Video Game Technology Newsletter A Power Game Day! · Game Number 2 Tech Video Game Technology Newsletter Page 4 GiGuy ‐ Boston Dynamics Wrapping up the speaker parade was Alex

New England Institute of Technology Fall 2013

Number 2

GameTech Video Game Technology Newsletter

A Super Charged Power Game Day!

October 24th was a day to remember! A record breaking

number of students heard from industry leaders and had

the opportunity to experience cutting edge technology

first hand at New England Institute of Technology.

This year’s event started off with some background

information about Modeling and Simulation (M&S) in

preparation for several of the guest speakers from that

industry. M&S, with primarily an audience of military

training, truly represents a doubling of the potential

employment opportunity marketplace for NEIT VGDD

graduates.

Sonalyst Studios

Bob Kurzawa, Vice President at Sonalyst Studios in

Connecticut, led off the parade of speakers, describing

Sonalyst’s role in the M&S industry from gaming to

underwater sonar technology. Sonalyst’s expansion into

the video and audio world of entertainment was also

explored. In his talk, Kurzawa, a retired Naval Officer,

described his life journey, offering students advice

gleaned from his real life experiences. In an open, frank

discussion, his message was to always do your best,

always be learning and go enthusiastically where life

leads you.

Last Quarter, Sonalyst hosted an intern from the NEIT

VGDD Department. A successful relationship developed

and the intern was hired for a full‐time position.

The afternoon Game Expo brought students

virtually “into the game.”


Number 2

GameTech Video Game Technology Newsletter Page 2

Chrysler Academy/NEIT

Joining Instructor Jay Aguiar were Kristin Bowler and Alok

Mishra from the Chrysler Corporation in Detroit, Michigan

to announce a new industry/VGDD relationship. Ms.

Bowler explained how gamification is used by Chrysler for

training its employees across the country. Over the next

few months Chrysler will be working with the Faculty and

the Administration to develop meaningful activities and

learning scenarios for our students. This is hopefully the

start of a long term relationship that will prepare stu‐

dents for real world positions..

Microsoft

Michael Cummings, Microsoft Evangelist, visited us from

the Cambridge offices of Microsoft. He presented a

survey of the various software offerings Microsoft has

developed relating to the video game industry. The talk

covered new tools to help streamline development. At

the conclusion of the talk, Cummings conducted an ex‐

tended Q & A session addressing topics ranging from Vis‐

ual Studio to XNA. In the afternoon expo, Michael hosted

a Microsoft booth where he was able to speak at length

to students, answering their questions and discussing

ideas. The VGDD faculty looks forward to working with

Michael toward optimizing the integration of Microsoft’s

latest developments into the curriculum.

What’s the difference between VGDD, GDS & VGD?

In case you are confused, VGDD stands for “Video Game

Development and Design,” the technology degree program

here at NEIT. Within the VGDD technology, students can

earn degrees with either a GDS (Game Development and

Simulation) emphasis on programming or a VGD (Video

Game Design) emphasis on design. Simple, right?

Power Game Day 2013!


Number 2


Defective Studios

Returning to Power Game Day, Jono Forbes led his team

in updating students on the developments of their game,

Gimbal Cop. Perhaps the coolest development is the inte‐

gration of the Oculus Rift into the game play. The team

showed some of the process of working with the stereo

vision set up within Unity, the game software used for

their development. Their presentation included valuable

tips and insights they have acquired through their experi‐

ence.

In the afternoon Game Expo, Defective Studios let stu‐

dents try their Oculus Rift head sets first hand. Currently,

the hardware is only available to software developers.

Students expressed their thoughts on the experience to

Defective which, according to them, was the best

meaningful feedback they have had to date. Great for

their development process.

Disco Pixel

Industry veteran, Trevor Stricker, from Disco Pixel

presented a talk on breaking into the video game

industry. Students listened intently to the insights Trevor

shared about the realities of entry level positions for

both designers and programmers. Learning about the

interviewing process, the types of entry level positions

and the traits of potential candidates for those positions

were invaluable to the future graduates in the audience.

After fifteen years working at major game companies,

Trevor has started a new venture, creating Disco Pixel

with some fellow industry vets. Jungle Rumble is the title

of their first effort with more to come soon.


Number 2


GiGuy ‐ Boston Dynamics

Wrapping up the speaker parade was Alex Broadbent

from Boston Dynamics. Alex showcased the company’s

M&S game “DiGuy.” Utilizing their optimized engine,

DiGuy is capable of creating large numbers of animated

characters using AI in complex crowd formations. The

program can create unique models with an array of tex‐

tures , managing them all in an active window of play.

The game also has path creation that allows the designer

to customize a character’s animation path. Recently the

company developed the program to interface with Unity

3d, an important step for wider distribution.

Alex also showed Boston Dynamics’ developments in the

field of robotics. Initially, their robots are designed on the

computer with sophisticated simulations, run for calculat‐

ing the robot’s reactions to physics, inertia, etc. Once the

robot virtual issues are resolved, they manufacture the

live robot. The process is a successful example of the im‐

portance of utilizing modeling & simulation to do cost

effective development.

Boston Dynamics was very impressed with the VGDD

program here at NEIT and has proposed we explore a

formal relationship to benefit students in the creation of

creative solutions to video game development.

Global Game Jam 2014! 48‐Hours of Making Games! NEIT has once again been approved as an official GGJ site for January 24‐26. The event is open to all over 18 years

of age. Time to bring in your friends to show off your game making talents!

Please register on both the GGJ site and the NEIT site and to find more information.

To register on the GJ site, go to www.GlobalGameJam.org , login/create login and then find us in “Locations.”

Then click on the “Join this Site” button.

Also, please Register at NEIT’s site: http://globalgamejam.neit.edu/GlobalGameJam.htm


Number 2


Power Game Day Game Expo! New to Power game Day, the Game Expo allowed

vendors to speak one‐on‐one with students and faculty.

The afternoon event featured high tech products like the

Virtusphere, oculus Rift and the latest Cintiq line‐up from

Wacom. Several student teams also exhibited their

games.


Number 2


Power Game Day Game Expo!


Number 2


Power Game Day Game Expo! Demos in both the Game Expo areas (S330 and S249) were packed to the wall with students eager to try the products. Special thanks to Virtusphere for bringing their product from Ney York.

Video Game Technology Newsletter A Power Game Day! · Game Number 2 Tech Video Game Technology Newsletter Page 4 GiGuy ‐ Boston Dynamics Wrapping up the speaker parade was Alex

Documents