Joystiq

OnLive releases iOS and Android apps, custom touch controls, and a wireless controller

Mike Schramm — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 21:00:00 EST

Cloud gaming service OnLive has been up and running for about a year now, and in all that time it's been doing exactly what many gamers thought impossible: Playing high resolution games over the Internet on any computer powerful enough to run a simple streaming app. Now, the company is taking its cloud-based show to smartphones and tablets, with a whole suite of apps available this week for Android and iOS devices.

Joystiq had a chance to chat with OnLive CEO Steve Perlman, and he told us how the company has brought OnLive's library of PC and console titles to touchscreens everywhere (with the help of developers like Rockstar Games and a brand new controller), how OnLive and its service compares to the Xbox 360 console, and how his company would rather play nice with traditional console makers like Microsoft and Sony than disrupt their current business models.

Continue reading OnLive releases iOS and Android apps, custom touch controls, and a wireless controller

OnLive releases iOS and Android apps, custom touch controls, and a wireless controller originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 07 Dec 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive's Deus Ex pack-in code is 'Cloud game meets physical media 1.0'

JC Fletcher — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 16:30:00 EST

People buying new PC copies of Deus Ex: Human Revolution this week have likely been delighted to find codes for the OnLive version of the game in the box (unless they bought those copies from GameStop). But you can't play the same save file between the PC and OnLive versions, making the offer more of a cool novelty than something immediately useful to players.

OnLive CEO Steve Perlman told Joystiq that this offer, the "first of many," is just a tentative step by OnLive. "You can think of this as cloud game meets physical media 1.0," he said. "This first version doesn't have cross-pollination between your local PC and the cloud."

The main issue preventing this from being done right now -- preventing, say, OnLive cloud saving for retail games -- might surprise you: mods. Perlman said that since OnLive uses slightly different versions of the game than the retail PC, if any kind of alteration is done to the base game, it could cause compatibility issues between the versions. Cloud saving on OnLive "can be done," he said. "It requires more thought than printing a code." He affirmed that OnLive will do that, but "that'll probably be like 2.0."

OnLive is planning not only to solve that issue, but to allow for mods in the streaming versions of games. "I think if everyone wants to do multiplayer where everyone has auto-aim, that's fine, but you don't want to mix games, you know?" He describes setting up rooms in which people can choose to play with mods.

"This is all work that was done many months ago," Perlman noted about the pack-in code, slyly contrasting the lead time required for a retail product with OnLive's instant-on nature. He then laughed. "Oh, my god!"

OnLive's Deus Ex pack-in code is 'Cloud game meets physical media 1.0' originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 24 Aug 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive adds parental controls, group chat, Facebook achievement posting today

JC Fletcher — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 14:07:00 EST

Fear not, there's some good news to report about OnLive today as well. CEO Steve Perlman told Joystiq about three new features that are live on the cloud-gaming service ... right now.

Group voice chat allows users to specify "groups" of people, and maintain persistent chat sessions with them, even when they're playing different games, accessing menus, etc. It's even possible to send out an email from within the service inviting group members to chat.

Second, parental controls will allow parents to set limits on the content their kids can play, along ESRB or PEGI lines, with the potential to fine-tune to allow individual games (in the case of, say, unrated indie games). "With a different account, if [parents] want," Perlman explained, "they can actually watch the kid playing, and chat with the kid, and so on." He clarified that, since the parent would presumably be in control of the child's account in the first place, a parent can limit spectating and chat to "friends."

Finally, it's now possible for achievements to automatically post to a user's Facebook wall. OnLive will automatically record the ten seconds of gameplay up to that achievement, and post it as an HD "Brag Clip." "Facebook has been terrific to work on with this," Perlman said. "They actually made a couple of mods to their system -- because we're the first guys posting HD resolution videos nonstop over to Facebook. They're into it."

OnLive adds parental controls, group chat, Facebook achievement posting today originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 24 Aug 2011 14:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive Player App for iPad and Android brings tablet/TV integration, ala Wii U

Christopher Grant — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 04:30:00 EST

Cloud gaming poster child OnLive took the opportunity at E3 to show off its tablet-bound OnLive Player application, coming to both iPad and Android devices "later this year," while providing "far higher performance, richer gameplay and deeper social integration than any console announced for 2012." Yeah, that's a not-so-subtle dig at the Wii U.

