sat
11am-6pm Sundays

So, here’s what has been happening. I finally succumbed to Max’s peer pressure and constant talk of Starcraft II. I watch Day[9] with him sometimes and I have to say, Sean Plott is incredibly funny and breaks down Starcraft in a way that I can actually understand. Well, I don’t necessarily understand all of it, but some of it I do.

I am in Santa Cruz this weekend and I told Max that I believe now is the right time for me to actually learn how to play Starcraft. Now, I already know it’s a military base fighting off alien-looking creatures and whomever does it the best wins. That’s all I really know and comprehend fully.

The moment I told Max that I was interested in playing, he instantly lit up. I’m your typical “girly girl” with a decent nerd side, but me and Starcraft have never really been on the same page, I suppose you could say. I mean, it took me a while to even play Magic: The Gathering… That reminds me, I should play that again real soon.

Anyway, tonight will be the night that I will begin to play Starcraft II. There will be a follow-up post about how it went, but as a girly-girl playing such an intense video game… It’ll be an interesting change.

On the completely opposite side of the spectrum, we have mobile gaming: apps for Google Play, the App Store, and the web. Any developer can join up and publish their apps. Great for when you’re out and about, but what about when you’re home? Retina display iPad or not, some games just look and feel better when they’re played on a big screen.

OUYA seeks to marry these concepts and solve their problems by creating opportunities for all developers to publish games for the TV with their open console.

Awesome! But real concerns exist:

:: Cloud-based gaming

The industry has been buzzing with Sony’s purchase of cloud gaming company Gaikai, and some even believe the era of smart gaming consoles is dying thanks to the astronomical rise in mobile usage. There’s a big difference here. Mobile games are designed to be either downloaded and played locally, or just played in the cloud. OUYA will be all cloud-based.

What does this mean for users without fast or reliable internet connection? I suffered this pain with Xbox Live when I moved to Japan. My gaming crew were all based in America and there was little more frustrating than a failed connection at a crucial time. OUYA’s creator, Julie Uhrman, said the console would have all genres of games from RPGs to action to shooters – even Minecraft. I hate to think of being disconnected in the middle of any game and losing progress. At least the console allows gamers to play offline, but that won’t work with OUYA. There’s a good example to look at today: When Steam connections are flaky, no one is happy.

:: Cloud based storage and security

I really hope those servers are secure with a copy of a copy of a copy… It would be horrible to spend a lot of time in a game to have it all lost due to hardware failure or hacking. I don’t need to elaborate on how bad it was that a huge company like Sony got hacked either. With all of the security breach news steadily pouring in (Yahoo!, Formspring, Dropbox’s worries) and OUYA’s business model which is to buy/play in the cloud, I really hope a breach never takes place. Of course, this isn’t a concern for OUYA specifically but all online payment and gaming platforms.

:: Approval Process/ Dealing with Malware

Uploading to Apple’s App Store is a process that involves a lot of time, reading, and a yearly investment of $80. Apple reviews all submissions before approving their debut in the App Store, which is great for catching bad apps but adds time to the process. Google Play on the other hand is a one time $25 fee to start up. After a short approval process, apps can be uploaded immediately and can take 10 minutes or a few hours to show up in Google Play. It’s easier for everyone to upload to Google Play, including the bad guys. Complaints have risen about spammy or bad apps not being dealt with quickly on Google Play. While some might argue that everyone should know it’s not a good idea to download a free version of Angry Birds, the reality is that some just don’t. These people rely on Apple and Google to keep their networks safe. What will OUYA do to protect these users?

:: Android-based

That’s a great thing… if you love Android. But developers who are experienced with other languages like Objective-C for iOS are left in the cold. OUYA will need to be compelling enough to coerce these developers into becoming Android development fans. Eclipse is pretty different from Xcode so that’s easier said than done.

:: Who’s actually backing OUYA on Kickstarter?

If the majority of the people backing OUYA are gamers, then this is a huge deal. If they’re game developers, then the project is one very big bubble. Unfortunately, we don’t know the demographics of who is backing the console and without that bit of crucial information, some developers might have a hard time justifying taking the leap.

