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What's in a Name: Gaikai

Jordan Mallory — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 16:30:00 EST

David Perry, Co-Founder and CEO of Gaikai, sat down with us during last week's Game Developers Conference: Online in Austin, TX. Over the howl of the expo floor's contemporary rock soundtrack, David let us in on Gaikai's mysterious branding:

"Basically one of our founders, his name is Rui Pereira, he came up with this name 'Gaikai,' and I said, 'Oh my God, no one will ever be able to pronounce that, no one will ever be able to spell that, this is a bad idea.' And of course, there's all the following conversations, what about all the other strange words that are out there: The Googles, and the Kodaks, and the, you know, the Xeroxes?

"There's all these strange things that are out there, so what's wrong with having a strange name? I then took a marketing class in Texas, and they explained the idea of 'mystique marketing;' it's actually cool to have a hard-to-say name, because it means if you know how to pronounce it, then you're in the club.

"So any time you hear Gaikai pronounced wrong, you can go 'Hrm, this guy doesn't know what it means, or how to say it even.' That's mystique marketing, so I thought, 'Huh, maybe we give this a try.'

"It turns that the actual word is a Japanese word, and it means 'a large open space,' like out on the open ocean, and if you look around on the open ocean, you can go in any direction. And that's what we believe cloud gaming enables."

Gaikai is a technology company that provides streaming game middleware to third-party corporations such as Walmart.

Like this feature? Be sure to check out the What's In A Name Archives.

What's in a Name: Gaikai originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 16 Oct 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BioWare Mythic on Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes' MMO origins

JC Fletcher — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 09:30:00 EST

Not everybody is in the closed beta of Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes; if we were, it wouldn't be closed. That's just about the only way to know any details about BioWare Mythic's new free-to-play spinoff, as the company's been quiet since announcing the game at GamesCom.

During GDC Online, I asked studio GM Eugene Evans to explain just what Wrath of Heroes is, especially in relation to the existing Warhammer Online MMO. "The scenario gameplay that you experience within Wrath of Heroes is part of Warhammer Online," Evans explained. "You can go and have a similar experience in Warhammer Online. But it means that you have to go and start with a base character, level that character up, and then get into the scenario."

Gallery: Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes (PC)

Continue reading BioWare Mythic on Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes' MMO origins

BioWare Mythic on Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes' MMO origins originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 15 Oct 2011 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PS Vita's form factor is 'super oval,' touch panels are extremely high-resolution

JC Fletcher — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 19:00:00 EST

At a sponsored, Vita-focused panel at GDC Online, SCEA Senior Staff Developer Support Engineer Chris Norden described the "form factor" of the new handheld using the official Sony terminology. It's a "super oval." Norden didn't specify how the super oval differs from a regular oval -- maybe just in that it encases a PlayStation Vita.

Later during the tech-heavy panel, Norden confirmed that the Vita retail kit doesn't offer video output to TVs, and that the front and rear touch panels are "higher resolution than the screen itself." Theoretically, you could get sub-pixel precision from the touch input, if you had really pointy fingers. You'd also have a totally ruined screen.

PS Vita's form factor is 'super oval,' touch panels are extremely high-resolution originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 12 Oct 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PlayStation Suite SDK will be released in 'limited beta' in November

JC Fletcher — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 16:45:00 EST

During TGS, Sony announced that the development kit for the cross-platform PlayStation Suite program would be released in November. During a panel at GDC Online today, SCE's Shigeru Sugimoto clarified the timing of that release.

In November, the SDK will be released as a limited beta, or a "tech preview," including the Android version and a PC-based "simulator" allowing those without Android phones (that last group includes everyone) to develop for Suite.

Vita development will be added later, when Sony expands into an "open beta." Later, in addition to Sony Ericsson Android devices and PS Vita systems, the Suite may support PS3 -- it's one of the platforms "under evaluation." "We are targeting devices from other manufacturers as well," Sugimoto said, referring to other Android phones.

If you'd like to download the SDK, you can sign up here to find out when it'll be available. You will need a PSN ID to access it.

PlayStation Suite SDK will be released in 'limited beta' in November originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 11 Oct 2011 16:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GDC Play offers paid exhibition space to indies at GDC Online and 2012

Jessica Conditt — Sat, 09 Jul 2011 00:25:00 EST

GDC Play, a new program to showcase emerging independent developers and their games, will debut at GDC Online 2011, which runs October 10-13 in Austin. The initiatve will have its own pavilion "in the heart of the show room floor" on October 11 and 12. Exhibitors in this pavilion will be given a monitor, keyboard, speakers and power (personal generators not necessary) to showcase their games -- for a $2,850 fee. Internet access costs $150 more.

GDC Play will also be featured at GDC 2012 in San Francisco March 5-9 with an expanded pavilion to showcase mobile, social and independent games, for a $3,000 participation fee. For larger publishers who wish to be involved in Play, GDC 2012 will offer special packages, such as the "Networking Lounge (Exclusive)" for $15,000 and the "VIP Reception" for $30,000.

To sign up your indie baby for GDC Play, contact the appropriate sales representative under the GDC Online 2011 or GDC 2012 headings, fill out a fancy Request for Proposal form, and then have a bake sale fundraiser (or twenty).

GDC Play offers paid exhibition space to indies at GDC Online and 2012 originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 09 Jul 2011 00:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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First GDC Online 2011 summits announced

Jordan Mallory — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 23:45:00 EST

Despite the brutal, anti-nerd reality that is Texas weather, Austin has become a major hub for development houses that produce MMOs and casual/social online titles. BioWare, NCSoft, Blizzard, SOE, heck, even Zynga; they've all got offices in Austin and collectively they're responsible for a sizable growth spurt in the city's already impressive technology sector. It makes sense, then, that GDC 2011's "Online" chapter should return to the Lone-Star State's capital city.

GDC has, historically, been a conference "for developers, by developers," meaning that it's probably not the sort of show Jimmy Halo and Ricky Killzone want to spend their tuition money on. However! If you're in the industry, or just really, really into game design, you just might find something worthwhile at one of GDCO's recently announced summits.

The Game Narrative Summit, for instance, returns for its 6th year of lectures and dissertations with Eidos Montreal's Mary De Marle giving a talk on "Building the Story-driven Experience of Deus Ex: Human Revolution," and Volition's Steve Jaros hosting a roundtable discussion of development mistakes and war-stories in "Sins of the Past." PopCap's Giordano Bruno Contestabile will be contributing his knowledge of pocket-sized, casual gaming to the Smartphone and Tablet Games Summit, and while the GDC Virtual Items Summit has been announced, no specific session details have been listed as of yet.

If extremely-inside-baseball discussions really are your bag, baby, then summit lectures will be open to GDCO attendees with "All Access" and "Summits & Tutorials" badges during the first two days of the conference's October 10-13 run at the Austin Convention Center.

First GDC Online 2011 summits announced originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 03 Jul 2011 23:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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