Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com Joystiq http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[AIAS Hall of Famers delivering 2011 D.I.C.E. Summit keynote]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/30/aias-hall-of-famers-delivering-2011-d-i-c-e-summit-keynote/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/30/aias-hall-of-famers-delivering-2011-d-i-c-e-summit-keynote/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/30/aias-hall-of-famers-delivering-2011-d-i-c-e-summit-keynote/#comments So, you've only got a few hours set aside this year with which to absorb illumination from some of the gaming industry's smartest folks? You won't find a more efficient way to satisfy your needs than the 2011 D.I.C.E. Summit keynote panel, which will feature the shared wisdom of a number of Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences Hall of Famers from years past. (And years current!)

Presenters include Blizzard president Mike Morhaime, Grandfather of the RTS genre Bruce Shelley, Cerny Games president Mike Cerny and BioWare co-founders Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk. If you can make it to the panel on the evening of February 9, we're pretty sure that you'll possess all the knowledge you'll need to create the industry's next big game. At the very least, you'll have some inspiration for some awesome last names for said game's characters.

Continue reading AIAS Hall of Famers delivering 2011 D.I.C.E. Summit keynote

JoystiqAIAS Hall of Famers delivering 2011 D.I.C.E. Summit keynote originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 30 Jan 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>AIASaias-hall-of-famebiowareblizzarddicedice-summitdice-summit-2011greg-zeschukkeynoteMike-Morhaimeray-muzykaSun, 30 Jan 2011 13:30:00 EST<![CDATA[DICE award nominees announced, Red Dead leads the pack]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/19/dice-award-nominees-announced-red-dead-leads-the-pack/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/19/dice-award-nominees-announced-red-dead-leads-the-pack/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/19/dice-award-nominees-announced-red-dead-leads-the-pack/#comments The nominees for the 2011 Interactive Achievement Awards -- the annual awards ceremony held during the Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain (DICE) Summit -- have been announced. The list includes a number of surprises (including a Game of the Year nod for Angry Birds HD), but, somewhat less surprisingly, Red Dead Redemption leads the pack with nine nominations across the show's various categories.

Check out all the nominees after the jump for even more familiar and unfamiliar titles. (Alan ... Wake? That's a game? Never heard of it, bub.)

Continue reading DICE award nominees announced, Red Dead leads the pack

JoystiqDICE award nominees announced, Red Dead leads the pack originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 19 Jan 2011 21:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dice-summitdice-summit-2011dsinteractive-achievement-awardsmicrosoftmobilenintendopcplaystationps3pspRed-Dead-RedemptionsonywiixboxWed, 19 Jan 2011 21:20:00 EST<![CDATA[EA, Vigil, Gearbox hosting D.I.C.E. sessions]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/27/ea-vigil-gearbox-hosting-d-i-c-e-sessions/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/27/ea-vigil-gearbox-hosting-d-i-c-e-sessions/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/27/ea-vigil-gearbox-hosting-d-i-c-e-sessions/#comments The D.I.C.E. Summit announced today that EA's Chief Operating Officer John Schappert, the co-founders of Vigil Games (Darksiders) and Gearbox Games' Randy Pitchford will speak at this year's gathering. They'll be joined by a whole mess of other speakers, including keynotes by Activision CEO Bobby Kotick and Disney Interactive President Stephen Wadsworth.

For those who don't know, D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) is the annual Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences conference "dedicated to exploring approaches to the creative process and artistic expression as they uniquely apply to the development of interactive entertainment." However, more aptly, D.I.C.E. stands for "Damn, I C Executives!," as the conference is one giant big-money pow-wow. We'll be there when the conference kicks off February 17 in Las Vegas.

JoystiqEA, Vigil, Gearbox hosting D.I.C.E. sessions originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 27 Jan 2010 01:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>DICEdice-2010dice-summitdice-summit-2010Wed, 27 Jan 2010 01:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Kotick to keynote DICE Summit Sessions]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/21/kotick-to-keynote-dice-summit-sessions/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/21/kotick-to-keynote-dice-summit-sessions/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/21/kotick-to-keynote-dice-summit-sessions/#commentsLast time we heard from Activision CEO Bobby Kotick, he was explaining how terrible one of his company's franchises was. He's previously joked about increasing prices even further. If you want to be there when he issues his next great Quotick, you should go to the DICE summit -- or, barring that, wait five minutes for shocked journalists to pass it along.

The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences announced that Kotick will open the Summit Sessions with a talk about "how creative talent drives the video game industry." That is, creative talent who is not having any fun.

"Activision Blizzard is home to some of the most talented developers in our industry and we are thrilled to have Bobby's insight on how great games are built upon great talent," AIAS president Joseph Olin said. Kotick's talk will take place Thursday, February 18.

