Mike Rossmassler

[18:13] justinallynhall: aw
[18:13] justinallynhall: he could talk about a lot of interesting things, I'll bet
[18:16] Hokyman164: oooh Pascal!
[18:16] justinallynhall: canadian army
[18:16] Hokyman164: I used that for Comp Sci AP!
[18:16] Hokyman164: btw who's gj?
[18:16] okamilink: powerglove modding
[18:17] ThTruffleShuffle: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_Glove
[18:18] ThTruffleShuffle: independence-itis
[18:19] justinallynhall: has any recent 511 speaker spoken whilst standing up?
[18:21] marientina: we need some juicier trivia
[18:21] ThTruffleShuffle: layer section: http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~bevhome/rayforcerev.htm
[18:23] Aaron4281: POC = proof of concept
[18:23] Hokyman164: the wikipedia entry isn't entirely correct regarding Sierra.
[18:23] Hokyman164: Sierra On-Line was an actual company. Sierra Studios or Sierra Entertainment is just a brand-name.
[18:23] Hokyman164: the real publisher is Vivendi Games.
[18:24] ThTruffleShuffle: one day turnaround
[18:24] ThTruffleShuffle: from pitch to check
[18:25] ThTruffleShuffle: 3 months advance of royalties = $150,000
[18:25] marientina: canadian?
[18:25] ThTruffleShuffle: probably
[18:26] justinallynhall: not
[18:26] justinallynhall: negociating with a US company in Bellevue
[18:26] ThTruffleShuffle: even though it's in vancouver?
[18:27] justinallynhall: shrug
[18:27] justinallynhall: "friggit"
[18:27] ThTruffleShuffle: frigate?
[18:28] Hardcoremoogles: has joined the chat
[18:29] ThTruffleShuffle: 14 month projection turned into 28 months
[18:29] ThTruffleShuffle: and ~$3 million dollars
[18:33] ThTruffleShuffle: storytelling through animatics
[18:33] ThTruffleShuffle: animatic = storyboarding
[18:34] justinallynhall: http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/homeworld?q=homeworld
[18:34] Hokyman164: <3 producers
[18:34] ThTruffleShuffle: yes == motley crue?
[18:35] nkymut: http://www.progarchives.com/Progressive_rock_discography_BAND.asp?band_id=105
[18:36] Aaron4281: whoa
[18:36] Aaron4281: looks like F-Zero GX
[18:36] Hokyman164: does look anime-ish
[18:37] justinallynhall: nakayama - you like Yes?
[18:38] ThTruffleShuffle: here's a link to the Yes mp3
[18:38] ThTruffleShuffle: http://www.3ddownloads.com/relicnews/mp3
[18:39] Aaron4281: we should listen to it when he finishes his talk and the credits roll
[18:40] Hokyman164: is this a positive description of the guy?
[18:41] justinallynhall: I just read a charitable reconsideration of the Web 1.0 Bubble in the Wall Street Journal
[18:41] ThTruffleShuffle: link?
[18:41] justinallynhall: saying that an average number of companies actually survived
[18:41] Hokyman164: yes I read your email.
[18:42] Hokyman164: 20% survived based on smaller companies staying in business due to successfully playing to their niches.
[18:42] justinallynhall: Mike - I think it's subscription online
[18:42] justinallynhall: yeah!
[18:42] justinallynhall: that's right Josh
[18:42] ThTruffleShuffle: bugmenot
[18:46] ThTruffleShuffle: sold 1.5 million units but didn't make a lot of moneu
[18:46] ThTruffleShuffle: *money
[18:47] Hokyman164: I can relate to that....
[18:48] ThTruffleShuffle: complaints about Vivendi-era sierra are relatively commonplace, iirc
[18:48] ThTruffleShuffle: half-life was published by them, and Valve got burned so badly that they developed Steam as a result
[18:48] Hokyman164: they're more professional now than they ever have been afaik. but they're still having trouble.
[18:48] Hokyman164: bungling things with valve is part of the trouble part.
[18:49] michaelnaimark: has left the chat
[18:49] justinallynhall: a very recent game from relic that is more highly reviewed than Homeworld: http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/companyofheroes
[18:49] Hokyman164: they also lost another huge developer about a year ago after releasing a popular game
[18:51] Aaron4281: yea its weird tho
[18:51] Aaron4281: company of heroes seems to out of step with homeworld
[18:51] Aaron4281: i never would've imagined a ww2 game coming from relic
[18:51] Hokyman164: I think they're just THQ's rts arm now
[18:52] ThTruffleShuffle: the mythical man month
[18:52] ThTruffleShuffle: by Fred Brooks
[18:52] justinallynhall: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mythical_Man-Month
[18:52] ujmiii: has joined the chat
[18:52] justinallynhall: The Mythical Man-Month
[18:52] justinallynhall:
Assigning more programmers to a project running behind schedule will make it even later, due to the time required for the new programmers to learn about the project, and the increased communications overhead.
[18:53] ThTruffleShuffle: ramp-up time
[18:54] ThTruffleShuffle: darn, someone already has somethingorother.com
[18:55] ThTruffleShuffle: producers are necessary for games, from the beginning
[18:57] justinallynhall: talking out his arse
[18:57] Hokyman164: Would he ever consider going back into games?
[18:57] justinallynhall: grumpy about dotcom
[18:57] ThTruffleShuffle: chief of customer realization
[18:58] ThTruffleShuffle: game projects can get long, with a fair turnover at the end
[18:58] ThTruffleShuffle: people want to change things up
[18:58] ThTruffleShuffle: down-time between titles is good as well
[19:01] Hokyman164: how does better get cheaper?!?!?!
