Joystiq

George Broussard goes minimalist in Ludum Dare entry 'The Road'

Danny Cowan — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 16:30:00 EST

Industry veteran and outspoken Duke Nukem co-creator George Broussard sets his sights on the indie-focused Ludum Dare competition with The Road, a side-scrolling browser game that reflects on the futility of existence.

Ludum Dare is an online game jam held every four months in which indie creators are given 48 hours to create a game based on an assigned prompt. Designed around the theme "minimalism," The Road challenges players to survive endless waves of falling objects and ground hazards in the hopes of living a long, fulfilling life.

In an interesting twist, the player's squarish avatar grows into a tall rectangle as it ages, making it more difficult to survive as the game progresses. After each death, players are given a brief (and often morbid) summary of how they made their fate. Broussard challenges players to survive past the age of 20; be warned that you'll likely suffer many deaths before you reach your teenage years.

Personally, I made it to age 19 before I died of explosive diarrhea. Harsh.

George Broussard goes minimalist in Ludum Dare entry 'The Road' originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 30 Apr 2013 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Layoffs hit Warner Bros. Seattle studios [update: WB confirms]

Ben Gilbert — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 14:13:00 EST

An unknown number of layoffs are affecting WB Games Seattle staff - the umbrella name "WB Games Seattle" comprises Monolith Productions, Snowblind Studios, and Surreal Software. A source close to the studio confirmed reports to us this afternoon, following statements from 3D Realms founder George Broussard on Twitter, stating, "Another Warner Brothers layoff going on as we speak. In progress now. Shame. Hope people land safely."

WB Games Seattle is currently working on Lord of the Rings: Guardians of Middle-earth, and it's unclear if any other projects are currently in production. Layoffs hit the studio last November, and were said to have affected "60ish" people. Warner Bros. didn't respond to request for comment as of publishing.

Update: WB issued the following statement, confirming the layoffs: "Due to shifting business imperatives, WB Games Seattle has made staff reductions. The group will continue to remain an integral part of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment."

Layoffs hit Warner Bros. Seattle studios [update: WB confirms] originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 26 Jul 2012 14:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Three SOE studios close, layoffs abound

James Ransom-Wiley — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 11:05:00 EST

Following a series of tweets from George Broussard, co-owner of 3D Realms, which indicated that Sony Online Entertainment would be undergoing layoffs and possible studio closures around its five locations today, Kotaku reports that a source "familiar with the matter" has confirmed the closures of SOE's Denver, Seattle and Tucson studios. Additionally, half of the Austin staff has been reportedly laid off, along with a "sizeable" number of workers at SOE's San Diego headquarters. In all, the layoffs are said to affect nearly one-third of SOE's total workforce.

Notably, SOE Seattle has been the lead development studio of The Agency, which had been slated to launch in the second half of the year (after a long delay). Neither SOE Denver nor Tucson has been working on anything as high profile as The Agency, though both have continued to operate a number of SOE titles, including Denver's Legends Of Norrath and other digital card games, and Tucson's PoxNora strategy game.U

Update: SOE has issued an official statement confirming the report and providing further details.

Report: Three SOE studios close, layoffs abound originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Mar 2011 11:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Duke Nukem Forever interview: An end in sight

Ben Gilbert — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 09:00:00 EST

Duke Nukem Forever might actually be completed and released -- but like most everyone, I won't be convinced until the final product is in my hands. During a recent press event, I played through the same demo we saw at PAX and spoke with 2K Games senior producer Melissa Miller, who did her best to reassure me that the game might actually, maybe, seriously come out.

"It's really amazing when you think about it, because these guys -- along with everybody else -- thought Duke Nukem was dead," Miller recalled of one of the current developers, Triptych Games, which was founded by nine ex-members of 3D Realms. "And they were a group that just said, 'No, we're not gonna let this stop.'"

Continue reading Duke Nukem Forever interview: An end in sight

Duke Nukem Forever interview: An end in sight originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 29 Oct 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rumor: Duke Nukem Forever being completed by Gearbox

Ben Gilbert — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 11:00:00 EST

According to unnamed sources speaking with Kotaku and "claiming to have knowledge of the situation," development on Duke Nukem Forever is continuing -- until completion -- with Borderlands developer Gearbox Software. Stranger still, the sources also claim that a "playable demo" will be distributed at some point "later this year." While Take-Two confirmed that it retains the rights to DNF, it didn't offer any comment on the matter.

Gearbox head Randy Pitchford couldn't say anything either, but did note that he might be able to "better clarify the situation" at this year's PAX Prime. Duke Nukem creator George Broussard declined to comment as well. Although this is most certainly a "rumor" for now, we'd still like to wish Gearbox the best of luck over the next 15 years.

Rumor: Duke Nukem Forever being completed by Gearbox originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 11 Aug 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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3D Realms reaches finite milestone (no, Duke isn't done)

Alexander Sliwinski — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:01:00 EST

3D Realms' George Broussard has tweeted that the company is closing out a milestone, claiming that the gang is down to 71 tasks out of "probably 800-900." The Escapist presumes he's talking about Duke Nukem Forever and also notes that it's not the only milestone the game is close to reaching: at the end of April, it'll have been 12 years since the Forever was first announced. Remember we celebrated its 10th un-birthday, um, like two years ago?

We were obviously puzzled with Broussard's tweet and contacted the developer for clarification, to which a 3D Realms representative replied, "Sorry, but all I can say is, 'When it's done.'" Sheesh. Hopefully, the last thing on that list of 800-900 things is "Done Duke Nukem ... forever!"

[Via Escapist; ClanBase]

3D Realms reaches finite milestone (no, Duke isn't done) originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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