JoystiqKotick to keynote DICE Summit Sessions originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 21 Jan 2010 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>activisionaiasbobby-kotickdice-2010dice-summitdice-summit-2010Thu, 21 Jan 2010 23:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Nathan Drake hoping to take home more shiny trinkets at AIAS awards]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/21/nathan-drake-hoping-to-take-home-more-shiny-trinkets-at-aias-awa/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/21/nathan-drake-hoping-to-take-home-more-shiny-trinkets-at-aias-awa/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/21/nathan-drake-hoping-to-take-home-more-shiny-trinkets-at-aias-awa/#comments We're in the thick of awards season, and video games are no exception. The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences has announced its finalists for the 13th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards ("The 'Racties" -- we're kidding but that's what they should be called), and, as you might have guessed, award hog Uncharted 2: Among Thieves leads the pack with 15 nominations. The rest of the nominees include more of the usual suspects from 2009: Assassin's Creed II with 10 noms, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 with nine and Batman: Arkham Asylum with eight. This year's awards also features three new categories, including Outstanding Achievement in Game Design and Portable and Social Networking Games of the Year.

You can find a list of selected categories and their nominees after the break, or check out the Academy's full list in PDF form. The awards will be given out at the DICE Summit on February 18 in Las Vegas, where Activision's Bobby Kotick is scheduled to keynote. We can only guess that he'll go all Kanye on the podium if Modern Warfare 2 doesn't win.

Continue reading Nathan Drake hoping to take home more shiny trinkets at AIAS awards

JoystiqNathan Drake hoping to take home more shiny trinkets at AIAS awards originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 21 Jan 2010 21:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>academy-of-interactive-arts-and-sciencesaiasassassins-creed-2batman-arkham-asylumbobby-kotickcall-of-duty-modern-warfare-2dice-2010dice-summitdice-summit-2010gyromancer-got-robbedinteractive-achievement-awardsthe-ractiesuncharted-2Uncharted-2-Among-ThievesThu, 21 Jan 2010 21:20:00 EST<![CDATA[DICE 2010 featuring speakers from Naughty Dog, Zeebo]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/01/dice-2010-featuring-speakers-from-naughty-dog-zeebo/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/01/dice-2010-featuring-speakers-from-naughty-dog-zeebo/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/01/dice-2010-featuring-speakers-from-naughty-dog-zeebo/#commentsThe Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences has announced a few additions to the lineup of speakers for next year's DICE (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) summit in Las Vegas.

Naughty Dog game designer Richard Lemarchand, Zynga chief creative officer Brian Reynolds (previously a designer on Civilization 2 and Alpha Centauri), and Zeebo's Mike Yuen will speak at the summit. Hopefully Yuen will discuss the hot topic of what the deal with Zeebo is. Jamin Brophy-Warren, editor of the new Kill Screen magazine, will moderate a panel discussion between writer/director/producer Navid Khonsari, Raven Software lead designer Manveer Heir, and Dmitri Williams, and new media professor Dmitri Williams.

Once again, this is DICE, the summit taking place in Las Vegas from February 17-20, 2010. Not the EA-owned developer, in case you were wondering why they were bringing a bunch of speakers in.

JoystiqDICE 2010 featuring speakers from Naughty Dog, Zeebo originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 01 Dec 2009 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dice-summitdice-summit-2010naughty-dogzeebozyngaTue, 01 Dec 2009 22:00:00 EST<![CDATA[D.I.C.E. summit rolling to Singapore in September]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/29/d-i-c-e-summit-rolling-to-singapore-in-september/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/29/d-i-c-e-summit-rolling-to-singapore-in-september/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/29/d-i-c-e-summit-rolling-to-singapore-in-september/#comments The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences has announced today that its annual D.I.C.E. Summit will be going global. For the first time, the summit with be held in Asia, at Singapore's Suntec Center -- the same venue for Games Convention Asia. D.I.C.E. and GC Asia will open together on September 17.

Among those in the industry planning to head out to the Lion City for D.I.C.E. are Masaya Matsuura of PaRappa the Rapper fame and Chris Taylor, founder and creative director of Gas Powered Games. With both events running at the same time, it would seem like a rather good idea for regional game designers to stop by the Suntec Center this year.

JoystiqD.I.C.E. summit rolling to Singapore in September originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 29 Jul 2009 02:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>academy-of-interactive-arts-and-sciencesasiadicedice-asiadice-summitgames-convention-asiagc-asiasingaporeWed, 29 Jul 2009 02:30:00 EST<![CDATA[DICE 2009: Dave Perry predicts rise of free, online games, death of single-player titles]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/02/19/dice-2009-dave-perry-predicts-rise-of-free-online-games-death/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/02/19/dice-2009-dave-perry-predicts-rise-of-free-online-games-death/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/02/19/dice-2009-dave-perry-predicts-rise-of-free-online-games-death/#commentsFiled under:


Continuing the trend of DICE 2009 speakers casting chicken bones and reading crystal balls in order to divine the secrets of upcoming movements in the gaming industry, Dave Perry (founder of the now defunct Shiny Entertainment and all-around industry veteran) possessed a unique, unsettling vision for the future. He explained that as the technology supporting remote storage and processing improves, the need for gamers to own hardware and software will naturally disappear, ushering in a gaming era where free-to-play online titles reign supreme.

