Simeon's Brain

More ways to get Follow the River Bend!

2011-11-10T09:24:00.002-06:00

I recently released my first album, Follow the River Bend. For me as the artist, the best option is for you to get my music by way of this bandcamp link.

However, I can now offer these other exciting options which may be more convenient for you!

Use this button to get Follow the River Bend on iTunes:

Or, if you prefer Amazon MP3, get Follow the River Bend on Amazon.com.

Thanks for your support and time!

Follow the River Bend Album Release!

2011-11-01T10:57:00.003-05:00

While most of this blog has focused on my technology efforts and work as a game developer, I am pleased to share that I've released some of my original music on my first album, Follow the River Bend

Click the link to stream all ten tracks -- these are all original songs written and recorded this year in Chicago. Hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think!

Album coming on 11/1/11!

2011-10-18T11:30:00.004-05:00

On November 1, 2011 I will be releasing my first album online titled "Follow the River Bend". The musical style is folk-inpsired acoustic music.

I'm still working on it, but it is the culmination of a year of work, of songwriting, of playing instruments, and learning. Lots of learning and listening went into each and every second of this album (which clocks in at just over 30 minutes -- ten songs total), and I am thrilled to add this album release to the diverse list of things I've tackled over the past few years.

This past weekend I took a break from the album work to do some "extra" songwriting, and I was inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement in many ways, so I wrote a song about it. Here are the words:

"I Will Not Leave"

Hey friend, come down and stay a while
Hey friend, come down and play a while

When they say go, we'll say no
When they tell us to leave, we'll stand and scream
I will not leave
You will listen to me

Hey friends, come to see
All the things that are bothering me
Hey friends, want to know
Why I'm here to take control

When they say go, we'll say no
When they tell us to leave, we'll stand and scream
I will not leave
You will listen to me

We've all paid our dues
And we handed the power to you
Company man...it's time
It's time we get it back

When they say go, we'll say no
When they tell us to leave, we'll stand and scream
I will not leave
You will listen to me

I will not leave
You will listen to me

You can hear a rough version of this song at http://simeonpeebler.bandcamp.com

As soon as the album goes live, I'll update this blog with links and more information.

Take care,
Simeon Peebler

Tribeca Flashpoint Student Team Wins U.S Imagine Cup Game Design Competition!

2011-04-12T09:09:00.002-05:00

I am so proud and thrilled to share that a team of students at Tribeca Flashpoint won first place in Game Design at the 2011 U.S. Imagine Cup competition!

Team Bloom used XNA to design Spero, a game that focuses on making a difference one step at a time by having players help find alternative energy solutions, keep the environment clean and educate people on how to live healthier lives.

http://www.imaginecup.com/community/blog/microsoft-names-u-s-imagine-cup-winners

These are the talented students, mentored by the extremely talented professor Darryl Hughes, who won the competition: Andrew Zurek, Nathan Moore, David Grund and Nathan Heyl. Great work guys!!! It was a privilege having them in class during their first year at Tribeca Flashpoint, and at that time I expected greatness from each of them.

Gentlemen, this is just the beginning!

Tribeca Flashpoint Academy Digital Bootcamp, Summer Program for High School Students

2011-03-10T09:17:00.004-06:00

Do you know somebody in high school with a passion for digital media arts? Check out this summer program at Tribeca Flashpoint Academy in Chicago.

Go here for more information!

Trivia Game Brain Bump Literature for Kindle is available now

2011-01-21T12:50:00.003-06:00

Today I'm excited to announce the release of our new game for the Amazon Kindle! Go here to learn more about Brain Bump
Literature for the Amazon Kindle!

Thanks for your support and interest in the game -- check out the official Brain Bump Game website for more information.

The story behind Brain Bump Trivia Game for Kindle

2011-01-11T13:37:00.005-06:00

When I heard that the Amazon's Kindle was going to offer third-party created "Active Content" -- I was immediately drawn to the opportunity and possibility of designing a game on a device designed for one of my passions in life: reading.

I was an early reader, and that love of reading, and ultimately, as a by-product, learning, really was an anchor in my life. As a child, when I realized that by merely picking up a book I could learn how to become anything I wanted to become in the world (even pilot the Space Shuttle!), and I could witness a million things through the words of others I could not experience in my day-to-day existence, I was hooked on analog reading.

When I had my first 300 baud modem in the 1980s, and dialed up to connect to a library and downloaded information at will, my passion for learning helped me readily accept digital reading right away. This was a powerful opportunity to feed my continued yearning for new information; however, staring at a computer monitor was not great for the eyes.

Reading a printed page was still a superior interface to digital reading for my eyes at that point. For me physical print remained superior for reading until the advent of Amazon's e-Ink technology and Kindle platform.

Digital reading had truly, and has finally, arrived.

I have spent my professional career largely building and making computer games (or teaching others how to make them). Actively reading and learning about new technology allowed me to adapt, on a more or less constant basis, so that I could be an effective professional in terms of the nuts and bolts of the labor required to deliver results to employers. In 2009 I decided I would try my hand at making an iPhone game which was a port of a simple puzzle game I made for the PC called Bloink. The first thing I did was go out to the local book store and buy a few iPhone developer books (at the time of Bloink's development the iPhone App Store was still less than a year old -- but VERY hot, and plenty of people were writing books on the topic). I was able to complete the game, based in part on my drive for "constant education" in the materials I used to learn how to make the game.

I had the opportunity to join the Kindle Development Kit program in 2010, and while I was not entirely sure what I wanted to develop at the start, I was eager to make a game that really immersed itself in the spirit of the player's use of the Kindle device. Since development for the Kindle requires Java programming, the first thing I had to do was become familiar with Java again (I had used it years previous, but was quite stale). Instead of going to the physical bookstore, this time I opened up the Kindle Store on the device, and was able to quickly select a few books that might be helpful with developing for the platform. Computer books tend to be bulky, heavy and oversized in all regards, so I managed to buy not only Java books but a slew of other reference books I frequent (and I can use the Kindle reader software on my PC to see the books anywhere I happened to be!).

In my view, making a game for the Kindle had some basic challenges. People use the device to enjoy books first and foremost, not to play hard-core games. The display technology does not make itself appropriate for the kinds of action games more easily rendered on LCD-display style device. I decided to synthesize these challenges and the result is evident in my first game for the Kindle called Brain Bump.

In short, Brain Bump is a trivia game about books. This solves the problems I mentioned because trivia games are turn-based affairs, with a posed question and prompt for an answer. This play mechanic could be executed without needing intense real-time graphic animation. And the physical content -- literature trivia -- is appealing to readers and book lovers, and people interested in writers and reading. With my main challenges solved, I saw a powerful new opportunity in this mixture of things which came to me as I was going through the design process.

Here's the extra piece that makes Brain Bump more than just a standard trivia game. During the course of play, imagine that you encounter a trivia question about a Stephen King novel you've never had the chance to read...but are interested in reading at some point. On the game screen I added an option called "Explore this question in the Kindle Store" -- at any time during play, the trivia questions can lead to you adding books to your Kindle you've always been interested in reading but never got around to reading. When you return to the game on the device, it carries on play right where you were when you clicked the button. Suddenly, a standard trivia game now has become a tool for growth, exploration and learning.

This may lead to players going out and searching for the right answers as they play -- that would be a great thing.

I hope that Brain Bump encourages reading, exploration and learning in players. If it does that, it may be the most important game I've ever made.

Go here to get Brain Bump Literature Trivia Game, as it is now available from Amazon.com!

Official Brain Bump game site is here: http://www.brainbumpgame.com/

Tribeca Flashpoint Academy -- Early Decision

2011-01-03T09:48:00.003-06:00

My nephew was recently given "Early Decision" acceptance to Duke. Obviously I was thrilled, as he is a talented and bright guy, with a world full of potential. He's still not sure exactly what he wants to do in the world, which is fine...Duke will be a great place for him to get his bearings and get grounded in the first or second direction he'll take in life. But if he had any interest in pursuing digital media arts, I would have encouraged him and his parents to get thier own "Early Decision" to attend Tribeca Flashpoint Academy in Chicago.

I'm slightly partial to Tribeca Flashpoint as I spent several years teaching at the school, but I have incredible faith in their program and the team running the institution -- had my nephew shown interest in becoming a digial media professional, getting an "Early Decision" acceptance into the program at Tribeca Flashpoint Academy would have impressed an already proud uncle even more.

If you are a parent, in particular, check out this recent video they posted: watch it on Vimeo now.

WMS Gaming one of Chicago's TOP places to work in 2010

2010-11-15T10:56:00.003-06:00

I'm thrilled to report that the Chicago Tribune has rated WMS Gaming the TOP company to work for in 2010! Read the report here!

I've been working in one of WMS's internal game studios since July, and everything this article mentions is spot on!

Visit the WMS website to learn more about the company and also about job opportunities there.

Also named by Forbes as one of the top 100 small companies of 2010 -- check out the Forbes list here.

Opportunities to work for a leading gaming company in Chicago

2010-09-14T11:28:00.002-05:00

Are you an experienced developer interested in working for a leading gaming company in Chicago?

If you know anyone who might be interested in lead or senior level programming positions out there, check out this link (there are other positions as well in management, production, art dev and more).

http://www.wms.com/Careers/Pages/default.aspx

I've been working with WMS since July and can truly attest to the quality of work and people over here. They are really smart and talented people and truly have stablished an extraordinarily positive and supportive work environment. Check out http://www.wms.com for more information.

Summer 2010 Update

2010-08-15T10:10:00.003-05:00

Hello! I just wanted to mention here that I recently wrapped up three years at Tribeca Flashpoint Academy as Department Chair of Game & Interactive Media development. Tribeca Flashpoint is an amazing digital media arts college in downtown Chicago. It is a one-of-a-kind place and I was enormously fortunate to help launch the school and establish a competitive educational program in the area of game development and interactive media.

In moving on to my next adventures, I am working this summer for WMS Gaming, one of the leading developers and manufacturers of gaming machines in the world (they are known for hit slot machines found in gaming venues around the world. It is a publicly traded company, so I can't talk about anything related to what I'm doing there or what is going on, but you can learn more about it at the WMS Games website.

As a further note, I am eager to continue my own development efforts (now working on the e-reader Kindle platform!), working on some original music I will publish on iTunes later this year, and probably some writing and art to throw in the mix. I am also still pursuing speaking engagements and other activities in the interactive entertainment space, so those of you who are interested in working with me can best contact me through Linked In.

If you want a little sneak peek at a personal project I'm working on, please visit Fanmillion.com!

Roger Ebert update on Games as Art

2010-07-01T10:56:00.002-05:00

I was mentioned today in Roger Ebert's column which addressed the on-going dialog he has been having with the world following up his declaration a few years ago that video games are not art (that's a simplified description, but you can learn a lot more at the following link)

Full Roger Ebert Column Entry Here

Delayed in France...some things I've learned

2010-04-21T11:13:00.002-05:00

For the last week I have been stuck in France due to a travel calamity that descended upon Europe out of the air from a distant volcano in Iceland. While the first phrase to come to our conversations here in France was “bomb Iceland”, this whole experience has been fodder for reflection.

What can we learn from this volcano?

Lesson 1: A strong reminder to anticipate problems.