While the OnLive Viewer app currently available doesn't allow for actually playing OnLive on a tablet, the upcoming Player app "will enable gameplay of virtually all OnLive games on an iPad and Android tablet with touch or OnLive's new Universal Wireless Controller." Demoed in the video below is Ubisoft's From Dust, which accepts touch-based input on the tablet applications.

Even more notable, considering Nintendo's latest console announcement, is news that the OnLive Player app will allow "the tablet to be used as a touch and motion controller combined with an HDTV (or PC/Mac if preferred)." The tablet can even enable "both synchronized or independent video on the tablet and HDTV screen, enabling combined gameplay with tablet and HDTV" or, more like the concepts we saw of Wii U, "separate gameplay on tablet and HDTV."

Take a tour with OnLive prez Steve Perlman after the break; we'll stop by OnLive's E3 booth tomorrow for a tour of our own.

Continue reading OnLive Player App for iPad and Android brings tablet/TV integration, ala Wii U

OnLive Player App for iPad and Android brings tablet/TV integration, ala Wii U originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 09 Jun 2011 04:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive coming 'built in' to new VIZIO TVs, Blu-ray players

Randy Nelson — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 08:00:00 EST

A month after beginning shipments of its Microconsole hardware, cloud gaming service OnLive is announcing a partnership with VIZIO, whereby the electronics company will offer televisions, Blu-ray players, tablet computers and mobile phones that can connect to OnLive right out of the box. According to the announcement made at CES 2011 today, OnLive will be featured as an application on VIZIO's new VIA Plus line of products, which includes the VIA Tablet and VIA Smart Phone, alongside other preinstalled "VIZIO Internet Apps."

OnLive founder and CEO, Steve Perlman calls the partnership "a major milestone," while VIZIO's chief technology officer, Matthew McRae, says the inclusion of the OnLive client on its VIA Plus devices will give users "the freedom to switch games much like you change the channel," and is as integral to these products as software for streaming movies and music.

VIZIO wil be demoing its VIA Plus products during CES and we'll have a first look at them soon.

Continue reading OnLive coming 'built in' to new VIZIO TVs, Blu-ray players

OnLive coming 'built in' to new VIZIO TVs, Blu-ray players originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 04 Jan 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive awarded important cloud gaming patent

Richard Mitchell — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 13:24:00 EST

Would-be cloud gaming entrepreneurs take note: OnLive has secured its own cloud gaming patent. VentureBeat reports that the patent was awarded to OnLive head Steve Perlman, who submitted it way back in 2002. The patent covers "Apparatus and method for wireless video gaming," specifically the transmission of compressed game signals from one location to another. The concept for the set-top-box is also covered in the patent's claims.

The patent represents a potential hurdle for other cloud-based gaming startups, should such services use similar methods of delivery. For what it's worth, Perlman stated that he has never sued anyone for patent infringement. Thankfully, Joystiq's foward-thinking cloud gaming service will remain unaffected, as the entire operation runs on tin cans and string.

OnLive awarded important cloud gaming patent originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 14 Dec 2010 13:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive 'Founding Members' who bought two games receiving free MicroConsole

Alexander Sliwinski — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 19:03:00 EST

OnLive still has a public perception hill to climb, but the company is rewarding its Founding Members, the people who took the risk on the cloud gaming service, with some goodies.

In a post today on the service's blog, CEO Steve Perlman wrote that those who bought a PlayPass for one game will receive a promo code for another game, up to $50. Everyone who purchased two games will receive a voucher for a free OnLive MicroConsole. This includes "rental" PlayPasses as well, not just the unlimited "Full PlayPasses," as long as they were purchased before midnight last night. The first batch of MicroConsoles ship out on December 2 and Founding Member pre-orders will move to the front of the line for delivery.

The company's service has certainly impressed us, and with its future plans, along with the introduction of some flat-rate gaming, the whole cloud-centric concept is starting to seem decidedly solid.

Gallery: OnLive MicroConsole (hands-on)

OnLive 'Founding Members' who bought two games receiving free MicroConsole originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 24 Nov 2010 19:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Steve Perlman discusses OnLive's growth, potential new platforms and plans for exclusive games

Randy Nelson — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 00:04:00 EST

"I guess we're now a medium-sized company instead of a startup because we have over 200 people," OnLive CEO Steve Perlman told Joystiq when we met with him to get our hands on the company's final MicroConsole hardware earlier this month. "We've had over two million sessions, which is basically when someone uses the service. Some of them are short, while others are quite long, on the order of 20 hours."