:: OUYA App != Google Play App

OUYA’s input method is different from other Android devices. Developers need to adjust their apps to a controller with a center-based touch pad; there’s no silver bullet for developing once and uploading to both.

:: Finding one game in a sea of many

With tons of games to choose from, frankly, how does a user choose? I imagine they’ll stick with what they know already which are the big names they can find on consoles and other mobile platforms. The big guys already have the advantage of their names. What about advertising? Won’t companies who can pay the most have the advantage here?

:: Sorry, collectors…

Some of us like the idea of actually owning the game itself: the CD, the box, the instructions book. The idea of traditional collectors edition sets with special items in the package is out the window too. Instead, collectors will have to settle on in-game perks.

~

Will OUYA really become paradise for all developers, or is it just a mirage in the desert? Don’t get me wrong. I’m all for open source and creating an environment for everyone to develop and publish. I like that OUYA stands for providing more rewards to developers too. I’m very interested to see how they will address the concerns brought up in this post going forward, and will definitely keep my eye on them.

There will be free-to-play games, and even the classic ones will have a free-to-play version. What it seems to me is just a teleport of smartphone and tablet games into a wider screen as the television. That’s why they say “The revolution will be televised”. The video-game market has a great revenue – which continues to grow- due to smartphone and tablet games. They had the terrific idea of trying to move the average user of this games from his phone to his brand new TV. But I wonder: how many of them, who mostly play their games when they’re on the bus/train/subway getting home/to work, will have the time and fun to play other games like those, comfortably sat in their living room? I’ve read an article on the Economist some months ago, about the video games market and their average users: they said that most of the smartphone gamers are women. Why? Because games are simple, quick and they can play it while they’re doing something else, like getting to work in the morning. Though I think this could be a good idea, I’m not completely convinced that these users will play on a TV with games like the ones they play on smartphones.

At the same time, if I’m wrong and this is not the type of client they are targeting to, the lack of great game title could be a reason of failure. They have to compete with important and historic names like PlayStation, Nintendo and Microsoft. Though the price represents a competitive advantage ($99), I don’t think that Ubisoft with games like Assassins Creed III would lower the price of his game for this console.

Than, an interesting news: it will include a developer kit and it will be free to hack. Not only on the software, but also on the hardware.  And this completely changes the target. Or maybe, includes a new one. A part from aspirant game developers, I don’t think hackers would find so much interesting a console which is not much more of a 5-years-old pc for gaming. Also, if I want to hack a console that’s because I want to play games for free. But if games are already for free, what’s the point of hacking it? (In here I’m talking as an average gamer, not a hacker.. of course xD).

Oh well. Despite my thoughts,  I wish good luck to the developers. Hope that’s gonna be something new.

En esta edición encontrará:

El suplemento para los que no lo conozcan es todo un compendio de contenidos educativos, ferias, empresas, consejos útiles, y un listado de los perfiles de trabajo que podrían buscar las empresas juntamente con el sueldo medio pago, un directorio de escuelas americanas, y toda una serie de artículos de postmortem, desarrollo de videojuegos con herramientas gratuitas muy interesantes para los que estén pensando en aprender videojuegos sin tener que gastar fortunas en herramientas comerciales. (Daniel Parente Blog: Quinto Guia de las carreras en videojuegos de GameDeveloper ).

I know this isn’t exactly related to this blog, but don’t you worry, I’ll find out a way to make it related! I’ll have my phone and iPad with me, and hopefully there will be WiFi everywhere, so I can update on Twitter, too.

Please don’t forget to follow along here and on Twitter (@GameDevGF). There will be a new page devoted to what I post during my trip.

I’m excited to find out the differences here and overseas when it comes to gaming.

Okay, so I used to be one of those girls who’d collect Pokemon cards and know almost everything about them, but Magic is something incredibly new to me. After a long day of preparing food and hanging out with friends and a round of Cards Against Humanity, Max and three of his friends decided to play a round of Magic. I was incredibly tired and didn’t want to deal with it, so I sat in the living room and watched Real Housewives of Orange County. I know, I know… so bad.