Some time ago this volcano started to belch and come back to life after many years of dormancy. Why didn’t this trigger visible and concrete concerns from the airlines going back that far? After all, they’ve lost $2 billion in the last week and some are literally shutting their doors. Planning for the unexpected may have helped some weather this mess better. And who should have planned for this situation? Each and every airline and every airport. After all, they’ve been through a travel mess like this in recent times (9/11). Imagining every possible threat is part of the process of running a business, and a big threat to airlines in general I would say is the decision making of the airspace authority. What are all of the variables that could cause the airspace to be closed? Weather, crashes, terrorism, and atmospheric disturbances (i.e. erupting volcano upstream plus flight disruptions documented in many other volcano-ish situations). In the US, disruptions from huge blizzards are factored in to every airline business operation in the country.

On my shoulders as a traveler, and in life, I have the same responsibilities in risk assessment and worst-case scenario planning. I left my son with the grandparents in Chicago during my trip which now is an extra eight days (hopefully no more). We left our family with all sorts of worst-case scenario planning and documentation and also knew that they would be able to keep him safe and sound if our flight was delayed (although we did not expect a delay to be measured in days), so in this way I tried to anticipate as much as possible.

What else can we learn from this volcano?

Lesson 2: Use imagination and experience to better anticipate problems.

Imagination is an important part of doing anything in the world. This is not about being guided by paranoia or fear built upon anecdotal evidence, but using tacit knowledge to make decisions that will help avoid calamity. This tacit knowledge is something that describes knowing things that you do not know in detail but are things you know due to having experience in positive and negative outcomes in the past to better guide decision making to keep business as sound as possible. In other words, predicting problems comes from experience, and these airlines are not new to experiencing problems and setbacks, and they should have been ready. If I had personally anticipated a complete shutdown, I would not have traveled far from home, putting lots of extra stress on my family and my employer (and me). But now I have this experience as a valuable tool for me in the future.

Lesson 3: Take action.

Taking swift action to override those who have shut the system down seemed to be helpful. A few brave airlines basically proved the decision maker’s arguments for safety concerns were perhaps a bit much. When things go awry in life and in the world, nobody else will advocate for you as strong as you can advocate for yourself, and this seems to have helped turn the tide on the airspace authority. Take control of your problems.

Lesson 4: Make a list of the volcanoes in your business and in life.

What other volcanoes are out there?

Financial industry.
Game development projects.
Film productions.
Recording sessions.
Visual effects projects.

And just about any human activity in personal life and in business.

Finally…

My overall summary is, for me, look for the volcanoes in all areas in my life. Anticipate through imagination and review of experience. Take action. It won’t all prevent mistakes or errors or accidents, but it will sure keep you much safer from the ash when it comes raining down.

Recently, scientists have discovered, quite to the contrary of their initial assumptions, that 80% of the area devastated by Mt. Saint Helens in 1980 now hosts plant life (and some animals and insects). My point is that in that devastation, people paid attention to it and have studied it, and it gave the world a whole new way to monitor and detect opportunities for potent eruptions elsewhere. We learned a heck of a lot from that volcano. The volcano in Iceland will do the same of course. How in the world then can we ignore these learning experiences?

Greed and blind hope come to mind. We want to go to Europe on an adventure of a lifetime. We want to “beat the market” with our creation of bizarre “financial instruments” and automated trading systems. We want to keep the airlines running status quo because there’s “no way” airspace can shut down for a week in Europe. We want to ignore problems in business because we believe in hope because the “projected” P&L “feels” a lot better than where it is truly headed.

Well, I wanted to go to Europe, and I suppose some part of me ignored the news out of Iceland. Gotta keep the blinders off so I’ll be more aware of potential ash forecasts in the future.

Global Game Jam 2010 at Flashpoint Academy a success!

2010-01-31T23:13:00.002-06:00

After 48 grueling hours, the Global Game Jam at Flashpoint Academy in 2010 has come to a close! After a tense strict afternoon deadline, four games were ready to play and were presented to our panel of guest judges which included Chicago game developers from Robomodo and TapMe. Incredible effort and sweat went into these games and often times the results are best measured by what happened off camera. These were team efforts 100% of the way, and it shows in what they were able to achieve in a few short hours given the theme provided by the Global Game Jam officials (theme: "deception" and games must use one or more of the following words: "man, a plan, or a canal").

Flashpoint Academy Results:

Game: Operation Scorch
As the gunner of "Hot Lips" an AC-130 gunship with the experimental "Scorch Deluxe 3000" laser, your mission is to "laz" the ground targets
Flashpoint Academy Award for Best Use of an Alternate Controller

Game: Entity
A groundbreaking exploration into the deceitful nature of humanity
Flashpoint Academy Award for Best Art and Sound

Game: Man Who Cried Wolf
Gather as many unsuspecting people while crying wolf
Flashpoint Academy Award for Best Arcade Game

Game: Hide & Haunt
Hide & Seek in a old rundown mansion
Flashpoint Academy First Place Global Game Jam 2010 Award

Flashpoint Academy Global Game Jam 2010 first report

2010-01-30T10:31:00.003-06:00

On Friday, January 29th, Flashpoint Academy students across multiple disciplines came together to join in a worldwide event called the "Global Game Jam 2010" held at universities and game studios around the world (well over 1000 participants are now working in 38 countries! -- these crazy people are known as "jammers"). At Flashpoint's sound stage in Chicago's Merchandise Mart we started a 48-hour marathon to build games according to parameters kept secret from our jammers until the launch of the event at Flashpoint at the start of their 48-hour adventure. Jammers at Flashpoint are working in teams of about ten students to build these games by 3 pm on Sunday local time.

This year the theme is "deception" and jammers must include one or more of the following in their games: a man, a plan or a canal. Key outcomes include providing an intense opportunity for jammers to collaborate and work together in "crunch mode" doing what they love doing...making games. This is not a school assignment and it is not a business-driven game studio console game effort. These jammers are the true artists of the future. This weekend will stay for them for the rest of their lives.

We have a few special guest "judges" for the end of the weekend where we will allow the teams an opportunity to present their games to the judges. Teams will be awarded recognition in different areas, but only one game will get trophies for top honors here.

I started the ball rolling at Flashpoint after we had a student team join in with the wonderful people at DePaul who graciously invited them to be a part of the experience there in January of 2009. We would have been there again this year but we had such high interest here that we had to set up our own location. After months of preparation and the efforts and dedication by a really enthusiastic team of staff and faculty...here we are, starting up day 2. I am honored to be directing our location, but I could not have done it without them -- and without our really amazing students who surprise me from time to time when they finally realize that they have the potential to do anything in the world they want to do.

More updates to follow.

Famed video game composer Nobuo Uematsu

2009-12-10T16:04:00.003-06:00

Some people claimed that I was too much of a fan boy when I moderated a panel discussion in Chicago today with Nobuo Uematsu. The truth is that...I am a fan boy. His music is brilliant and he is completely down to earth and nothing but sincere. I had an opportunity to ask him questions about his creative process, his career and his excellent new work in the yet-to-be-released game, Final Fantasy XIV.

Geeks trump alpha males as algos dominate Wall St

2009-12-02T14:07:00.002-06:00

See the article below about high-frequency traders and programmers...

I've spent some time in my career building "real-time" high-performance game code. That work was instrumental in preparing me for my move over to working on trading technologies a few years back in building tools for traders and for the supporting business and technology units within that industry. I really enjoyed that environment and daily challenge -- in that process I ended up inventing new trading screens (I invented the "Time Market Grid Interface" as published by the US Patent office in August) and coding exchange gateways and building upon a variety of risk-management tools. All of this was within the confines of the trading platform vendor business and not within the proprietary trading firm as described in this link below, so I was not in a position to get the kinds of benefits described below...The flip side to that story is that everyone's algos are competing against each other, and if you are working within a market that is effectively a zero-sum game, slow and flawed code will lose...I've experimented with custom automated trading code against simulated markets though, but am hopeful to try them out in the real world!

Go to Article

"NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street traders aren't what they used to be -- they're not even on Wall Street anymore.

The days of swashbuckling backslappers on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange have given way to an era of trading dominated by analytical technical whizzes whose computers may be running from a town in deepest New Jersey or Texas."

who is the salty droid?

2009-11-13T11:30:00.003-06:00

I occasionally come across things that make no sense to me. Okay, let me revisit that statement...change occasionally to constantly. But this one is perplexing to me. It stems from the following question, "who is the salty droid?"

One of the most important skills required for a game designer is "listening" which in my view requires constant observation and critical analysis of all of human experience, including my own. This is a big, impossible task, but something we strive to do as game developers to inform our activities. It comes in handy when making games that are "problem-solving activities which bring people pleasure" and creating the right ingredients to be effective in this process.

Coming back to the title of this blog entry...I came across this phrase "who is the salty droid?" from a tweet a friend of mine made. I did not ask them what it meant (which I will shortly correct). I wanted to figure it out myself. Google revealed no immediate answers from what I could tell, although some "Salty Droid" references are out there on Google. Then I decided, spontaneously, to essentially retweet the phrase. I posted a facebook status update with the phrase. Impulsive is the best word to describe this action. My skills as a game designer, in listening to my inner monologue, seemed to come to the following conclusion. I am transmitting an idea virus. There is nothing new to this in human communication, and in particular in today's age. An electronically transmitted idea virus can be gold to the right entrepreneur. But never have I so swiftly been involved in forwarding something that I didn't understand AT ALL to perpetuate this unanswered question. I want to know who the salty droid is. I want to know who made it up. I want to know why this sequence of words seems to be suddenly appearing to me.

As a game designer, I've spent a lot of time studying the human compulsion to explore and resolve unknowns in the world. Place a big button in the middle of the screen. Write text that says, "DO NOT PRESS BUTTON" and see what happens to the majority of people involved in that interactive experience. Right now, my personal button reads "WHO IS THE SALTY DROID?"

As I am writing about this, one thing has just occurred to me. I have embedded myself into the perpetual online timeline of this idea by posting information about my reflection on this thing I know nothing about within my blog. My blog is frequently indexed by search engines. It will be a part of this craziness...or perhaps even help launch this phrase even further out in the intertube ether.

Who is the salty droid? I have become the salty droid. And so will you. And doing your best to shake those five words will lead to only one thing...perpetuating it yourself.

I have a way to resolve it for you however if you are of a certain age. Read the following lyrics...

"...As cold as ice..."

"...love is a battlefield..."

or, perhaps nearly the worst of all...Hanson...

"Mmmbop....mmmbop"

Did that help? It helped me.

Bad music saves the day. Always. Trust me.

Take care Salty Droids out there!

Graduates of Flashpoint Academy's game development program launch featured iPhone game, bitFLIP

2009-11-10T11:07:00.003-06:00

From the president of Metamoorephosis games...

"So it finally happened. The big dream that started at Flashpoint Academy launches its first game as a featured app on the worlds fastest growing video game platform.

Critics have been amazing as well and with 29 consecutive 5 star scores from players we expect the game to catch like wildfire:

App Store Link: http://bit.ly/4r1yoA

IGN - 8.0 - "bitFLIP is a great surprise. At first, it looked like a basic match-three game with a great soundtrack. But flipping the tiles as well as swapping them adds a needed wrinkle to the genre."

1up.com - "Is it worth $2.99? Unequivocally yes. Hell, the soundtrack is practically worth that much by itself! bitFLIP is a game with a great premise and a great aestetic, and is yet another one of those apps that leaves you wondering where the time went."