While not providing deeper usage statistics, Perlman remarked that "The growth has been rapidly accelerating. We had more people using OnLive in October than in all the months previous. November is even growing beyond that." This in the absence of any substantial marketing, and without a presence in the living room. That will all change, he said, with the December 2 introduction of what is being billed as the service's "TV adapter" and a corresponding major media ad push.

The company is betting on the device's $99 price point and simple setup to establish a foothold in console gaming -- Perlman said that it's more about the "TV market," which "is 10 times larger than the PC or Mac market" -- and that publishers continue to be sold on the platform. "All the hand waving and all the slide shows and demos ... checks seem to have more influence on publishers than anything."

Continue reading Steve Perlman discusses OnLive's growth, potential new platforms and plans for exclusive games

Steve Perlman discusses OnLive's growth, potential new platforms and plans for exclusive games originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 00:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive ditching monthly charge, goes free; MicroConsole in manufacturing

Christopher Grant — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 16:23:00 EST

"Although we wish we could have confirmed no monthly free from the get-go, pioneering a major new video game paradigm is hard," OnLive CEO Steve Perlman writes in a blog post, continuing, "we had to first grow to a large base of regular users before we could understand usage patterns and operating costs."

And just like that, the formerly $14.95 per month service -- which, through its Founding Members program, has offered a year of free service since its launch earlier this year (meaning it never actually collected any monthly fees) -- is free, greatly reducing the mostly psychological barrier many gamers had regarding OnLive. To capitalize on that lower barrier of entry, OnLive is "kicking off this change with the introduction of its Free Trial program for new users to its service," giving curious gamers quick access to the service sans credit card.

With no monthly cost, no credit card needed for sign-up, and plenty of free demos, we're not sure why someone would elect to not at least try the service. Here's how it works: You push buttons and those go to a server somewhere, and then it sends you back video of your game. It's freaky. Not interested until you can get the service on your telly? Perlman notes that "MicroConsole TV Adapters are in manufacturing," giving us hope the device will make its planned 2010 release.

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Continue reading OnLive ditching monthly charge, goes free; MicroConsole in manufacturing

OnLive ditching monthly charge, goes free; MicroConsole in manufacturing originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 04 Oct 2010 16:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive duo pitch platform they believe will 'change the world'

Ben Gilbert — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:15:00 EST

"This is gonna change the world." Since our E3 meeting with OnLive CEO Steve Perlman and Joe Bentley, director of games & media development, wasn't filmed, we have no way to convey to you the absolute sincerity with which Bentley said these words. He further assured us, "I left a very successful startup to do this."

Indeed he did -- three years ago, Bentley quit his "architect" job at outsourcing firm LiveOps (where he built software) for OnLive, after seeing parent company Rearden Labs' Mova motion capture technology. And now? Now he's busy helping manage the launch and continued growth of OnLive. He's also busy trying to convince us of the service's promise in the coming months and years.

Continue reading OnLive duo pitch platform they believe will 'change the world'

OnLive duo pitch platform they believe will 'change the world' originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive's Perlman says Microconsole coming by end of 2010

Ben Gilbert — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 18:40:00 EST

Filed under: Weird But True, Opinions, New In Pop Culture

Speaking with OnLive company head Steve Perlman at E3 2010, Joystiq learned that the TV-based version of OnLive should be widely available by the end of 2010. "When we get to what we call 'cruising altitude' -- this is the bumpy takeoff -- we can introduce the Microconsole. It's a walk before you run sorta thing. Frankly, this is the quietest -- well, it's not the quietest, but it's one of the quieter times of the year for gaming -- the fourth quarter is the really big ramp up." It's his hope that the service will have a chance to become completely stable before going live with the home console.

"So between now and the fourth quarter gives us an opportunity to sort of get our legs underneath us without being at huge risk of disappointing people." When asked to elaborate on whether that meant the Microconsole would be arriving by the end of 2010, Perlman responded. "Oh yeah yeah yeah. They're working ... We have beta users who are using it."

Additionally, Perlman pointed out that the service is already up and running (for beta users) on "the iPad or on the iPhone as well -- or on Android now." Our full interview with Perlman and OnLive's Joe Bentley will be up in the coming days.

