As promised, here is Clint Hocking's keynote from FuturePlay 2006. This should give you a taste of what we have had in the past at FP.
Clint talked about getting a demo beyond the Male 18-34 bracket, there are a lot of other humans out there that could get entertained, and perhaps more from video games.
(As a side note, I think I was the only one in the room that did not fall for the 'look under your chair for you 3D glasses' bit).
Listen and enjoy
Showing posts with label video games. Show all posts
Showing posts with label video games. Show all posts
Monday, November 12, 2007
Paper Sessions - An Example
Now we have keynotes (I will post one of them later today) at FuturePlay each year and then there are the paper sessions. I recorded some guy presenting a paper on experimental psychology and game design last year in London at FuturePlay 2006.
This talk should give you a good feel for the paper sessions.
If you check this dude's blog you can get the paper and the powerpoint slides....
Listen Now.
This talk should give you a good feel for the paper sessions.
If you check this dude's blog you can get the paper and the powerpoint slides....
Listen Now.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
More On The Student Experience at FuturePlay
Gavan Acton is a graduate of Algoma's Computer Science programme and has been to each and every edition of FP. He has also been a frequent guest on T6. I emailed Gav the other day and asked him a few questions about his experiences at FP 05, 06 and his hopes for the 07 conference in Toronto. Currently, Gav is a grad student in Computer Science at UWO.
Dave Brodbeck: Gavan what are your best memories of past FuturePlay conferences?
Gavan Acton: My first Futureplay experience was completely insane. Futureplay 2005 - I went down not really knowing what to expect from the speakers. I was blown away by the keynotes. Their depth of knowledge, clarity of ideas and perspectives really got me thinking. When I left the conference, my head chewed on their ideas for weeks.
I still remember the ride home after the conference vividly, I sat in the back seat of the van thinking of how to apply so much of what I had heard over the last couple days into a new gaming experience. The result was some of the fundamental game mechanics that we later used in a game called Flux( that won a few awards at Dare to Be Digitall and Futureplay 2006.
Presenting and pitching a game to Clint Hocking was pretty dam cool. I also really enjoyed the games competition and not because I had a game in it. There is always so many interesting games that make you look at gaming differently. Last year there was this one game made for the blind that blew me away. You basically had to ski down this mountain only using your ears to guide you. I found the experience very visceral and left me thinking about a whole set of new game mechanics that could make use of senses other then the visual. Very interesting stuff and definitely not conventional.
DB: What are you looking forward to this year?
GA: What you are looking forward to
More of the same from the last two years. That would be spectacular. I am really looking forward to the panel "Players Gaming the Play, Toolsets, and Creativity in and around Games". I love the possibilities of new online worlds that seriously engage a player with a gameplay but also with content provide by both the game studio and players themselves. Online gaming communities have so many possible avenues of interesting entertainment, it's future is exciting. This panel looks to talk about some of these issues. I am also reading a fantastic book by one of the panelists(Katherine Isbister), it should be interesting to hear her speak.
The other panel that looks awesome is "Games for Immersive Learning in other Subjects". The panelist line up looks fantastic. The conversations will definitely be interesting.
Did I mention Keynotes? I am pumped.
DB: Do some name dropping, who have you met at FuturePlay?
GA: Ha. I am terrible with names. Let me dig up some business cards. ;-)
Clint Hocking (Ubisoft - Splinter Cell anyone?)
Micheal Mateas ( Co-Creator of Fascade - Ranked third most influential AI game according to aigamedev.com )
Ernest Adams ( The man with the insane hats! and a ton of game design books)
Ken Perlin ( Inventor of Perlin Noise - used in Half Life 2 a so many other games for NPC character motion and emotion expression).
Ricardo Rademache (Insane Physicist meets creator of WOW type learning world)
I really could keep going but wont. Futureplay has always pulled amazing people from both the industry and Academe. Luckily not many of them have rabies, so you can just go talk with them. Its not like GDC were its almost impossible to talk with anyone because your all crunched like sardines. It definitely has a relaxed feel.
DB:What was your experience like as an undergraduate at FuturePlay 05 and 06?
GA:My experience as an undergrad was fantastic. I walked around like a tourist, taking in as much as I could and all the while being a little awestruck. Although I have played video games my whole life, I had no idea the depth of creative thought that goes into them. Everything from the player experience, to the economics, to the legal, psychological and moral issues are all discussed. Futureplay definitely got my feet wet to the gaming world.