Aeropause.com - 4/5 - "The soundtrack, gameplay visuals and iComplishments prove that bitFLIP is far from a no-frills iPhone puzzle game."

Joystiq.com - Justin McElroy - "[bitFLIP] is a puzzle game thats really well suited to the iPhone .. it's a trip. Nice one to sorta zone out and not think for a while."

On behalf of Justin, the team and myself we would like to give you our warmest thanks for believing in Metamoorephosis Games.

--
Joshua Hernandez
CEO & Founder
Metamoorephosis.Games!"

Flashpoint students win Game Design Challenge

2009-10-20T15:31:00.001-05:00

I’m thrilled to share with you that two students from the Game Development program at Flashpoint are featured as winners in a recent Game Design Challenge held by one of the industry’s most important websites. First year student Emily Greenquist won as Best Entry, and Terumi Tamaki won an honorable mention. Follow the links to check out the full details!

http://gamecareerguide.com/features/792/results_from_game_design_.php

From the article:

“Results from Game Design Challenge: Literary Inspirations

We have hundreds, even thousands, of years of literature to draw from -- yet so little of it has been used for source material for games. Early next year, Electronic Arts will release Dante's Inferno, a very loose adaptation of part of Dante Alighieri's epic poem The Divine Comedy, written in the 14th century.

While it's debatable how respectful the game's content is to the original source material, it's true that the works of the past are a resource that could be tapped much more effectively in the creation of gameworlds.

Game Career Guide challenged its readers to adapt a piece of literature -- contemporary, medieval, or somewhere in between -- into a game. It could be in any genre of literature or gaming -- the core concept is how compellingly you turn it into a game idea. How will you adapt from one medium to the other? What will you cut? What will you keep? What will you change, and what will stay the same?

Winning entries effectively translated literary works into game narratives, while also keeping in mind the medium's inherent tropes and limitations.

What follows are the best and most original entries we received. Here are our top picks: “

Best Entries:

Emily Greenquist, Student, Flashpoint Academy (Year One Student)

"The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it."

- Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray

“Greenquist takes a complex story and weaves it into a solid game concept. The Picture of Dorian Gray, as a horror-themed RPG, puts players in the role of an amoral protagonist who must eventually face the consequences of his actions. Though the experience would be a largely passive one for the player, the depth in narrative promises a rich payoff. “

http://gamecareerguide.com/features/792/results_from_game_design_.php?page=4

Honorable Mention:

Terumi Tamaki, Romeo and Juliet: Happily Ever After (Year Two Student)

http://gamecareerguide.com/features/792/results_from_game_design_.php?page=9

No longer patent pending!

2009-10-08T21:34:00.003-05:00

After many years under review, one of my recent inventions, the Time Market Grid Interface, has recently been granted approval by the U.S. patent office!

You can look up patent 7,574,388 on uspto.gov, or check out this quick third-party web link:

http://www.patentgenius.com/patent/7574388.html

I invented this interface and technology for a Chicago company called Trading Technologies...and I have more trading technology inventions up my sleeve. As a game developer, I am keenly interested in optimizing the user experience in real-time interactive media -- so the challenges of developing, producing, and programming games is strongly connected to issues in making great software used by electronic traders in exchanges around the world.

Day in the life of a game programmer, artist and designer

2009-09-29T12:36:00.002-05:00

In describing "what it's really like out there" I find that students just starting out in our program at Flashpoint Academy are frequently skeptical of everything faculty conveys to them about the realities of working as a game developer today (even with our accumulated 70 years of working in the field).

Industry visitors from nearby studios definitely help us out in this regard, but this article provides some really great examples of experiences by a few developers: a programmer, an artist, and a designer really do a nice job of fleshing out a typical day.

Here's the article from CareerGameGuide.com you should check out!

Here's the start of the article:

"Programmer

8:45 AM I arrive at work and head to my office. At High Moon Studios, most programmers don't actually work in their offices. We work in open space areas, sitting next to designers, artists, and animators. My office is where I drop my stuff, check my email, and make phone calls. I share a large office with five other people, but only spend about 30 minutes a day in there so we are rarely there at the same time."

Game development student grads from Flashpoint Academy featured in College Magazine

2009-08-28T12:00:00.002-05:00

From the article:

"Just about every person of our generation has gone through at least one phase of obsession with video games, and can relate to the way a player gets wrapped up in that interactive experience. And how many kids dream of making these games, only to “grow out of it”? Well, in a time when video games are more popular than ever, among kids, college students and even elderly people (Nintendo Wii has hit retirement homes, believe it or not), there’s more opportunity than ever to pursue a career in video game development—which is exactly what two Chicago-area students are doing.

Justin C. Moore and Joshua Hernandez are recent graduates of the Flashpoint Academy in Chicago, IL, where they met and collaborated on designing a game that can now be found on Xbox Live Marketplace and soon on the iPhone. Moore, who studied game design, says he heard of Flashpoint Academy at just the right time. “I got a flier in the mail; it was really fortuitous, as I was unemployed for the summer of 2007 and didn’t know what I was gonna be doing in the fall,” says Moore. After completing his undergraduate degree at MIT a few years ago, Moore knew he wanted to pursue his hobby of programming, and Flashpoint was the perfect place to learn his trade."

Read More About Game Development Graduates from Flashpoint Academy!

Upping Your Game's Usability

2009-08-20T09:27:00.002-05:00

I found this recent article from Gamasutra.com to be very useful. In today's world "user interface" and "human-computer interactive" (HCI) are keys to the either success or failure of interactive entertainment products out there. It's largely about making things clear, simple -- and complementing our typical approach as humans in a) controlling our environment and b) learning more about our environment to control it more efficiently.

Check out this excerpt:

"Upping Your Game's Usability

A common gripe I hear from developers is that a game has a really great concept or aesthetic, but that the user interface (UI) is lousy. Games that are hard to control or that mystify users by not providing useful or sufficient feedback are pretty damn frustrating to play. This can translate into worse sales, so it's worthwhile for game developers to really spend a lot of time thinking about a game's UI."

Web link to full article:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/4110/upping_your_games_usability.php

FanBox for my iPhone Group

2009-07-14T15:20:00.002-05:00

I'm going to integrate this widget into my website to see what kind of feedback and results I get (at http://www.blipfungames/ ... it will be updated shortly). The special widget is called the FanBox. It allows you to embed a small piece of code into any web page so that people can become a "fan" of something you're trying to promote with zero hastle. It seems to be pretty cool!

BLiP Bloink on Facebook

NBC, DEW Tour - Flashpoint Studios Game

2009-06-26T21:42:00.002-05:00

Check it this new Flash game called "Ramping Up!" created by Flashpoint Studios at Flashpoint Academy in Chicago.

Flashpoint Studios is a unique component of our curriculum where the school interfaces with outside businesses in the development a many types of interactive and digital media projects.

In this most recent project, a group of students from the game department and recording arts department (working in conjunction with some faculty) developed this fun BMX bike racing game and gained real-world development experience in the process!

http://www.nbcchicago.com/station/as_seen_on/Play-Our-Exclusive-Ramped-Up-Online-Dew-Tour-Game.html

BLiP Bloink featured on NBC

2009-06-10T22:35:00.002-05:00

Check out this story on iPhone game development featuring my game BLiP Bloink, from the Chicago NBC affiliate.

http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/business/iphone-applications-money-business-boot-camp-061009.html

Check out the full report here...(you'll have to watch an ad first)

View more news videos at: http://www.nbcchicago.com/video.

My Personal Message to Graduates of Flashpoint Academy

2009-05-29T12:25:00.004-05:00

May 29th, 2009

Dear Friends (Graduates),

I love Star Wars.

The main character in the Original Trilogy, Luke Skywalker, as you know, lived the formative years of his life as the adopted son of a farmer. He had big dreams. He wanted to join the army. He wanted to do something important. And when two robots, hot off of the back of a truck (also known as a sandcrawler, just to be clear) end up in his garage, an epic series of events unfold. Luke had an opportunity to make important decisions. These were risky decisions that determined the fate of the galaxy.

Many of you were sitting on the farm. If not literally, then in other ways. With big dreams, you always had a sense of being in a better place. In some cases, your destiny was not in your hands. Some struggles and setbacks kept you from becoming the person you hoped to be in the world.

And at the right moment, at the right time, you came upon Flashpoint Academy. Finally, a stepping stone leading you in the direction of your dreams was in front of you. Here was your chance to realize some of your potential. You followed Old Ben Kenobi (Ric Landry) to the Millennium Falcon and set your course for the planet Alderaan.

Of course, getting to Alderaan proved a bit of a challenge. In the film, Alderaan was blown up by the Empire. Luke was sucked into the heart of the Death Star on a desperate mission to survive and achieve what seemed to be impossible (destroying the Death Star).

This mirrors many of your experiences when you walked into the door during your first days at Flashpoint Academy. It wasn’t going to be easy to get through this adventure. For some becoming a game developer was something you thought was just going to be handed to you. Surprise! Alderaan is gone. It was time to face reality. In the days following orientation here, you were on a dead run to make it to the end. This roller-coaster ride through every challenge in class and out of class made for an epic journey with both setbacks and triumphs.

Getting to the end, in the trenches trying to reach one of your end goals – graduation – was harder than anything you could imagine. Many of you truly transformed in becoming digital professionals and leaders. After making to the end of the first movie, Luke Skywalker had earned his stripes. He made life-changing friendships. He had learned much from a teacher, and mentor, only to be left in the end to rely upon all that he learned and his own will power. He was well on his way to reaching his full potential.

The story does not end there. There were more challenges in life and many new obstacles. Luke had this in abundance during the events of the second Star Wars film, the Empire Strikes Back. Everything he learned in his journey to destroy the Death Star helped him in tackling the next challenges with precision. He still had much to learn of course, but he was absolutely certain about his direction. This made him very powerful indeed.

As you go from Flashpoint Academy into jobs, internships, establishing your own businesses, or for some of you in securing your first professional digital media opportunity in the world, think about Luke’s journey.

Luke had a dream to become extraordinary. Luke relied upon his friends, and came to their aid when they needed it the most. Luke never gave up even in the face of the most challenging things he experienced in life. And in the end, he overcame the Empire.

To all of our new Jedi: May Flashpoint be with you. Always.

- Simeon Peebler

BLiP Bloink Lite (Free version) Now Available

2009-04-27T00:44:00.003-05:00

Try the game for free now!

BLiP Bloink Lite

http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=311855487&mt=8&uo=6

Use the download link to play the free version of my game BLiP Bloink!

Over 37 million multi-touch Apple devices...

2009-04-23T12:40:00.003-05:00

Check out this article below. Basically there are nearly 40 million multi-touch Apple devices out there (numbers are split between iPhone and iPod Touch). One billion apps have been downloaded from the Apple App Store. Of the 30,000 Apps now available in the App Store, a third of them are games. Some of these are "free" apps, and some are for sale -- ranging from $0.99 to above $30 -- (my game, BLiP Bloink, at http://www.blipfungames/ is $0.99).

Really interesting numbers for sure! Nintendo and Sony are recognizing this as a real up and coming competitor in the mobile gaming space.

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09/04/23/apples_ipod_touch_sales_double_nearly_on_par_with_iphone.html

Pocket Tanks now available for the iPhone and iPod Touch

2009-04-17T14:01:00.002-05:00

Way to go BlitWise!