OnLive's Perlman says Microconsole coming by end of 2010 originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 18 Jun 2010 18:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive features 'cloud' session saves, disables graphics settings

Xav de Matos — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 23:00:00 EST

In a demo of its upcoming streaming service, OnLive president and CEO Steve Perlman confirmed something long suspected -- players will not be able to adjust graphics settings. "We don't want somebody going and changing the settings to something different for what the game is optimized for," he told Joystiq in an interview during the 2010 Game Developers Conference. "We'll go and scale or adjust or do whatever changes we need to make in order to make it work."

Perlman also demoed an OnLive "cloud gaming" feature which will allow players to "suspend" action at any time and retrieve the session later through any OnLive source (PC, Mac or on TV). "This is also good if something happens to your connection," Perlman said. "Take as long as you want to resume. So, literally, you can pause a game with OnLive, quit -- suppose you're on your TV -- and then later on in the office a few days later, resume. And it will pick up where it left off."

According to Perlman, OnLive's lowest-end server resource offers twice the GPU performance of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The service also has the ability to "virtualize" servers, allowing multiple players per server or creating dedicated servers for players for high-end games. "We can also go and, in principle, tie together multiple servers so you can get something like an SLI type of experience," Perlman concluded.

OnLive will launch this summer with various pricing and service models, which Perlman says may change as "statistics of usage" data is examined and the company learns what levels "peak loads" reach.

OnLive features 'cloud' session saves, disables graphics settings originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 15 Mar 2010 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive's Perlman would rather stay out of the hardware business

Xav de Matos — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 20:00:00 EST

In an interview with Joystiq during the 2010 Game Developers Conference, OnLive president and CEO Steve Perlman said he'd prefer not to sell any kind of hardware for his company's upcoming streaming game service. "The fact that we have to sell a piece of hardware for the TV, if you will, takes us out of our core business." While OnLive will launch as a computer application on PC and Mac this summer, the company is also currently beta testing the OnLive Micro-console for use on televisions. "We think the Micro-console is a cool thing, but we'd rather not have any hardware at all," Perlman said.

Ideally, Perlman would like the OnLive service to be added to set top boxes -- including adding the service to existing boxes via software update. "If it has a USB port [for the controller] and we have adequate performance in there, then it's conceivable we can do it," Perlman told Joystiq. "A lot of them just have built-in latency because they assume they're using a conventional compression algorithm [for video]. In that case there's nothing we can do."

Perlman echoed previous statements, saying that he expects OnLive to be "scrutinized" for any latency issues that may arise, especially considering OnLive is unique in that it "demands the connection to be exactly what it's spec'd to be." We'll certainly find out when it arrives this June.

OnLive's Perlman would rather stay out of the hardware business originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 14 Mar 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive to offer 'OnLive Game Portal' service without monthly fee

JC Fletcher — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 16:35:00 EST

The pricing scheme announced this week by OnLive, in which you'd pay $15 a month for the privilege of buying and renting games, won't be the only way to interact with the streaming service. In addition to that "OnLive Game Service," the company will open an "OnLive Game Portal" sometime after the June 17 launch of the main service. It sounds a lot like the browser-based streaming offered by competitor Gaikai.

The Game Portal is a free browser-based service that allows streaming of a selection of demos, as well as a limited number of full games for rent -- for a per-game fee, without the monthly charge. The selection of games is limited not just in number, but also "subject to available OnLive service capacity and whatever usage limits are associated with each given demo."

The Portal will work with the OnLive set top box, in addition to the browser plug-in. It is expected to roll out sometime in 2010, after the June 17 launch of the main service.

[Via Big Download]

OnLive to offer 'OnLive Game Portal' service without monthly fee originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 12 Mar 2010 16:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive technology demonstrated at Columbia University

Griffin McElroy — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 12:45:00 EST

You might want to go ahead and put on your thickest, darkest sunglasses, because you're about to be blinded with science. OnLive founder and CEO Steve Perlman recently showed off the game-streaming technology's applications to a group of students at Columbia University in New York. Yeah, sure, you can be jealous of their rare opportunity, but take solace in the fact that access to this opportunity probably cost them $35,000 a year.