DB: Now you are a graduate student, do you expect your experience to be any different this time around?
GA: Ha good question. It will definitely be different in that I have much more experience in games now. Having been had the opportunity at Dare to be Digital to apply what I learned at Futureplay, I can listen with the experience of real game development. This will help me get a better understanding of the possible application of the speakers ideas. More then that, now that I have a very specific research area in AI for games, I will definitely be attending specific research presentations within my field.
Other then that, my guess is that I will be as blown away as I have been previous Futureplay conferences.
DB: At FuturePlay 2006 you spoke about your experience at Dare to Be Digital, was that a little scary?
GA: Public speaking can be scary. I always try to use coping mechanisms like drinking and/or dressing up in a Halo Master Chief suit. For whatever reason, I find imagining the crowd naked to be terrible distracting...Honestly, having presented the game 200 times over the course of 10 weeks at Dare, speaking in public becomes much easier. My nervousness fades after the first 20 seconds or so and then... i just look awesome in an armor suit. ;-)
Dave Brodbeck: Gavan what are your best memories of past FuturePlay conferences?
Gavan Acton: My first Futureplay experience was completely insane. Futureplay 2005 - I went down not really knowing what to expect from the speakers. I was blown away by the keynotes. Their depth of knowledge, clarity of ideas and perspectives really got me thinking. When I left the conference, my head chewed on their ideas for weeks.
I still remember the ride home after the conference vividly, I sat in the back seat of the van thinking of how to apply so much of what I had heard over the last couple days into a new gaming experience. The result was some of the fundamental game mechanics that we later used in a game called Flux( that won a few awards at Dare to Be Digitall and Futureplay 2006.
Presenting and pitching a game to Clint Hocking was pretty dam cool. I also really enjoyed the games competition and not because I had a game in it. There is always so many interesting games that make you look at gaming differently. Last year there was this one game made for the blind that blew me away. You basically had to ski down this mountain only using your ears to guide you. I found the experience very visceral and left me thinking about a whole set of new game mechanics that could make use of senses other then the visual. Very interesting stuff and definitely not conventional.
DB: What are you looking forward to this year?
GA: What you are looking forward to
More of the same from the last two years. That would be spectacular. I am really looking forward to the panel "Players Gaming the Play, Toolsets, and Creativity in and around Games". I love the possibilities of new online worlds that seriously engage a player with a gameplay but also with content provide by both the game studio and players themselves. Online gaming communities have so many possible avenues of interesting entertainment, it's future is exciting. This panel looks to talk about some of these issues. I am also reading a fantastic book by one of the panelists(Katherine Isbister), it should be interesting to hear her speak.
The other panel that looks awesome is "Games for Immersive Learning in other Subjects". The panelist line up looks fantastic. The conversations will definitely be interesting.
Did I mention Keynotes? I am pumped.
DB: Do some name dropping, who have you met at FuturePlay?
GA: Ha. I am terrible with names. Let me dig up some business cards. ;-)
Clint Hocking (Ubisoft - Splinter Cell anyone?)
Micheal Mateas ( Co-Creator of Fascade - Ranked third most influential AI game according to aigamedev.com )
Ernest Adams ( The man with the insane hats! and a ton of game design books)
Ken Perlin ( Inventor of Perlin Noise - used in Half Life 2 a so many other games for NPC character motion and emotion expression).
Ricardo Rademache (Insane Physicist meets creator of WOW type learning world)
I really could keep going but wont. Futureplay has always pulled amazing people from both the industry and Academe. Luckily not many of them have rabies, so you can just go talk with them. Its not like GDC were its almost impossible to talk with anyone because your all crunched like sardines. It definitely has a relaxed feel.
DB:What was your experience like as an undergraduate at FuturePlay 05 and 06?
GA:My experience as an undergrad was fantastic. I walked around like a tourist, taking in as much as I could and all the while being a little awestruck. Although I have played video games my whole life, I had no idea the depth of creative thought that goes into them. Everything from the player experience, to the economics, to the legal, psychological and moral issues are all discussed. Futureplay definitely got my feet wet to the gaming world.
DB: Now you are a graduate student, do you expect your experience to be any different this time around?