They have just released Pocket Tanks for the iPhone and iPod Touch and it is definitely worth checking out.

http://blitwise.com/

It features the same exciting gameplay from the PC shareware classic ported perfectly to the mobile platform. A free version is available and it contains 35 weapons -- more than enough to enjoy for quite a while; the Deluxe version has over 100 weapons, and is well worth it for true Pocket Tankers out there.

Here are some direct links to Pocket Tanks in the iTunes App Store:

Pocket Tanks: (free version)

http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=311544087&mt=8

Pocket Tanks Deluxe:

http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=311466554&mt=8

Student Postmortem: percussONE

2009-04-17T13:59:00.002-05:00

http://www.gamecareerguide.com/features/731/student_postmortem_.php

Two of our students at Flashpoint Academy in Chicago are now published in Gamecareerguide.com with an article called "Student Postmortem: percussONE" in which they document the ups and downs of creating their exciting new XBox game available on XBox Community Games now!

Gamecareerguide.com BLiP Bloink Mention

2009-04-02T14:23:00.000-05:00

http://www.gamecareerguide.com/news/23039/flashpoint_professor_to_share_.php

Great mention in gamecareerguide.com!

BLiP Bloink on Fingergaming.com!

2009-04-02T13:45:00.001-05:00

http://fingergaming.com/2009/04/flashpoint-academy-professor-releases-blip-bloink-099/

From the article:

"Flashpoint Academy’s Chair of Game Development, Simeon Peebler, has released his first iPhone title — the puzzler BLiP Bloink ($0.99). Peebler teaches game programming and design at the Chicago-based private college, and believes that the experience of developing an iPhone title will provide valuable material for future classroom lectures.

“Students are really interested in the iPhone platform,” Peebler said in a recent press release. “As a game development educator, I believe it is important to spend some time to get one of my games out there on the iPhone. I can now leverage that experience in mentoring and inspiring my students.”

BLiP Bloink is a match-based puzzler that plays out like a mix of Tetris and Bejeweled — players must drop animals from the top of the screen and attempt to match them with creatures of the same type. The game features three difficulty modes, unlockable achievements, and a “brag” feature that allows players to update/annoy their friends with their accomplishments."

My new iPhone game: BLiP Bloink

2009-04-01T23:40:00.004-05:00

My new iPhone game, BLiP Bloink, is available now from the Apple App Store!

Only $0.99!

In the wee hours and weekends between the long days at Flashpoint Academy, I figured it was time to get another game out into the world. This experience has helped further prepare me in working with my students at Flashpoint as they express interest and enthusiasm in working with the iPhone and in developing content for mobile devices.

Check out: http://www.blipbloink.com

Student game, percussONE, from Flashpoint Academy now on XBox Community Games!

2009-03-05T10:16:00.001-06:00

He got game

March 5, 2009 By CHRIS LAFORTUNE clafortune@pioneerlocal.com

Justin C. Moore is passionate about games, especially video games.

"I always sort of make little games for myself for any given task," the River Forest resident said. "I try to beat my old score, my old time, my records."

"I always think about, sort of, situations and opportunities to try to maximize your utility against your opponents, which would be anyone else in the environment around you."

A graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Moore now has a video game he developed with friend Joshua Hernandez online at Xbox Live Community Games, called "percussONE."

Moore and Hernandez are students at Flashpoint Academy in Chicago. Moore's in his second year there, ready to graduate in the summer.

At MIT, Moore studied mechanical engineering and finished with a degree. While in college he tried to wean himself off of games.

"I didn't think it would be, sort of, a productive thing to pursue," Moore said.

He was unsuccessful. When he graduated he realized games were what he wanted to do.

"After graduating, I buckled down and started teaching myself to program, just working on smaller projects, trying to get people together to work on games," he said.
percussONE is a puzzle game, influenced by games such as "Tetris Attack" and arcade game "Klax."

Players align game pieces of similar colors, taking them off of a playing field when they line up three or more. As the game progresses, the pieces arrive faster. If the field fills, the game ends.
Players can play singularly or with friends, against one another or cooperatively. Moore and Hernandez entered the game into Microsoft's "Dream, Build, Play" contest, but failed to be finalists. They tweaked the programming, entering it into another contest, the Independent Games Festival.

"We didn't make finalist there, either, unfortunately," Moore said.

But they worked on the game further and had it accepted into the Xbox Live Community platform. It went live in mid-February.

"I have heard from, not direct buyers, but I've heard rumors of buyers," Moore said. "Friends of friends who have purchased it. There are a couple of reviews online that mentioned it favorably."
Xbox Live's Community Games platform has been online since November. About 200 games are now accessible through the system, according to information from Microsoft. Users are able to download free tools to make and distribute their own games.

Moore enjoys puzzle games, though they're not his favorite. He prefers role-playing games, in which players take on the role of a character in an extended gaming experience, either singularly or online.

He has ideas for several role-playing games, but they're the most difficult to program, Moore said. For the moment he's going to continue working on puzzle games with Hernandez and any others they can recruit.

"We started simple," he said. "We're going to build up from there."

http://www.pioneerlocal.com/riverforest/news/1460326,op-xboxguy-030509-s1.article

Comments on the Game Industry Economics

2009-02-17T11:18:00.002-06:00

For those of you following news in the game industry over the last several months, you’ve witnessed rounds of layoffs and closures and a variety of restructuring announcements really across the board. This is in line with the economic realities of the world right now of course (and underlying realities of the way that 20+ million-dollar projects are funded), but people often ask me questions about this general topic.

Despite the incredible numbers we’ve seen posted in terms of game software and hardware sales in the last few years, being in this business is far from a sure thing. Game development is a very risky business. Lots of guessing goes into product development both in terms of marketing and technology development despite how smart everyone claims to be.

Game studios are software development shops hired by “publishers” to create game products. When you have teams comprised of dozens of highly skilled practitioners who are paid an average of 40 - 100k per year, and the typical game project lasts over 24 months, simple addition shows the financial realities facing studios in product development. Add on top of that the cost of employer subsidized health insurance, other benefits, along with facilities and operational expenses (plus legal) and suddenly the game creation process cost reaches some fairly high figures. And that is just for the game studio! The publisher is its own beast and then the actual delivery route to the customer has its own set of expenses.

A couple of interesting risks:

Rapidly changing marketplace (consumer interest and competition) may hurt sales required to return investment to the publisher(s) who theoretically are paying the bills for everybody involved.

Technology problems for creating innovative products can prevent publicized release dates. This can be incredibly damaging for everybody involved.
Original IP is as can be imagined, a challenge to sell and may be met with poor reception.

Strategies publishers employ regularly now:

Focus on building brands and sequels in essentially franchising a product line over time.

Use and leverage existing game engines for almost everything.

Plan using the same content and technology for multiple platform release such that you maximize the potential sales you have.

Even with these strategies, publishers still only find that a fraction of these large projects bring a return substantial enough to offset development, marketing and distribution costs. It is hit and misses. Largely, the hits have helped offset the misses for those who are the leaders out there today.

Opportunities for those entering the industry have not dried up even in light of these realities. From Gamasutra.com’s job board, one can find MANY job postings. Those with an entrepreneurial spirit are also embraced by the game industry – independent development and innovation are keys to success. Flashpoint students are working on these kinds of independent projects and finely tuning themselves in terms of developing solid pitches to the whole range of opportunities out there in the industry right now. Interactive media is also another route for Flashpoint Academy game developers. Some students will build careers in developing game content for other sectors (education, heath care, broadcast, film, and so on).

Over the years, the game industry has been a roller coaster ride. Now is no different. Hang on!

Note About Requirements for Career Success in the Game Industry

2008-11-10T16:58:00.002-06:00

I came across this really great piece -- it is short -- but there is part of it that is in my view rather important for game developers in training and indeed anyone working to prepare for tomorrow's digital media careers --

"...the nature of the game industry [is] one that requires DaVincis -- not in the sense that only geniuses of DaVinci’s caliber can succeed, but that like DaVinci, successes in the industry are people with a diverse group of interests who are constantly working to master and refine their singular core skills.

This was as DaVinci did with painting throughout his life. He also pointed out that DaVinci was not an overnight success, but a man who began his career with years of apprenticeship.

'What is presented to us about games and game designers are little sound bite moments that only talk about went right,' said Daglow. The stories of long years in the trenches, like medieval apprentices had, and public fumbles, strikeouts and errors of judgment and moments of doubt like those borne by professional athletes are also part of a long career -- unless, of course, you quit.

'If you quit,' Daglow joked, 'you won’t have a long career. I can prove that to you mathematically.' He also emphasized the need for team skills..."

For the full piece, follow this link...

http://www.gamecareerguide.com/news/21017/future_play_daglow_talks_game_.php

Flashpoint Students Win Game Design Competition

2008-10-20T01:00:00.002-05:00

I am proud to announce that in one of the leading active game design competitions regularly managed by gamecareerguide.com (part of gamasutra.com – the game industry’s most important news and job site), we have had more brilliant success by our advanced year two game design students!

Recently Jeff Koerber, year two student, received an honorable mention in a similar design competition on “How to Make Monopoly Fun.”

This time, the challenge was "Create a brand new game that uses the Guitar Hero controller." and students Patrick Mousel and Ben Gettleman were at the top.

http://www.gamecareerguide.com/features/627/results_from_the_game_design_.php

"Best Entries
Patrick Mousel, student at Flashpoint Academy, Chicago, Elevator Frenzy (see page 2)
Elevator Frenzy is a little like Diner Dash in that the player is an employee who provides a service to patrons, managing time and prioritizing tasks in order to maximize gains. Of all the submissions, we felt it made the best use of the control system in a unique way.

...

Ben Gettleman, Lumberjack! (see page 4)
Admittedly, we're suckers for Monty Python references; couple that with the mental image of a plaid-clad tweenager hurling a plastic guitar around his mother's living room, and this game idea was just too funny not to highlight. Bonus points for describing a less dangerous two-player option! (In his last paragraph, though, we would like to ask, which "popular lumberjack films," exactly, might you be referring to?)"

Go to the above link for the rest of the entries.

IGDA Meeting at Flashpoint "State of the Industry"

2008-10-20T00:57:00.002-05:00

On Monday night, October 20, 2008, Flashpoint will host a professional meeting of the International Game Developer's Association (IGDA).

The following panelists will speak about the "State of the Industry":

Matt Booty, interim CEO of Midway Games
Andreja Djokovic, Founder of Babaroga
Scott Herrington, Lead Producer at WMS
Eugene Jarvis, Founder of Raw Thrills
Tom Kim, Executive Producer for Gamasutra Podcast on GDC Radio
Alex Seropian, Founder of Wideload Games

Exclusive Big Fish Games presentation at Flashpoint

2008-10-11T18:21:00.002-05:00

Flashpoint students spent the day on October 10th with Patrick Wylie, Vice President of Big Fish Games’ Studios, a successful producer in the game industry. Patrick spent time discussing the production process behind the new game Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearst. This upcoming game is their most ambitious game production to date involving the work of game developers, visual effects artists, game designers, along with a team involved with the creation of filmed live-action components and original music recorded with a full orchestra in Berlin. While speaking to students live from their Seattle game studio by way of Flashpoint Academy's Matrix facilities, this industry expert helped set the stage for the new Production In Action course, and gave many students an opportunity to ask questions during the presentation. He also shared behind-the-scenes images, concept art and exciting final game graphics.