GamertagRadio snagged a video of the event, which we've embedded after the jump. It's awfully long -- feel free to jump to the 12-minute mark to check out the OnLive user interface, and the 17-minute mark to see the iPhone's social networking functionality.

Continue reading OnLive technology demonstrated at Columbia University

OnLive technology demonstrated at Columbia University originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 29 Dec 2009 12:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive 'works on cell phones too,' says Perlman

Ben Gilbert — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 20:00:00 EST

We've been pretty skeptical of OnLive's many futuristic promises. From streaming every game ever to anything with a decent internet connection, to being able to end world hunger (okay, we made up that second one), it's kind of an enormous leap to be taking from our current standards. In an effort to keep us on our toes, the company just this week announced that not only can the service stream games to households, but also to cell phones. "Today, at a Wedbush financial conference in New York I showed OnLive running simultaneously on two iPhones, a TV, and a computer," said CEO Steve Perlman.

"It's important to understand that a cell phone is a very different beast than TV, PC or Mac ... currently, games on OnLive are tuned for TVs and computers, so initially, it's the Community and Social elements of OnLive that we're most excited about on mobile devices." OTOY has already proven that mobile gaming of this level can exist, but we're still not convinced anyone wants to play the full console/PC version of games on their phone. Impressive? Sure. Functional? That has yet to be seen.

OnLive 'works on cell phones too,' says Perlman originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 14 Nov 2009 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive closes 'major round of funding' with support from AT&T, Lauder Partners, et al.

Christopher Grant — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 20:28:00 EST

Worried that a service like OnLive -- the black-magic-fueled game streaming device unveiled at GDC earlier this year -- can't make it to market? "It would cost a fortune to get something like that off the ground!" you exclaimed to your parents over dinner. Of course it costs a fortune! The company wants to stream video of games from high-powered computing clusters at strategic locations, straight to your parent's basement. That stuff ain't free!

To that end, CEO Steve Perlman has announced via the company's blog that OnLive has "closed a major round of funding with participation from AT&T Media Holdings, Inc., Lauder Partners, Warner Bros., Autodesk and Maverick Capital." While Perlman isn't saying just how much is "major" the press release did note that this "is by far OnLive's largest closing." The money "will be used to launch OnLive's service offerings and to protect OnLive's extensive intellectual property rights."

We can only imagine Perlman and Company are watching competitors like Gaikai and Otoy closely. With the beta soon (now?) underway, and the company's coffers filled, we can hopefully expect a steady march of progress towards launch.

Source - OnLive Blog
Source - Press release

OnLive closes 'major round of funding' with support from AT&T, Lauder Partners, et al. originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 20:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dave Perry gives first video tour of Gaikai

Ben Gilbert — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:30:00 EST

Between OnLive and Gaikai, we're not sure who to trust less. Both systems are clearly operating under some form of unknown dark magic, allowing the mysterious services to stream high-def gaming directly into your television and computer browser. Both services though -- luckily and necessarily -- have representatives willing to happily test our skepticism in OnLive's Steve Perlman and Gaikai's Dave Perry.

The video (found after the break) has the latter demoing Gaikai, streaming games from Mario Kart 64 to Spore to EVE Online, all from his Vista-powered PC running Firefox on an 800-mile trip between the server and his home. He claims in the video to be streaming all of the games demoed from sub 1-megabit internet speeds and says that "even a NetBook" could run Gaikai with no problems. From what we can see, things are running smoothly, though unlike OnLive, we've yet to get our hands on the equipment. Perry says we'll see more at this month's Develop Conference, so for those of you itching for more Gaikai, you've got a two-week wait on your hands. Perhaps you should play some of those old, less magic-filled gaming consoles you have.

[Via Edge Online]

Continue reading Dave Perry gives first video tour of Gaikai

Dave Perry gives first video tour of Gaikai originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GDC09 interview: OnLive founder Steve Perlman, continued

Christopher Grant — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 19:50:00 EST

You didn't think that was it, right? Following up on part 1 of our interview with sounds-too-good-to-be-true cloud gaming platform OnLive's Steve Perlman from yesterday comes ... part 2! In our final installment, we ask about bandwidth caps, cable box integration, DLC, server cost, privacy concerns, second-hand sales, classic games, and more! Don't believe us? We know, Steve Perlman wants you to be skeptical, but read on!