Let’s backtrack a little: Max created this thing called a Magic Cube where he can bring a bunch of Magic cards anywhere and just start playing with people. Pretty awesome. So, since he played a round the previous night, everything was unorganized. I offered to help. While sorting through the different cards an color-coding them, I became intrigued by Magic.

That night, while making pizza and drinking a delicious bottle of cabernet sauvignon, I told Max I wanted to learn how to play Magic. His eyes widened and he was super excited that his girlfriend wanted to learn how to play.

I was so confused. At one point I had too many cards and at another I was down to three in my hand. Since it was just Max and I playing, the rounds went by quickly, but the first round was spent teaching me everything and showing me which card in my hand I should play. Apparently I beat Max that round, but I’m not quite sure how.

As we continued playing, I got the hang of it. I was starting to do pretty well without Max’s help. I mean, I still suck, but I’m getting the hang of it. For me, Magic isn’t the kind of card game I will go out and spend a lot of money buying trading cards for, but it is one I will use Max’s cards for. Let’s just say if Max wants to play Magic with his friends, I won’t stop him because I’ll be there to play, too.

Artist Vincent Proce for the Zendikar Swamp artwork and Zoltan Boros & Gabor Szikszai for the Shards of Alara Forest Artwork.

It’s likely that Activision were lured to the UK by the recent tax breaks given to the UK gaming sector.

Max, too, participated in the hype of Diablo III’s release and he has also waited the long twelve years to finally play the next part of this epic game. Game stores were open till about 2 a.m. as people picked up their reserved physical copies of the game.

As the fans and players proceeded to rush home to turn on their computer and go through the process of installing their game, little did they know that the Blizzard servers were bombarded by the amount of people actually wanting to play.

I feel for all of you who struggled the first full day you had to play Diablo III. The frustration of wanting to play the game so badly and not being able to will drive anyone slightly crazy, and I’m sure the excitement of wanting to play with your friends and not being able to made it slightly worse. But there’s always single-player, right? …Maybe? …No…?

Anyway, when Max got home from the video game release, he and his friend thought it would be incredibly awesome to play with each other. After going through the whole installation process and getting everything set up, Max couldn’t log into the server. He kept trying. Over and over again, he kept hitting the “enter” key on his keyboard. No luck. Max decided to wait till the next day to play.

Day number two has a similar fate. Max tries to log into the server yet again, but can’t. So many people are trying to log in to play Diablo III that it gets bombarded by many people. Max says it’s kind of a game within itself — you keep hitting the “enter” key and hoping that the moment you do, someone would have just logged off. I mean, it doesn’t help that Blizzard shut down the servers to repair them for a long period of time either. They definitely didn’t anticipate the amount of traffic the hype of Diablo III would have…

For a solid 24 hours, this was what Max and his friends were doing: hitting that “enter” key. Hoping. Praying. Wishing.

I feel for all you Diablo III fans who went through the same thing that Max did. Although I haven’t played Diablo or any of its installments, I understand the frustration that comes from not being able to play something you really want to. The adrenaline pumping through your veins waiting in line for the game and then not being able to play it can be overwhelming and seem incredibly unfair. I feel for all of you. But now you all can play happily with your friends. =)

On another note, I think it is time for yet another clarification. It has been brought to my attention that many of my readers may not realize or understand the focus of this blog. This blog is focused on the topic of being a game developer’s girlfriend, meaning I write about what I am experiencing as a gamedev’s girlfriend. Sure, I’ll be talking about video games and if I like them or not, but, again, the main focus is my experience being a gamedev’s girlfriend.

Many readers expect me to come back and write a blog post about The Legend of Zelda or Portal 2, but I don’t. It’s not because I don’t want to go and play them, it’s merely because I don’t have the time to. If I did have time, I’m sure I would eventually get around to it. I’m not as big of a video gamer as Max, meaning I spend, and will be spending, a lot of time working on other things I have going on, especially Xpress Magazine’s website.