Patrick heads up game the development Studios for Big Fish Games, one of the fastest growing and most successful casual games companies. Releasing such hit franchises like Mystery Case Files, Azada, Hidden Expedition and others, “Studios” has been an industry leader for several years. Prior to Big Fish Games, Pat spent nine years at Humongous Entertainment, a leader in children's adventure, sports and edutainment software. He has played several roles in gaming from Production, Programming and Testing. On the side he even dabbles in music. Pat has a B.S. in Microbiology from the University of Washington.

Get Ready -- Year Two at Flashpoint Academy

2008-08-28T15:53:00.002-05:00

A few weeks from now, it begins.

Year two at Flashpoint Academy in Chicago.

As time goes by, more and more professionals are recognizing the value we are bringing to these various industries. I couldn't be more thrilled to be a part of this incredible effort in building the new standard in digital arts training, and the results in our labor will be most evident in May of 2009 when our first graduating class starts their new careers.

Understanding exactly what is involved in the various aspects of production in game development, film, recording arts, broadcast media, visual effects and animation is paramount to the interview process and in the presentation of a professional reel and portfolio. This will lead to realistic expectations and also a truly focused personal selling package that will enable our students to make sure that they are successful in launching their new careers.

This is their responsibility, but we are setting up the shot. We are throwing the ball down the court.

Be ready to give it everything you've got. And then more.

See you in class!

Playing Video Games = Good for Us

2008-08-18T12:08:00.002-05:00

PLAYING VIDEO GAMES OFFERS LEARNING ACROSS LIFE SPAN, SAY STUDIES

Skills Transfer to Classroom, Surgical Procedures, Scientific Thinking

BOSTON—Certain types of video games can have beneficial effects, improving gamers' dexterity as well as their ability to problem-solve – attributes that have proven useful not only to students but to surgeons, according to research discussed Sunday at the Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association.

http://www.apa.org/releases/videogamesC08.html

End of the First Year at Flashpoint Academy

2008-06-05T01:24:00.003-05:00

Last week we wrapped up the first year at Flashpoint Academy in Chicago, a new digital arts and sciences school redefining education for professionals -- training them in skills vital for modern entertainment and business in today’s world.

In the game department, dozens of game students, guided by several seasoned industry professionals, have worked hard in building games and creating game designs, 3D models, original game levels, game music, and learning the production and workflow behind today’s game efforts. Most of these projects have been conducted within team settings where communication, leadership and personal responsibility are keys to success.

And like getting pushed out of a nest, nobody seems quite ready for the shock of it all. When things go wrong, there’s plenty of blame to go around. When the dust clears, the birds in flight are the ones who relied on themselves, listened to directions, and worked hard to deliver what was expected and even beyond. And for those whose achievements were not so great, we are patient and guiding, pushing you to get off the ground. You can do it. You will do it. Persist and work hard.

For everyone, in collecting materials for the end-of-year portfolio gathering assignment, ultimately there is a collective gasp. Wow. What we’ve done. What we’ve learned. For some, perhaps, who are farther along in the learning process, they know that the next thought should be: Even with all that we’ve done, what can we do better? What more can we do now?

So, now that this first year is complete, we’re ready to face tomorrow with the experience and knowledge that will most ensure victory at the end of the journey – at the end of the two years, each student will have new skills and industry experience that will make them ideal leading candidates for positions in a variety of areas in game development, visual effects, film, sound engineering, and broadcasting.

Let’s get to work.

Why I am playing Grand Theft Auto IV

2008-05-16T12:18:00.003-05:00

As a part of this industry, it is a requirement that I play current games. Mostly I want to capture the essence of the experience, to appreciate the play mechanic or technology or story, and so playing a game for 100 hours is really not necessary. As a game creator, it is vital to do this on a regular basis for a variety of reasons.

In the last six months I have only fully completed a few major console games (in campaign mode - Halo 3, Call of Duty 4, Portal, to name a few), and I am well on my way to completing Crisis Core on the PSP. Many games have gone unfinished (an hour or two in, or maybe five or six hours in). But in the last week I have taken a side step into Grand Theft Auto IV's Liberty City and I want to talk about it, because I think I am going to try to finish this one.

So far, I have about six hours of game playing time. There are a hundred points of statistics that the game captures while you are playing (but these aren't important for you as you are playing, just sort of interesting all the same). The game says I have completed %12 of the missions. If this is true, it will take me a long time to get to the end because I only play a few hours per week.

So far, here's why I am living a few hours per week in Liberty City:

This game is the single biggest entertainment launch in history across all mediums.

This game has a very high metacritic score -- the quality of the game is the pinnacle of today's marketplace in terms of technology and user experience.

The writing is amazing. Among the best dialogue written yet in this medium.

The physical mo-cap acting is really great.

The universe is realized in stunning detail. One word: EPIC.

The music is perfect.

The player's sense of power over the environment and over "people" absolutely impacts real-world self-esteem and stress in a more powerful way because of the high level of "realism" in this generation of game technology. This is really fascinating to experience personally.

Employing this power over the environment and over "people" is a choice. Do you randomly kill "people" or do you simply play the story line?

Game developers at Flashpoint Academy are discussing this product daily right now, sharing experiences and discussing how the game could have been improved. One thing we all agree upon: young people should absolutely not have this game. This is purely adult entertainment -- 18+ for sure. If you know anybody with an Xbox 360 or PS3 with children in the house, lock this game up!

Do it Right, Do it Simple

2008-04-18T13:33:00.001-05:00

In our final Year One Game Project Production course at Flashpoint Academy, two game teams are building up for a sprint to the finish. Time is short. Resources are limited. Critical design and planning decisions are in progress right now. Can everyone pull it off? The student team leads are kicking into gear under faculty guidance to make things happen, and work on the next big milestone is under way.

There are some really invaluable pieces of advice your new game team should keep in mind, and it is truly important for our students to follow these points as they work on these final year one projects in our game studio.

1. Keep it simple.

Why keep the game simple? Well, the reasons for keeping it simple mostly point to limiting production risks and alternatively potentially making the game more accessible and possibly more fun (and then...more successful, and maybe even complete). Production risks can include getting in over your head in terms of how much time it will take to complete various tasks along the way both in the creation of assets and in the development of technology. Further, it is easy to get "ambitious" in the creative process without a real market need for features or eye candy or to serve the core of the product's unique selling advantage. This can often times only be assessed after considerable work has been done on a game, after which point it might be too late to fix major problems or reach the deadlines.

2. Remove production bottlenecks.

Some main issues here center on management and technology. Appropriate delegation of tasks and oversight really make a huge difference in the efficiency of various teams. Big projects require lots of hands in the mix. They all have to work together and use the tools in concert. This means that everyone needs to be on the same page, and people need to promote the utmost in mature communication and professionalism. On the technology fronts, it is key to make game content data driven. With small projects and inexperienced developers, this is often a critical point of failure, usually leading to people saying, "Oh, we have to wait for the programmer...again." When fifteen people are waiting for one person to get something done, that is NOT good. Plus, most game teams have or require people to be dynamic and willing to do more than one particular thing. Pitching in as much as possible on the critical tasks at hand wherever they exist as directed by the team leads is a normal process in game studios. When team leads don't do their job, express your concerns to others in a positive and appropriate manner. Your feedback may prove helpful to everyone.

3. Work hard and make the deadlines.

Okay, this seems like a simple piece of advice. But here's what you must do: Listen. Take notes. Prioritize. Focus. Complete the tasks. Review the work. Communicate and collaborate (don't just make random decisions on your own -- check with your team or you manager! Chances are you can use some advice on how to tackle things, especially the first time).

So, in short, remember these three words and it will help you along the way:

"Simple"
"Bottlenecks"
"Deadlines"

Good luck teams!

Flashpoint Game Developers

2008-03-19T15:50:00.002-05:00

So far, things have been very interesting at Flashpoint Academy this academic year, and what has been most surprising does not really exist within the typical “gaming” mentality you might expect from new game-developers-in-training here at our state-of-the-art school in Chicago.

This process comes down to establishing in our students what amounts to them becoming “modern digital professionals.” The patterns initially are the same as they have been in the past across all industries. It takes hard work. Sweat. Tears. It takes drive and ambition. It takes attention to detail. It takes the ability to deliver on time and on target, meeting and exceeding expectations in every way. Communication, both written and verbal, is essential. That feeds right into one of the most important parts: team work. No person is an island. Everything is done in collaboration. Sure, there are leaders, but without the rest of the production team, none of it is possible. Project management and time management skills are invaluable. These are all things that game studios desperately need, and so far I have not mentioned anything about their technical or creative training in the game medium! So the final pieces for the “modern digital professional” include not only these baseline “soft” skills, but new skills in balancing forever advancing technology and creativity, and making each serve the other in any task put forward.

So, does that fit the mold when it comes to your idea of a stereotypical gamer? For those interested in Flashpoint Academy: If you don’t have the capacity to go down the difficult road of being a successful “modern digital professional” and “digital artisan”, we will encourage you to get serious and get ready before you consider the unbelievable program we offer here at Flashpoint.

The exposure students here have had to those in the game industry has been exceptional. Here’s a quick recap: they have spent countless hours with our incredibly senior faculty members (each have at least ten years of professional experience in their field – well beyond what you find at typical institutions trying to teach interactive media in the way that we are doing right now), to special visits by game documentarians, game industry executives, and composers from the Halo series and Final Fantasy series (yes, Nobuo Uematsu spent a morning with us a few week ago!). And more are coming. I have not mentioned the incredible things going on in our film, recording arts, or visual effects departments (along with the cross-department collaborative projects!).

Our students have worked on developing a large number of innovative games, and they are working with cutting-edge game engines right now using the latest tools that were literally just “science fiction” a few short years ago. The whole production process, the digital asset management system, the workflow, and the responsibilities of each team member – these are all critical things for these new game developers to learn in their efforts under our guidance and supervision within our curriculum.

So, you can see, this is not just for people who are interested in playing games for a living. This is for people who want to make games, and who are willing to do what it takes to achieve the challenging heights they must reach before we launch them into this competitive industry. By the time they complete our program, they won’t need “launched” – they will be on their own feet, ready to work hard and face the challenges ahead without fear.

GAME DEVELOPERS ARE NOT MAGICIANS

2007-10-07T14:59:00.000-05:00

Despite creating the biggest single-day entertainment release of all time, game developers continue to get a bad rap.

I've noticed that many people characterize game developers as lazy, socially incompetent basement-dwelling underachievers. Sure, there's a segment of our community that certainly might qualify for this great description. But to routinely build entertainment experiences that last ten to sixty hours or more, it takes constant perspiration. It takes determination and skill like that which is found only in the trenches of a battlefield. Any game "playing" we do is measured and desperate, as the industry and market can run over us like a freight train if we miss out on what happens to be going on around us.

Developing games is an incredibly difficult undertaking. There is no cookie cutter to this process. It requires a highly orchestrated mixture of digital asset development, user interface design, software engineering, game engineering, marketing, and more to get something ready for release. A huge team of talented people who are trained in these areas come together and work for twelve hours a day for the final six months in a push to the final deadline to reach market where the competition is so brisk that even a good game is likely to fail to profit. And to make matters even more difficult, the platforms evolve so quickly that the tools and techniques are outdated as soon as they are perfected.