Joystiq: So you're working with developers. Say you're working with Ubisoft on Prince of Persia, is that Prince of Persia the same exact Prince of Persia that would be on the PC? Are they changing parts of the game and if so what are they changing? What are the differences?

Steve Perlman: It's the exact same Prince of Persia and the only things that are being changed are really externalities like, you know, if you pick up a controller we've got to recognize the buttons the right away. For example, you can't change the resolution to anything other than HD, but even if OnLive figures out that your speed or your connection is too low and they've got to make it small screen, it still runs in HD and anybody who's spectated you sees you in HD; or if you do a Brag clip it saves in HD. So, we don't want you to changing the resolution. So, there's a couple of switches to turn off. We don't want you to bring up the Windows dialogue box for saving games. I don't know about that particular game, but some games, it actually shows the Windows so that you can navigate through the hierarchy for saving games. You know, we've to disable those kinds of things. The actual gameplay is the same.

Then you were talking about something like FIOS for example, that really improves the experience?

It doesn't improve the experience; it just lets you go further away from the service center.

Gallery: OnLive: Microconsole and Game Service

Continue reading GDC09 interview: OnLive founder Steve Perlman, continued

GDC09 interview: OnLive founder Steve Perlman, continued originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Apr 2009 19:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GDC09 interview: OnLive founder Steve Perlman wants you to be skeptical

Christopher Grant — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 07:00:00 EST

Early last week, a new gaming startup was announced, kicking off GDC with an immense focus on "cloud computing" and, specifically, "cloud gaming." Everywhere you turned, people were talking about OnLive. "Can it be done?" or "Sounds too good to be true." You may have heard some of this debate on our podcast or in the comments on our announcement post. We gathered up a lot of that skepticism and barged into Steve Perlman's office (read: the OnLive booth) and demanded answers. The interview was quite long, so we'll be bringing it to you over three days, beginning ... now:

Joystiq: So OnLive ...

Steve Perlman: Yeah!

First, congrats on the launch ...

Thank you.

Everybody's asking, "What's going on at GDC? What's the thing this year?" You know, it's not LittleBigPlanet this year and it's not Gears of War 2. I think the biggest thing at the show, in terms of buzz, in terms of coverage, has to be OnLive. So, congratulations on that.

Thanks.

But there's a second side to that buzz story. Everyone's talking about it, but they're all saying the same thing: "Yeah, it sounds really good, but ... it also sounds like magic."

Uh-huh.

Gallery: GDC 09: OnLive debut

Continue reading GDC09 interview: OnLive founder Steve Perlman wants you to be skeptical

GDC09 interview: OnLive founder Steve Perlman wants you to be skeptical originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 01 Apr 2009 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GDC08: Mova's Steve Perlman talks Contour facial capture

Christopher Grant — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 07:00:00 EST

Filed under: GDC

Remember that video of the Contour facial capture technology we posted the other day? We sent out the Mahalo Daily crew - and their host, the lovely Veronica Belmont - to speak with Steve Perlman, founder and president of Mova, the creators of Contour. Catch up on Contour at Mahalo, and check out their GDC presentation after the break.

Continue reading GDC08: Mova's Steve Perlman talks Contour facial capture

GDC08: Mova's Steve Perlman talks Contour facial capture originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 21 Feb 2008 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GDC08 exclusive: Mova brings lifelike motion capture to Unreal Engine 3

Kyle Orland — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 12:20:00 EST

Filed under: PC, GDC, Business

Traditional, point-based motion capture (the kind brought to you by guys in black suits with reflective balls) has been great for developers that want to capture basic skeletal motion for their in-game characters. But for realistic facial work, even setups with hundreds of reflective dots leave developers with rough, blocky data that requires a lot of post-production work to even start approaching the uncanny valley.

Enter motion capture company Mova, whose Contour Reality Capture system uses an array of cameras to create 100,000 polygon facial models that are accurate to within a tenth of a millimeter -- no special reflective balls required. At this year's GDC, the company is trying to attract the game industry's attention by unveiling examples of their facial modeling running in real-time on the popular Unreal Engine 3. Continue reading for exclusive, real-time video of the technology and excerpts from an interview with the Mova founder Steve Perlman.

Continue reading GDC08 exclusive: Mova brings lifelike motion capture to Unreal Engine 3

GDC08 exclusive: Mova brings lifelike motion capture to Unreal Engine 3 originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 19 Feb 2008 12:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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