Now, this is not to say that I won’t ever play video games, but it is really hard when I’m still in school. I’m sure come December or January all this will change when Max and I get a place in Santa Cruz, but until then, this blog will solely include posts about my experience being a game developer’s girlfriend.

As it says in the “about” page, you can feel free to email (gdgfblog@gmail.com) and submit suggestions about what you want to see on here. Any sort of input from my audience is incredibly appreciated.

I have learned a lot of lessons over the past few weeks, and now is a good time to share some of the more important ones.

Lesson One: The Hand Is Important

My hand. My right hand. It’s incredibly important. Your right hand is probably really important to you, too. Maybe your left is more important to you (weirdo), but regardless, you’ll still understand what I am talking about. Last month, I overworked my hand. I drew too much art, with a mouse that was too small for my hand, taking too few breaks, at a desk that was too high, with a chair with not enough support or adjustability. I learned the importance of having an ergonomic setup for my desk situation, given my long hours of drawing. And I learned the cost. I spent easily over $250 on improving my desk set-up (over $150 for ergonomic elbow rests that clamp onto my desk). But now, I feel like I sort of have robot arms! It’s kind of cool. But, it’s worth it to prevent another RSI (repetitive stress injury). I couldn’t use my right arm for much for a couple of weeks because of the stress I caused it by over working it, through drawing and Starcraft II.

I could spend a lot of time explaining to you how hard it is to go through a normal daily routine without being able to use my right hand effectively (especially as an artist who uses the computer for most things), but I’ll just let you imagine yourself. Just picture a day. In fact, try it sometime. Just see if you can use your left (or right, for you lefties) hand all day without using your right. It’s not easy.

Lesson Two: Work Out

Yeah, this kind of goes without saying. I haven’t really been working out much for a few years. I can chalk it up to “being busy” with college and my own game company, but really, I’ve just been lazy. So, I’m fixing that, and I’m starting to work out. This will help me build up strength to aid in preventing future injuries and stresses. I’ve already started to notice a difference, and it feels good. For anyone thinking of doing this: do it.

Lesson Three: Relaxing is Important

A lot of times, even when I’m supposed to be relaxing, my brain is still thinking about work. Leigh really helps me take my mind off of those things, and I have started to learn ways to let my mind stay away from work more and just relax when I am able to (but this doesn’t mean I work less). Separating work from relaxing is important.

Lesson Four: Slow and Steady Wins the Race

Working efficiently and effectively doesn’t come from simply working incredibly hard all the time. Working efficiently means taking care of yourself, in terms of both mind and body. I know this sounds all hippy, but I’m serious. Although I was very determined, and I worked two focused 13-hour work days in a row, and although I created great artwork, all was not well. By the immediate looks of things, I had done very well. I was proud of my work. But then, my arm gave out. I felt the effects of working too much, too long, with no breaks in between. I had to learn the lesson of pacing myself, the hard way. I’m sure we’ve all heard a few different versions of “The Tortoise and the Hare” story, but I’ll give mine anyway:

The Tortoise was challenged to a race by the super fast (and rather cocky) Hare. During the race, the Hare, who is sprinting ahead quickly, tires himself out, and needs to rest. He falls asleep, and the Tortoise passes him quietly and wins the race. I also like the version where the cocky Hare trips and falls while he runs ahead quickly, because it implies that he hurt himself (like I did with my hand). If I had just given myself time to rest in between drawing sessions, I would have been able to continue working for the next few weeks, rather than wait for my arm to heal. I’m just glad I can hopefully prevent something like this from happening again.

Lesson Five: Growing Up Means Different Things Are Exciting

I used to be excited for video games or new LEGO sets. But the other day, it felt like Christmas when I opened up my new ergo rest arm desk clamps (not that LEGOs aren’t also exciting still). Also, getting my mom’s old Wacom drawing tablet helps a lot, too. Thanks, mom I’m putting it to good use.

There are other things I learned, as well, but I think these five are enough to cover for now.