Of course, on some level, game developers must be gamers. Being a game developer requires a passion for games that will get you through the thousands of hours of work you will endure in your efforts on game projects you will build upon in your career. And it is so hard because there is no single button to press or knob to turn to make a game magically appear out of the air. It is a highly engaging software engineering effort. Every single game is a new invention. Every game is a new technology in and of itself.

Part of the difficulty with how game developers are not typically well received is that most people look at a game like Halo 3 and they rightly have no clue what it took to create it. For them it might as well have been made with magic. But as we well know from within the industry, games can truly be the ultimate creative effort in today's world. It requires great skill and intelligence to generate these products. It takes the collaboration and convergence of every type of artist, writer, technology developer, and more, plus the ability to manage these huge efforts in an environment where publishers, distribution channels, marketing plans, and more move at pace unmatched in other fields.

Games are not made with magic. They are made with absolute perspiration and passion by the most intense people you will ever encounter. Games are their art.

Everyone can be a gamer. And these days, most people are. Or they will be.

But very few people are game developers. There is a big difference between the two; they should not be confused. At Flashpoint Academy in Chicago, we prefer that you call us game developers. It is our profession. Those wanting to go to school to be a gamer can go elsewhere.

Week One...COMPLETE!

2007-09-22T23:26:00.000-05:00

The first week was truly an amazing experience. A dream come true.

Last Monday, against the odds some might say, we opened the doors on time.

The team came together.

This past week all the students at Flashpoint Academy have been deeply involved in their first Flashpoint experience. Here's what it boils down to: we are awakening their senses. We are awakening their ability to communicate and articulate these important details about what they observe around them. We are also taking them back to the fundamental beginnings of human storytelling. And finally, we are giving them a first-class overview of a professional media production. This intense cross-department experience prepares them for launching into the next sequence in the program at the end of Week Two.

I have been working in multiple classes co-teaching with John Murray and Bernie Mack. They are outstanding; it has been thrilling working with them as we go through the material so essential to the core of our school's mission.

See you in class!

Flashpoint Academy and The Hero's Journey

2007-09-12T22:34:00.001-05:00

Well...TEMPUS FUGIT.

School opens within a few short days at Flashpoint Academy in Chicago. Flashpoint is a new digital media arts school featuring a brand new curriculum centered on the production and development of game, film, animation, and recording arts projects.

At Flashpoint, we are about to embark on The Hero's Journey. The Hero's Journey, as described by Joseph Campbell, is a pattern that has followed humans throughout history. We live it now and we will continue living this journey for the rest of our lives. Every situation that confronts us with something new or that forces us to re-evaluate our thinking or behavior--this is part of the journey. It is a process of self-discovery, and it can be difficult. Through this difficult passage of time in this portion of our journey we can survive to develop a new perspective on this world. "Leveling up" is what I like to call it.

The Hero's Journey has many steps. Separation. The Call. Initiation and Transformation. The Challenges. The Abyss. The Transformation. The Revelation. The Atonement. The Return.

Once you step into Flashpoint on Monday, September 17th, 2007, you in fact are entering into this new journey in this new chapter in your life. There are many things you must do before you can reach The Return. You must break free of your old habits and preconceptions. You must adopt new ways of viewing the world and modify your methods of communication. You have to stand up. Or sit down. Or both. At the same time. You WILL do the impossible. Because you can.

On your Hero's Journey, times will get rough. It is inevitable. If you start to feel discouraged, please keep in mind that we are all on this journey together. You are not alone. We, all of us, are in this journey together for this incredible moment in history. If you are attending this school, please know that you are not just "going to Flashpoint" but that in fact...you ARE Flashpoint. WE ARE FLASHPOINT.

I can't wait to see everyone there on Monday!

How to get your game on XBOX Live Arcade...

2007-09-06T20:56:00.000-05:00

In Austin GDC 07, Microsoft explained to developers in detail what they are looking for in game submissions for their XBOX Live service --

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6178367.html

I found this interesting:

"...cooperative play of any kind is underrepresented on Live Arcade, and noted that games with cooperative modes tend to sell better. Two especially important forms of coop for Microsoft are local play ("couch play," as Pallister called it), and asymmetric cooperative play (as in Guitar Hero II, where two players of different skill levels can fare equally well). Pallister also wants to see more focus on kids play in Live Arcade games, "sandbox" modes where players can explore with no timer and no punishment for poor performance. However, independent developers may have trouble filling that gap for Microsoft, as Pallister noted that as with other child-oriented products, having a big-name license attached is a definite bonus."

State of Play Conference 2007 Update

2007-08-22T21:28:00.000-05:00

It has been interesting following the second day of the State Of Play V academic conference. This day they tackled issues like legal precedents in in-world property ownership and saw “Game Gods” from Second Life, There, and MUD creator Richard Bartle speak on building virtual worlds. This further enhances what we will be covering in Flashpoint Academy's Virtual World Development course of study.

From http://www.gamasutra.com

State Of Play Tackles In-World Ownership, Building Virtual Worlds

"In one of the real highlights to the conference, Judge Unggi Yoon again amazed the conference. Korea’s legal system is already in the process of passing laws to regulate the trade, sale and taxation of virtual goods. Their current plans are to implement a system wherein virtual properties are going to be considered “public,” which is to say real properties with regard to tax laws on transactions. Korea, however, won’t be regulating small trades between two people, which they are considering “private.” Yoon said that the system would be in place by the end of the year. This lead to a great deal of speculation: to what degree will the East lead regulation inside of online spaces?"

http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=15216

How to Get a Job at Blizzard Entertainment

2007-08-13T21:38:00.000-05:00

This is a fantastic article from Blizzard's website; it's a definite must-read for those coming to Flashpoint Academy in Chicago to study game design, development and production.

"Blizzard responds to the thousands of letters we receive asking how to crack into the gaming industry. Now you can learn what it takes to work for a leading software developer like Blizzard Entertainment! Have you ever considered cracking into the gaming industry? Here is some information that is more important than a StarCraft Gas Mine! How to Get a Job at Blizzard Entertainment"

http://www.blizzard.com/jobopp/intro.shtml

The Collector : a Flashpoint Academy Production-In-Action

2007-08-07T22:08:00.000-05:00

I was on the set today of The Collector, a Flashpoint Academy Production-In-Action project, assisting with visual effect shots and doing some work for a related computer game. We also configured "hidden" video cameras to get a true behind-the-scenes look at the hours of very time-consuming effort required to get what amounts to just seconds of screen time!

Here I am, being reflective (see below). Just kidding. The whole group of people working on The Collector are incredible professionals, and it was a pleasure and honor to get a chance to be a part of making this project at our new digital arts school in Chicago where we bring students to the professionals and the professionals to students.

Stay tuned to get a chance to play The Collector: The Game! Coming soon! Visit http://www.flashpointacademy.com for more information about this exciting production.

Crysis November 16, 2007!

2007-08-02T14:49:00.000-05:00

Crysis will be here on November 16th! Yeah! At Flashpoint Academy we will be using the new engine to do some modding and great custom content building, and who could ask for better timing. Plus, there are a slew of amazing games due out for the PC and other platforms, including Halo 3, Grand Theft Auto, Super Smash Bros., Jericho, and more (see the full list below). Students enrolled at Flashpoint will have a great opportunity to review and analyze many of these brand new releases in context of their studies in game production and design.

"Crysis coming November 16
[UPDATE] EA further crowds jam-packed holiday season by nailing down launch window for Crytek's groundbreaking PC shooter.

By Tor Thorsen, GameSpot
Posted Aug 2, 2007 9:16 am PT

The fourth quarter of 2007 may go down as having the most high-profile releases of top-tier games in history, with the three months following Halo 3's September 25 launch being positively jam-packed with games. Call of Duty 4, Mass Effect, Super Mario Galaxy, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, Lost Odyssey, Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction, Warhawk, Tony Hawk's Proving Ground, Half-Life 2: The Orange Box, NBA Live 08, NBA 2K8, Conan, Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation, EA Playground, Clive Barker's Jericho, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, Need for Speed ProStreet, Assassin's Creed, Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures (PC), Gears of War (PC), The Simpsons Game, Turning Point: Fall of Liberty, Virtua Fighter 5, TimeShift, Mercenaries 2: World in Flames, World in Conflict, Beowulf, Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles, WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW 2008, Army of Two, Brothers In Arms Hell's Highway, Rayman Raving Rabbids 2, SimCity Societies, Rock Band, Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings, Universe at War: Earth Assault, SOCOM: Confrontation, God of War: Chains of Olympus, Devil May Cry 4, Unreal Tournament 3 (PC and PS3), Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, NIGHTS, and many other titles are all currently scheduled to arrive before the midnight bells chime on December 31, 2007. The majority of those titles will arrive in November, after Grand Theft Auto IV's mid-October launch and before the end of the all-important holiday shopping season in mid-December.

Now, PC gamers can add one more title to their overflowing Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa shopping lists. During today's post-earnings report conference call, Electronic Arts CFO Warren Jenson narrowed the ship window for Crysis, the eagerly anticipated shooter from German developer Crytek. "We are now planning to launch Crysis in early November," he told analysts. Previously, the game only had a tentative 2007 release date.

[UPDATE] Early Thursday morning, EA announced an exact ship date for Crysis. The game will arrive on Friday, November 16, exactly one month after GTA IV. "We're thankful to our fans for their support and patience, and we're excited to bring them Crysis this year," said Crytek CEO and president Cevat Yerli in a statement."

Go to GameSpot.com to read the full article...

Chemistry of Game Design

2007-07-29T09:13:00.000-05:00

I was very interested in reading this article published on the always great gamasutra.com, entitled "The Chemistry of Game Design" by Dan Cook -- here's a preview below. At Flashpoint Academy in Chicago, our game development program will consume every analysis we can find out there on the topic of gameplay, game design, and what makes something compelling and interesting and addicting, and most importantly, worth the time it takes to play.

"Mechanics and aesthetics are certainly important pieces of any model of game design, but in the end, such analysis provides little insight into what makes a game enjoyable. You end up with a set of fragmented pieces that tell you almost nothing about the meaningful interactions between the game as a simulation and the player as an active and evolving participant. Games are not mathematical systems. They are systems that always have a human being, full of desires, excitement and immense cleverness, sitting smack dab in the center. To accurately describe games, we need a working psychological model of the player."

Full link is here:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/1524/the_chemistry_of_game_design.php

Video Games - What is Art?

2007-07-27T14:45:00.000-05:00

To much complaint (or support), Roger Ebert released an opinion last year that video games are not art. I happened to be present at a very public rebuttal of this statement a few weeks ago by Clive Barker, a respected novelist, filmmaker, and game maker, at the Hollywood and Games Conference. Responding to Barker's statement at the conference, Ebert has posted this new opinion piece:

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070721/COMMENTARY/70721001

Ebert's main point I think is that he has a feeling that interactivity extinguishes the artist's message, thereby ruining it. The fact that the user can direct his own command of the experience seems to bother Ebert, whereas in "art" he suggests the artist must command the entire thing, enveloping the communication of the experience by injecting it straight into the observer. This of course comes from Ebert, himself a filmmaker and movie freak. My summary may be off base a little, but I think generally that's what Ebert is saying.