GA: Ha good question. It will definitely be different in that I have much more experience in games now. Having been had the opportunity at Dare to be Digital to apply what I learned at Futureplay, I can listen with the experience of real game development. This will help me get a better understanding of the possible application of the speakers ideas. More then that, now that I have a very specific research area in AI for games, I will definitely be attending specific research presentations within my field.
Other then that, my guess is that I will be as blown away as I have been previous Futureplay conferences.
DB: At FuturePlay 2006 you spoke about your experience at Dare to Be Digital, was that a little scary?
GA: Public speaking can be scary. I always try to use coping mechanisms like drinking and/or dressing up in a Halo Master Chief suit. For whatever reason, I find imagining the crowd naked to be terrible distracting...Honestly, having presented the game 200 times over the course of 10 weeks at Dare, speaking in public becomes much easier. My nervousness fades after the first 20 seconds or so and then... i just look awesome in an armor suit. ;-)
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
T6 Flashback -6 - The Student Perspective
Of course, FuturePlay is not just for people in the industry and academics, it is for students too. Each year we have many students, grad and undergrad, present papers and posters and/or enter the game competition.
After FuturePlay 05 I sat down at the Speakeasy with Algoma University students Gavan Acton, Glen Hamilton-Brown, Darren Schnare and Mack Khairi. These guys were at FuturePlay 05 and did a heck of a lot of work behind the scenes, but they also managed to take in a lot of the conference.
We talked about video game design and what they learned at the conference. They also talked about what games they currently play.
I told Darren that he would be pwned on xbox live. As he has never added me to his friends list I assume he is afraid of me, and not that he just does not like me...
Direct episode download
After FuturePlay 05 I sat down at the Speakeasy with Algoma University students Gavan Acton, Glen Hamilton-Brown, Darren Schnare and Mack Khairi. These guys were at FuturePlay 05 and did a heck of a lot of work behind the scenes, but they also managed to take in a lot of the conference.
We talked about video game design and what they learned at the conference. They also talked about what games they currently play.
I told Darren that he would be pwned on xbox live. As he has never added me to his friends list I assume he is afraid of me, and not that he just does not like me...
Direct episode download
Thursday, October 4, 2007
T6 Flashbacks- 5 - Sex, Lies and Video Games
From the Future Play conference 2005 in Lansing, Michigan.
Right after the Henry Jenkins/Ernest Adams sit down some folks gathered around and started just talking. Isabelle, Glyn, Henry Jenkins, Ernest Adams, Amanda Flowers, Andy Gilgallon, Patrick Schaffer, Keith Schaffer, Brenda Brathwaite and I discussed sex in video games. Andy and Amanda are from MSU while the Schaffer boys are from Ferris State.
Brenda is a 22-year veteran of the games industry, Brenda has worked on 20 published titles including the award-winning Wizardry series of role playing games and the award-winning Jagged Alliance series of strategy role-playing games. Most recently, she was lead designer on Playboy: The Mansion for Cyberlore as well as Dungeons & Dragons: Heroes for Atari. She has been interviewed extensively on women in the games industry and, most recently, on sex in games.
Brenda recently hosted the "Sexuality in Games" Roundtable at the 2005 Game Developers Conference and has been a guest lecturer at numerous colleges and universities. In her role as Senior Designer at Cyberlore Studios, she is frequently called upon to produce concept and proposal documents for all kinds of IP from the mild to the wild.
Brenda resides in western Massachusetts, home to the Indian Motorcycle Museum, the Basketball Hall of Fame and the Volleyball Hall of Fame none of which she has ever visited. Not surprisingly, Brenda spends her free time playing games and reading books about games.
She is also an avid collector of Playboy magazines and owns over 500 issues.
Direct Download
Right after the Henry Jenkins/Ernest Adams sit down some folks gathered around and started just talking. Isabelle, Glyn, Henry Jenkins, Ernest Adams, Amanda Flowers, Andy Gilgallon, Patrick Schaffer, Keith Schaffer, Brenda Brathwaite and I discussed sex in video games. Andy and Amanda are from MSU while the Schaffer boys are from Ferris State.
Brenda is a 22-year veteran of the games industry, Brenda has worked on 20 published titles including the award-winning Wizardry series of role playing games and the award-winning Jagged Alliance series of strategy role-playing games. Most recently, she was lead designer on Playboy: The Mansion for Cyberlore as well as Dungeons & Dragons: Heroes for Atari. She has been interviewed extensively on women in the games industry and, most recently, on sex in games.