As totally awesome as a world where all video games are sans-price sounds, Perry cautioned that this scenario means that "the days of single-player games are numbered." Equally alarming is the fact that this new business model would make it extremely difficult for traditional developers to compete against their uncostly competitors. Worst of all, think of the impact the rise of Flash games will have on poor ol' GameStop! That part alone is going to prevent us from getting any sleep tonight.

JoystiqDICE 2009: Dave Perry predicts rise of free, online games, death of single-player titles originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 19 Feb 2009 21:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dave-perrydice-2009dice-summitflashfree-to-playindustryThu, 19 Feb 2009 21:50:00 EST<![CDATA[DICE 2009: Riccitiello addresses recession, a 'blessing' for gaming industry]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/02/19/dice-2009-riccitiello-addresses-recession-a-blessing-for-gam/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/02/19/dice-2009-riccitiello-addresses-recession-a-blessing-for-gam/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/02/19/dice-2009-riccitiello-addresses-recession-a-blessing-for-gam/#commentsFiled under:


Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello knows a thing or two about money -- and considering the recent, brutal round of layoffs that the company had to undergo, he probably knows a thing or two about the current economy's sad state of affairs as well. Loading up a tongue-in-cheek screenshot depicting a gruesome wreck in Burnout Paradise, the EA commander-in-chief addressed the recession's effects on the gaming industry, as well as his company's strategy for staying afloat, during his speech at the 2009 DICE Summit in Las Vegas.

Said strategy is unbelievably simple -- Riccitiello summed up the EA survival plan which will result in over 1,000 positions within the company being jettisoned by April in three easy to remember steps: "Start by deciding what's important. Invest heavily in those programs. And cut the rest." This likely adds insult to injury to the nine (apparently unimportant) studios and publishing locations which were recently "cut" by the company, but it sounds like this relentless pruning is in the best interest of the EA mothership.

However, according to Riccitiello, gaming enthusiasts shouldn't be completely disheartened by the recent outbreaks of industry downsizing. He hypothesizes that the "riffraff" that tarnishes the gaming universe will die out, allowing for the market to become more accomodating for the visionaries and luminaries who want to move the medium forward. We certainly hope Riccitiello's dream of a "survival of the fittest" gaming utopia is realized -- we just hope we're all not eating shoelaces and apple cores by the time it gets here.

JoystiqDICE 2009: Riccitiello addresses recession, a 'blessing' for gaming industry originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 19 Feb 2009 21:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dice-2009dice-summiteaeconomyElectronic-Artsjohn-riccitiellolayoffsrecessionThu, 19 Feb 2009 21:15:00 EST<![CDATA[Shane Kim on lost studios, handhelds and the console war]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2008/02/08/shane-kim-on-lost-studios-handhelds-and-the-console-war/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/02/08/shane-kim-on-lost-studios-handhelds-and-the-console-war/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/02/08/shane-kim-on-lost-studios-handhelds-and-the-console-war/#commentsFiled under:

At the ongoing D.I.C.E. summit in Las Vegas, Nevada, Microsoft Game Studios corporate VP Shane Kim was bombarded with every tough question you could think of by New York Times reporter Seth Scheisel. Covering a wide range of topics from Xbox to Windows, Kim kept his head on for the most part while toting the company line.

"People have speculated that we were stifling their creative freedom," Kim told Scheisel, when asked about Bungie's public split from Microsoft in 2007, "but I can tell you there's no studio that had more freedom at Microsoft Game Studios than Bungie." Kim also didn't rule out the possibility of a Microsoft branded portable gaming device, saying, "never say never."

With a year head start on their competition, one of the strongest software attachment ratios a console has ever seen and critical and commercial successes like Halo 3 and Gears of War under their belt, does Microsoft consider the console war to be won? "By no means does anyone at Microsoft think the race is over," replied Kim. "You have very powerful and formidable contenders in Nintendo and Sony ... to underestimate them and to count them out would be a foolish mistake." Read the full interview for Kim's views on Windows Vista gaming, intellectual properties and more.

JoystiqShane Kim on lost studios, handhelds and the console war originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 08 Feb 2008 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>console-wardice-2008dice-summitinterviewmicrosoft-game-studiosshane-kimFri, 08 Feb 2008 13:30:00 EST