Here's my opinion -- my own experience in observing "art" -- in music, literature, visual medium, other any other medium that you can think of -- is that this interactivity exists but it is very much internalized and intellectual. We react to "art" in real-time and therefore are not static recipients of a one-way communication. We continue to connect to what we see and hear and feel not only with continued input through our senses, but now through this additional "mindtrack" of our own making. All art is interactive. It may be internally interactive, intellectually or physically so, but interactive nonetheless.

So games take this intellectual "mindtrack" we superimpose on everything we experience and give it some power. What an amazing advancement for art and for an experience that other humans work so hard to create to make for us to enjoy and learn from and respond to just as the classic mediums we have been used to in the whole of modern human history. It will take another generation to recognize this completely.

User-Generated Content in MMOGs A Big Deal!

2007-07-26T15:00:00.000-05:00

At Flashpoint Academy's Game Development program in Chicago, our focus on MMOGs will take us into such platforms as Second Life. User Generated content is nothing new, but check out this piece just published by GameSpot.com, and in particular the interest people have in pushing their own content into these worlds...

"Jim Purbrick: Second Life and User-Generated Content

User-generated content is set to become a big issue in games, and virtual world Second Life has hinted at what's possible. Linden Labs' Jim Purbrick exposed some of its secrets at Develop.

While it's not technically a game, Second Life has a lot to teach the industry about user-generated content in persistent worlds, according to a lecture from Linden Labs' Dr. Jim Purbrick. Dr. Purbrick claimed that users were 30 times more likely to create something for Second Life than they would be in The Sims."

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6175694.html?action=convert&om_clk=latestnews&tag=latestnews;title;0

Flashpoint Academy Game Program Description Update

2007-07-24T21:54:00.000-05:00

Hello! I've updated description of the game program on our official website, which can be found at this page:

http://www.flashpointacademy.com/programs/game.html

"Do you have a passion for games?

You can be a part of this exciting industry. There are many challenging roles to play in the game business, and the foundation you will find at Flashpoint Academy will prepare you as a top candidate for those entry level spots. If you want to be a producer, writer, designer, artist, modeler, coder, or any of the other dozens of possible roles that our training can prepare you for in this field, here's what you can expect in our game development, design and production program (if you're not yet sure what it is that you want to do, that's OK! Our program will give you a great start so that you can find your area of specialization -- see What kind of careers are there in the Game Industry?).

Flashpoint Academy features:

Critical training in professionalism and teamwork appropriate to the industry.

Transmedia collaboration.

Building online student portfolios.

Hands-on workflow with professional digital asset management systems.

Training and creative content building with key tools such as 3D Studio Max, Maya, SoftImage XSI, ZBrush, MudBox, Adobe Creative Suite (including Photoshop), Dreamweaver MX, Microsoft Project, Microsoft Office Suite, Microsoft Developer Studio, plus various modding tools for cutting-edge game engines.

Side-by-side work with game professionals and actual contracted work with companies throughout many industries.

Interfacing with local studios in Chicago including Midway Games, Electronic Arts, Wideload, Pop Cap Games, Day 1 Studios, and others, including work with the International Game Developer's Association.

Ultimate innovation and creativity in all things while understanding all aspects of the business.

In addition to our seasoned teaching staff from the game industry, we are actively bringing in additional lecturers and industry talent including such developers as Sleepy Giant and thatgamecompany.

Are you ready to take the next step? Please click here to give us your contact information so that you can learn more about our Game Development and Design program. Our admissions counselors are looking forward to answering your questions once you complete the contact form -- we have an open house coming up that we hope you can attend, and if that doesn't work out, we invite you to a private tour.

Classes begin September 17th."

BioWare MMO Information

2007-07-22T19:51:00.000-05:00

For those of us interested in producing and designing content for MMORPGs (massively multiplayer online role-playing games), take note of this information released from BioWare in Austin. They have announced the use of an existing platform for their new MMO -- and it is with a special focus on being able to develop active, realtime stories that can engage people realtime without rebuilding a whole new technology. My feeling is that they and others will need MANY new designers developers to produce, build and invent this content, not only at BioWare, but at all of the other similar studios out there with potentially great virtual entertainment channels out there. In Chicago, Flashpoint Academy's Virtual World Management course will be following these updates with great interest.

From BioWare:

"The key points that we're gonna do that no one's done before in an MMOG are bring story, character, and emotion to it. Decisions matter, [non-player characters] aren't just Pez dispensers, and you're not in a grind," Rich Vogel, co-studio director and "MMO veteran", told
the magazine.

"You're really compelled to get on and play what's happening today, kind of like watching a series like Lost on TV - putting page-turning in an MMO. It's going to be extremely challenging thing to do, believe me."

http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=80103

Latest Flashpoint Construction

2007-07-22T16:39:00.000-05:00

Checkout Howard Tullman's site for the latest construction photos --

http://tullman.blogspot.com/2007/07/newest-construction-photos-for.html

We are so fortunate to have such amazing facilities located right in the heart of Chicago. This is the first new school built in the Loop in the last 45 years!

Brain Age Great Family Fun!

2007-07-22T16:31:00.000-05:00

We finally busted out the Nintendo DS as a family event and fired up Brain Age, which is a true "killer app" that, after a bit of a test, determines one's "brain age." It then provides simple exercises and routines to improve thus decreasing this brain age value. When I first experimented with the program, my initial brain age was into the 50s! What is interesting about it right now is in the fact that my wife and I are now in a brain age competition, which provides a new level of family fun.

Nickelodeon Kids and Family Group - $100 Million to Online Casual Games Business

2007-07-18T21:06:00.000-05:00

A combination of the virtual world content management course and the casual games project at Flashpoint Academy will help build the kind of talent this growing business requires...

"MTV Networks’ Nickelodeon Kids and Family Group Commits $100 Million to Its Online Casual Games Business

NEW YORK and SEATTLE, July 18 — MTV Networks’ NickelodeonKids and Family Group today announced its commitment to invest $100 millionover the next two years in development, distribution and creation of casualgaming titles, sites and platforms."

Perry Harovas, Visual Effects and Animation Chair

2007-07-18T16:52:00.000-05:00

Perry at Flashpoint Academy has posted a link to his blog on Flashpoint Academy's website, which I will replicate here --

http://renderguy.blogspot.com/

Danny Boyle's SUNSHINE in Chicago

2007-07-17T16:32:00.000-05:00

A crew from Flashpoint Academy (including Paula Froehle, Peter Hawley, Perry Harovas, and yours truly -- plus a film student from our school who later posed with the director after the show!) attended a special screening of Danny Boyle's new film, SUNSHINE, at a great theater in Chicago (The Landmark, at Diversey and Clark) on Monday night. After the exciting science fiction film, we were enchanted by a long Q&A session hosted by AINTITCOOL.COM's Capone.

Perry asked Danny Boyle about the use of visual effects and in particular the presentation of the Sun as a character, and the director gave a passionate and elaborate reponse about his work on the film and use of effects and the coordination of how actors interact with off-screen or green-screened elements (Mr. Boyle simulates events in the room at additional cost if necessary where other productions might just say, "PRETEND YOU SEE SOMETHING INCREDIBLE").

The next day, the Associate Chair of Film at Flashpoint Academy Peter Hawley interviewed him one-on-one in a special feature that we will edit and present on our website soon.

Jobs in the Game Industry -- what's out there?

2007-07-16T16:14:00.000-05:00

Although the resource listing on this linked site does not contain Flashpoint Academy (they are fixing this now!), this is a great resource for those interested in finding out what sort of jobs are out there in this exciting field.

http://www.igda.org/breakingin/career_paths.htm

Bring out the Wookie!

2007-07-15T23:42:00.000-05:00

Well, E3 2007 last week was a really interesting thing to observe, since I happened to log into G4.com’s live web feed and viewed the live broadcasts of the press conferences. I found, unfortunately, that I kept getting drawn into the live chat directly beneath the video where participants from around the world would very frequently enter statements like “THIS SUCKS” – and I found myself agreeing, on one occasion, that in fact, Sony’s information was lack luster and the people giving the presentations were fairly lifeless. Then, for measure, Sony brought out a “Star Wars” branded PSP device and Chewbacca came out on stage. Yes. A Wookie. When all else fails, bring out a Wookie.

Daniel Burnham, Architect

2007-07-12T15:45:00.000-05:00

Daniel Burnham, architect of the Burnham Center at 28 N. Clark in Chicago -- Flashpoint Academy's main campus (the building was completed in 1915 -- our new state-of-the-art digital arts and sciences campus construction is being completed now, in 2007, 92 years later) -- is quoted as saying:

"Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men's blood and probably will not themselves be realized."

How to REALLY Get Your First Job published on GameCareerGuide.com

2007-07-12T13:34:00.000-05:00

Here's the link posted today, which is a great opportunity for us to share our ideas about being a good candidate with others in the field:

http://www.gamecareerguide.com/features/392/how_to_really_get_your_first_job_.php

How to REALLY Get Your First Job in the Game Industry

2007-07-11T09:24:00.001-05:00

How to REALLY Get Your First Job in the Game Industry

by Simeon Peebler

Getting a job in the game business is not easy; however, with preparation in the right areas, being a top candidate is something you can achieve.

Here’s the challenge. The CMP Game Group’s Game Developer Research division has revealed in its recent census that the number of people working within video game development and publishing in North America is nearly 40,000. With many new education programs throughout the United States, there are thousands of graduates looking for entry-level opportunities while relatively few new openings exist. As a result, game studios and publishers are now facing a daily avalanche of resumes, demos, reels, and others types of submissions seeking these coveted spots.

Getting an initial job in Quality Assurance (QA) is what many people recommend with respect to getting a foot in the door in this field. Forget starting out in QA if you don’t really have any special skills or interest in that area. If you want to start a career in the industry as a designer, story builder, artist, composer, producer, production technician, production assistant, or programmer, you are going to have to do things at a much higher level than those competing for those same entry level spots throughout the industry. In my research and discussion with employers in my role as a professor at a new digital arts school in Chicago called Flashpoint Academy, I found a distinct and consistent thread that is guiding what we’re doing in making a new breed of digital artists in the fields of game development, visual effects and animation, film, and the recording arts.

Here’s our school’s general breakdown of what it takes to be a top entry-level candidate for the game industry.

1. You need to have…Professionalism

If you can demonstrate by concrete example that you are dependable, trustworthy, a team player, and an excellent communicator, and that you are willing and eager to learn and do the hard work and drudgery that is required to complete assignments accurately and on time, this will really increase your value to a potential employer. You can actually learn these skills by working with professionals who mentor you along the way; the traits and behaviors I mentioned sound obvious and easy, but it is what you learn after you know everything that really counts. In school you can learn all of the tools of the trade, but, in most schools, you can’t learn in the classroom what most people traditionally learn through accident and trial and error when they are lucky enough to survive their first big breaks. And your potential employer will value this – they don’t want to suffer through your terrible twos. At Flashpoint we integrate professional productions and projects into the classroom and we take students out of the classroom to bring them real world opportunities to work side-by-side with and for professionals in their field of choice.

2. You need to have…Passion

Do you really love games? Do you really have a passion for this business? Having passion means that you have an internal pilot light that is ready to ignite your soul at a moment’s notice when it comes to this area of your life. It is a powerful energizer that will give you the ability to innovate, create, and commit yourself personally to the long hours and sacrifices required in this line of very challenging work. It is amazing how many people show up but fail to be excited or proud or happy about what they are doing. Not everyone can be a Steve Irwin in this world, but we can in fact ignite our passions and share them with others in a positive way.

