2009 Sessions By Track
We're at last seeing signs of diversity emerging in game graphics. As Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 approach their peak, the photo-realistic aim of yesterday has given way to movie-realism, where facial animation and the movement of wind through the trees can be as crucial as the lines of a car or the cut of a heroine's crop top. Yet in parallel to this, Wii, DS and the increasing encroachment of casual gaming seen in games like Buzz and Rock Band are also showcasing a more stylized artistic approach. Our sessions will inspire artists working across the whole spectrum to refresh their palettes.
Develop in Brighton's audio day is now established as one of the premier gigs on the game audio and music calendar, consistently punching above its weight with inspiring world-class speakers allied to a solid, practical programme to improve your work and reputation. While at its best game audio now matches movies from a technical standpoint, there's still plenty of progress to be made artistically. And challenges ranging from cross-platform development and emerging formats such as iPhone to global competition mean there's always more to learn.
It's been 20 years since games last offered such a variety of exciting ways for an entrepreneurial studio to make money - even as the financial cost of bringing a conventional game to market have soared beyond credibility. New revenue streams, from subscriptions and ads to micropayments, new platforms such as iPhone, PSN and XBLA, and a truly global outsourcing ecosystem all present novel opportunities, but in today's polarised, Internet-driven marketplace, businesses must still ultimately be aligned towards turning out old-fashioned quality gameplay to thrive.
With the current generation of consoles approaching maturity, the programming challenge has shifted from grappling with PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii to squeezing out the last ounce of performance. Ever more specialised programmers must work together as a team to get a game's AI, physics and graphical engine firing in concert, while enhancing and integrating middleware components has become a discipline in its own right. And bridging the 'uncanny valley' with improved facial animation and real-world graphics might be billed as an artists' challenge, but as ever it's coders who will do the heavy lifting.
Faced with vast game worlds and a seen-it-all-before audience, who'd be a designer nowadays? Well, everyone. As games like LittleBigPlanet and Spore devolve decisions to the player, we're all designers now. Professionals at the top of their game are looking to reinvent every genre from racing to flight sims to reflect this user-generated, socially connected reality - but without losing the essence of finely-balanced gameplay that made us all pick up a joypad (and not put it down again) in the first place.
Video games are evolving and so is Develop. Evolve will help game developers tackle emerging platforms and digital marketplaces, connected gaming, user-generated content, and the crossover between games and Internet services like YouTube and Facebook. This is must-attend for programmers and producers tasked with integrating connected features into their games, for games designers exploring how to create compelling games with user-generated and social networking content, and for managers and entrepreneurs set on exploiting the expanding crossover potential of casual games, social networking, mobile phones and today's connected games consoles.
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Modern production challenges run far deeper than getting a game finished to time and budget. Extensive outsourcing and remote working is increasing complexity, with teams scaling up and down to manage costs and changing demands over a project's development. Savvy studios are also increasingly looking to seamlessly integrate music, movie and other non-games talent into their production cycle. Meanwhile, increasingly ubiquitous online functions are extending the lifespan of more games far beyond their notional release date, raising long-term challengers for producers that must be considered on day one.
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More club than classroom, the Develop Den will run - with the help of One Life Left - alongside the main conference on 16 July offering off-the-wall sessions in a creative space.