Brenda recently hosted the "Sexuality in Games" Roundtable at the 2005 Game Developers Conference and has been a guest lecturer at numerous colleges and universities. In her role as Senior Designer at Cyberlore Studios, she is frequently called upon to produce concept and proposal documents for all kinds of IP from the mild to the wild.
Brenda resides in western Massachusetts, home to the Indian Motorcycle Museum, the Basketball Hall of Fame and the Volleyball Hall of Fame none of which she has ever visited. Not surprisingly, Brenda spends her free time playing games and reading books about games.
She is also an avid collector of Playboy magazines and owns over 500 issues.
Direct Download
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
T6 Flashbacks- 3
Our third T6 Flashback features an interview with Victor Lucas of the Electric Playground and Judgement Day.
I managed to connect with Victor Lucas of the Electric Playground and Judgement Day TV series while I was at the University fair in 2005, recruiting students. Victor is the co-host and executive producer of these two shows that can be seen on G4, G4TechTV Canada, Razer, Space and well all over the place.
We talked about Vic's favourite games, his favourite all time games, about next Gen consoles and about the convergence of video games and other media forms.
While Vic could not make FuturePlay it is still gaming content so, hell, I thought I would repost this one.
Enjoy.
Direct Download
I managed to connect with Victor Lucas of the Electric Playground and Judgement Day TV series while I was at the University fair in 2005, recruiting students. Victor is the co-host and executive producer of these two shows that can be seen on G4, G4TechTV Canada, Razer, Space and well all over the place.
We talked about Vic's favourite games, his favourite all time games, about next Gen consoles and about the convergence of video games and other media forms.
While Vic could not make FuturePlay it is still gaming content so, hell, I thought I would repost this one.
Enjoy.
Direct Download
Monday, September 17, 2007
Why Are We Here?
Hey look, first post...
Well, the purpose of this blog is to get information about FuturePlay 2007 out to the community. I promise lots of content on the blog, and the frequency of posting will ramp up as the conference approaches. I will also live blog from the conference.
Of course, there will be content from the thunderbird six podcast, including interviews with past conference attendees, and a couple of past paper presentations.
The Future Play Conference focuses on three main themes. The first theme, future game development, addresses academic research and emerging industry trends in the area of game technology and game design. The second theme, future game impacts and applications, includes academic research and emerging industry trends focused on designing games for learning, for gender, for serious purposes, and to impact society. Finally, the third theme, future game talent, is designed to provide a number of industry and academic perspectives on the knowledge, skills, and attitude it takes to excel in the games industry.
Future Play addresses these issues through exciting and thought-provoking keynotes from leaders in academia and industry, peer-reviewed paper sessions, panel sessions (including academic and industry discussions), workshops (including design, technology, and career workshops), and exhibitions of posters, games, and the latest game technologies and supports from industry-leading vendors. The highlight of the games exhibition is a peer-reviewed competition of games in three categories: Indie Games, Serious Games, and Student Games.
For Future Play 2007, Algoma University College teams up with the University of Ontario Institute of Technology to bring you some of the most thought provoking and talented people in the gaming world today.
Well, the purpose of this blog is to get information about FuturePlay 2007 out to the community. I promise lots of content on the blog, and the frequency of posting will ramp up as the conference approaches. I will also live blog from the conference.
Of course, there will be content from the thunderbird six podcast, including interviews with past conference attendees, and a couple of past paper presentations.
The Future Play Conference focuses on three main themes. The first theme, future game development, addresses academic research and emerging industry trends in the area of game technology and game design. The second theme, future game impacts and applications, includes academic research and emerging industry trends focused on designing games for learning, for gender, for serious purposes, and to impact society. Finally, the third theme, future game talent, is designed to provide a number of industry and academic perspectives on the knowledge, skills, and attitude it takes to excel in the games industry.
Future Play addresses these issues through exciting and thought-provoking keynotes from leaders in academia and industry, peer-reviewed paper sessions, panel sessions (including academic and industry discussions), workshops (including design, technology, and career workshops), and exhibitions of posters, games, and the latest game technologies and supports from industry-leading vendors. The highlight of the games exhibition is a peer-reviewed competition of games in three categories: Indie Games, Serious Games, and Student Games.
For Future Play 2007, Algoma University College teams up with the University of Ontario Institute of Technology to bring you some of the most thought provoking and talented people in the gaming world today.
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