3. You need to have…An Online Portfolio

Use the tools of the information age to tell your story; all you need to start is a weblink. Every potential employer can more effectively promote your “credentials” and what you have to offer decision makers by forwarding simple links to various staff members, HR departments, managers, business owners and so on. Create this website yourself, and make sure it is simple to navigate. Test it out! Present only your very best work. Leave your learning exercises off of the site. Favor quality over quantity. Buy your own URL too, since that is easy enough to do and cheap enough these days. You are worth it! And keep your site up to date when you are working with material that you can share even from work. This is your digital life story. At a moment’s notice you never know when a new opportunity can come to you through the web.

4. You need to have…Experience

Just because you haven't had an internship doesn't mean you can't get real experience out there. If you are a student and you are in a program with no curriculum to support team or group projects which result in valuable demonstrated results that you can share in your portfolio, get together with some other passionate people and make your own work experience. Create your own game dev team with like-minded people; join the modding community; do some highly creative indie work that demonstrates your passion and makes a great addition to a compelling portfolio; work in teams; and work with other people in diverse settings. Today’s games are made sometimes in teams comprising of over a hundred people! At Flashpoint we have an in-school publishing and development studio, and this provides great experience for students before graduation since the work completed is really not just another student project – it is made in conjunction with professionals and the industry.

5. You need to have…Domain Expertise

Know your tools. Know the technology. Know the industry and its history and the business. Know the players. Understand not only the facts, but the concepts, patterns and trends. Be a smart contributor -- not just a button pusher. Hey, and don’t forget to know your hardware! Even if you think that you have no business knowing anything about programming because you are in marketing, guess again: your exposure to the technical details will empower you in incredible ways and allow you to effectively communicate with and understand the hardcore geek talk in a much more reasonable manner. At Flashoint we give all of our incoming game developers lots of general training in this highly complex field before they focus on their specific area of interest.

6. You need to have…Problem-Solving Skills

Make creative problem solving a central tool at your disposal. This is a serious skill that requires a lot of work to develop and demonstrate to employers. It’s such a valuable skill because the game business and technology behind it is constantly changing. There are very few cookie cutter projects or even game studios out there. The business pushes the limits of everything and everyone in every aspect of how it operates. This requires that the people who are the producers and creators must constantly adapt to changing goals and technologies like no other business or industry in existence. To succeed in this environment, you must be able to solve new problems every single day.

7. You need to have…Talent

You need a certain level of talent and skill in your area of interest and focus and you need to demonstrate this in your online portfolio. This “talent” can be learned. And really what this means is that you are outstanding at what you do if not a bit original. And here’s a helpful hint: Be wary of people who tell you that everything you do is great. Go to a wide range of people who give you some negative feedback. Learn from it. Don’t take it personally, and try again. Look to find mentors out there who will give you this honest feedback when you are preparing work to share with the rest of the world. This will only serve to help train and improve your own sensibility.

So to sum up what I have laid out in terms of how to really get a job in the game industry, this is the formula: you need to have talent, problem-solving skills, domain expertise, experience, an online portfolio, passion, and professionalism. With this set of qualities and abilities, you will be a very valuable member to any team in any capacity. Flashpoint prepares students looking to start a career in this industry by building a framework for these things, which you can see may or may not directly relate to how to write a line of code or construct a model in some specific software or program.

My final comment and word of advice is that a key thing to do for your career is to revisit this list once you are in the door. Constant revision, improvement and hard work in all of these areas will elevate your position and open more opportunities once you are in the thick of things in this very demanding and competitive field. It won’t take forever. There’s room at the top. It may be lonesome but at least it’s not crowded.

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Simeon Peebler is Department Chair of Game Development at Flashpoint Academy in Chicago, at http://www.flashpointacademy.com/. He has over a dozen years in the game industry working as a programmer and designer for such companies as Imagination Pilots Entertainment, FASA Interactive, totalPlay, Jellyvision, Brain Block Interactive, and itoons. He has also worked as a senior software engineer in the trading technology business.

Experience E3 2007!

2007-07-11T00:48:00.000-05:00

Despite the fact that E3 is not what it once was, it remains an incredible event with many key industry players doing their thing in grand style. G4 has a terrific network of VJs if you will that are amazing gamers and entertaining interactive entertainment documentarians, and it is great to see them cover E3 so we don't have to go there ourselves to see the latest and greatest!

http://www.g4tv.com/e32007/spotlight.html

Starting on Wednesday at 11 pm CST...

Midway in Chicago Reveals Business Challenges

2007-07-10T09:17:00.000-05:00

The game business is brutal, and this really interesting interview proves what a challenge it can be. Midway is right in Flashpoint Academy's backyard! I do like the information that is presented in this piece that suggests that over 60% of heads of households in the US are now video game players (although I will have to check this out in further detail -- this classification may only suggest that this population has indeed at one time in their lives played a video game based on survey results).

"Where combat is really mortal

Midway Games chief finds real-life competition as dangerous as screen game"

http://www.suntimes.com/business/pincus/461651,CST-FIN-pincus10.article

Anticipating the Obsolescence of Fast Thumbs from NYT

2007-07-09T09:35:00.000-05:00

Peter Hawley, Associate Chair of Film at Flashpoint Academy, sent me this link. I love hardcore gaming, don't get me wrong. I have long since been on the bandwagon for casual games and the casual game marketplace (see my games at http://www.brainblock.com), and even for my own life, I don't have the time to spend three thousand hours playing some amazing new game experience (well...I usually buy them and play the first few hours and then get depressed that I don't have more time on my hands!) --

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/08/arts/08schi.html?ex=1184644800&en=a8d07ffb86300537&ei=5070&emc=eta1

"JOHN RICCITIELLO is assembling his video game legions, and he wants you.
No, not you, desensitized, caffeine-mainlining, virtual-gun-toting twitch artist. No, not you, high school Madden fiend or video basketball jock. After all, he’s already got you in his back pocket.
He wants to sign up everyone else. That means you, soccer mom. That means you, cubicle-dwelling Dilbert clone. That means you, seventh-grade girl. You may not think of yourselves as gamers now, but if Mr. Riccitiello has his way, you just might soon be."

E3 in 2007...the real story!

2007-07-08T10:22:00.000-05:00

I have attended E3 in the past and found it to be a mixed bag for my own interests, but its intended purpose seemed to be a losing proposition (product developers and publishers pushing products to retailers and distributors, getting them excited and interested in buying into what was coming down the pipe, etc.). Anyway, here's what this GameSpot.com article has to say about the latest incarnation:

"Spot On: E3 absentees sound off
Many publishers and developers are steering clear of next week's trade show--they explain to GameSpot what's keeping them away."

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6173765.html?action=convert&om_clk=latestnews&tag=latestnews;title;0

"After months of uncertainty, next week the gaming industry will finally experience the new E3 Media & Business Summit. The event is the dramatically overhauled successor to the Electronic Entertainment Expo, which had been the central event of the North American game industry for the previous 12 years."

Nintendo DS in Australia

2007-07-06T09:59:00.000-05:00

The Nintendo DS continues to dominate markets across the world...

"DS top-selling game device in Australia between April and June

Nintendo DS sales in Australia almost equal to all three next-gen consoles combined; PS3 top-selling new console."

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6173675.html

Hollywood and Games Summit 2007

2007-07-05T22:09:00.000-05:00

I accompanied Lindsay Drucker from Flashpoint Academy to LA last week to attend the Hollywood and Games Summit. We saw some great technologies (Eyetronics, Gamester, and a few others), and met some amazing people from around the world with great passion in the converging and collaborating industries of film and gaming. We also met with Activision, and they are coming to see our school in late July.

Check out Lindsay's Eyetronics face scan!

Headline: Video games rob reading, homework time

2007-07-05T11:15:00.000-05:00

This is very interesting (see below) -- because while they pitch the headline as negative, the results may be in fact less negative than it appears. I love reading and I think there is nothing quite like the cognitive benefit of doing it; however, for a hard-core game player, they are processing just as much complex information visually. It is a different type of learning and enrichment, but it certainly is an active process, engaging much of the mind. It is in fact rewiring the way we process our world and work within it. It is engaging on many different levels, and hardly a waste of time (although it can diminish some social activity, as I've personally experienced; I don't have as much time to hang out with people who don't play games! Just kidding...).

This commonly held idea out there that gaming robs one of good things in life is rather backward. It dramatically changes the way we live for sure. A recent UK study found that nearly 100% of children under the age of 10 play video games (or at least have played them in some form or other).

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/07/03/video.games.reut/index.html

Study: Video games rob reading, homework time

Story Highlights:

Study: Gamers spend less time reading and doing homework
Girls spend less time doing homework, boys spend less time reading
Gaming does not impact time spent with friends and parents
Video game play can be a distraction but may not hurt grades

WorldsInMotion.biz Reveals Online World Atlas

2007-07-05T10:21:00.000-05:00

Check out the following site. This sort of coverage should be interesting to watch, especially as we study, build, and give life to new Virtual Worlds at Flashpoint Academy.

http://www.worldsinmotion.biz/atlas/

"Alongside our daily coverage of online worlds, WorldsInMotion.biz is also building up a database of the major virtual worlds in this new Online World Atlas.

The virtual world guide, which will become the basis for the forthcoming Game Developer Research papers on virtual worlds, MMOs, and virtual items, includes information on the world, its payment model, key features, useful links, and a brief in-world guide, including exclusive screenshots and analysis on in-world interactions.

We're expecting to add approximately two worlds per week to the Online World Atlas, so check back often to see the latest specifics on a multitude of virtual environments."

Future Flashpoint Student!

2007-07-05T10:09:00.000-05:00

Check out the awesome mod work by a future Flashpoint Academy student at www.cubedude89.com. He has given me some great feedback and suggestions and I look forward to having him join the school.

Some of My Art...

2007-07-05T09:43:00.001-05:00

As a hobby, I do from time to time enjoy painting; here are a couple of pieces from my private collection. I think it is important to explore creative expression in other mediums.

A Few Retail Titles...

2007-07-05T09:28:00.000-05:00

Here are the box art for a smattering of the retail titles I've worked on, including Eraser: Turnabout, You Don't Know Jack: 5th Dementia, Veggie Tales: Veggie Carnival, Where's Waldo? Exploring Geography, and Warheads SE. In working on these released titles, I've coded in C, C++, Java, and ActionScript. I also did music composition using various MIDI and MOD technologies for Eraser and Warheads SE. These products were released from 1996 to 2003. Others are not pictured at the present time, including the Ultimate Mah Jongg Collection published by Encore. Unpublished projects include Mechwarrior 3 and You Don't Know Me.

Some Games From My Past...

2007-07-05T09:14:00.000-05:00

These are some of the games I created with Brain Block Interactive, where I designed, produced, engineered and published my own titles. The release dates range from the late '90s up to a few years ago. I will add the rest soon. These include Arcade Mah Jongg, Logication, and Super Bubbles as pictured below. Others not pictured include Bloink and AmmoBoy. I also composed original music which is featured in Super Bubbles and Logication.

Greetings!

2007-07-05T00:39:00.000-05:00

Hello, and welcome to my cozy corner where I've decided to set up shop these days. Stay a while!