[19:04] justinallynhall: there's always a race that disappears! wow
[19:04] justinallynhall: FASA
[19:04] justinallynhall: Homeworld
[19:04] ThTruffleShuffle: like the ancients in stargate?
[19:05] ThTruffleShuffle: freeform camera was difficult to reconcile with the proposed terrain
[19:05] ThTruffleShuffle: ultimately, they discarded terrain
[19:10] ThTruffleShuffle: Computer Graphics Practice and Principle
[19:10] ThTruffleShuffle: Foley & Van Dam
[19:10] Hokyman164: not everyone does programming here...
[19:10] justinallynhall: http://www.amazon.com/Computer-Graphics-Principles-Practice-2nd/dp/0201848406
[19:11] Aaron4281: everyone ought to
[19:12] Hokyman164: everyone ought to learn how to fly a NASA shuttle?
[19:12] Aaron4281: umm... if they are going to be an astronaut, sure
[19:12] ThTruffleShuffle: hahaha
[19:12] Hokyman164: or how about become a lion tamer!
[19:12] Aaron4281: if you are going to be an MFA in interactive media, you should be able to make interactive media
[19:13] Aaron4281: not just tell someone else how to make it for you
[19:13] Hokyman164: making interactive media does not equate to programming things.
[19:13] Aaron4281: its almost always a part of the recipe
[19:13] Hokyman164: there's plenty of ways to make interactive media without knowing how to program.
[19:14] Aaron4281: whatever dude. stop making excuses for yourself!
[19:14] Hokyman164: stop being a progammer snob.
[19:14] marientina: take it offline
[19:14] Aaron4281: i said my piece :-*
[19:16] ThTruffleShuffle: teamwork is as much a part of rampup time as the tools
[19:17] justinallynhall: aaron mocks non-programmers in the IMD
[19:17] justinallynhall: "placement"
[19:17] Hokyman164: there are people like that here?
[19:17] justinallynhall: dating service for students
[19:17] Hokyman164: COUGH
[19:18] justinallynhall: you need a date josh?
[19:18] Hokyman164: by next semester yep
[19:18] justinallynhall: http://www.okcupid.com/
[19:19] ThTruffleShuffle: intern slave labour
[19:20] ThTruffleShuffle: outsourcing is a reality in games
[19:21] ThTruffleShuffle: Australia is a good place to work in games?
[19:21] ThTruffleShuffle: did he say that they are subsidized?
[19:21] Aaron4281: hmm
[19:21] mtuters@mac.com: has joined the chat
[19:22] Aaron4281: i think you'd hear about more australian game studios if they were
[19:22] ThTruffleShuffle: the french government just announced that they would partially subsidize french games studios
[19:22] ThTruffleShuffle: in the same manner that they support cinema
[19:23] Aaron4281: it wasn't quite subsidizing though
[19:23] Aaron4281: more like tax breaks, right?
[19:23] okamilink: They said they'd protect Ubi back when EA was buying, right?
[19:23] ThTruffleShuffle: i don't know. i didn't have time to read the article, only the headlines
[19:23] justinallynhall: AP is reporting that Webb has won the Virginia Senate race
[19:23] ThTruffleShuffle: dude, they announced that hours ago
[19:24] Aaron4281: WOOHOO
[19:24] Aaron4281: does that mean that they won't ask for a recount?
[19:24] justinallynhall: buck fush
[19:24] ThTruffleShuffle: the opponent still hasn't conceded
[19:24] Aaron4281: because the margin was small enough according to VA law
[19:24] ThTruffleShuffle: sounds like it
[19:25] ThTruffleShuffle: programming principles over technical skills
[19:27] ThTruffleShuffle: looking for a demo of some sort
[19:27] ThTruffleShuffle: or demo reel
[19:29] ThTruffleShuffle: uniqueness should be apparent
[19:30] ThTruffleShuffle: compatibility with the overall team
[19:31] Hokyman164: has left the chat
[19:33] ThTruffleShuffle: ways to get rich developing computer games:
[19:34] ThTruffleShuffle: work hard and climb the ladder
[19:34] ThTruffleShuffle: make great games and live off the royalties
[19:35] justinallynhall: THQ reveals price paid for RTS developer Relic Entertainment
[19:35] justinallynhall: In a recent filing with the American Securities & Exchange Commission, the publisher noted that it paid $6 million to Relic's owners during the April to June quarter, with another $4 million due over the next two years.
[19:35] ThTruffleShuffle: multi-game deals are a bad idea
[19:35] ThTruffleShuffle: get the team together before you start the studio
[19:36] okamilink: Ocarina of Time got 5 red stars... or gold stars, i don't remember how they formatted it.
[19:37] ThTruffleShuffle: making games today is completely different today
[19:37] ThTruffleShuffle: $800,000 dollars was a huge budget in 94
[19:38] Aaron4281: yea but he made Homeworld in 96-97
[19:39] ThTruffleShuffle: he ran though those too quickly for me to transcribe
[19:40] Aaron4281: now there are distribution models in place for smaller games to get on next-gen consoles
[19:40] Aaron4281: so there is something to be said for that too
[19:40] ThTruffleShuffle: that does not necessarily negate all of the problems though
[19:41] ThTruffleShuffle: you still need good programmers
[19:41] Aaron4281: yea of course
[19:41] ThTruffleShuffle: it does increase exposure and distribution
[19:41] Aaron4281: but Jenova Chen's thesis game from this year is going to be avaliable on ps3 in a week or so
[19:41] Aaron4281: and that is thanks to the newly evolving distro model
[19:41] Aaron4281: couldn't have happened before
[19:42] ThTruffleShuffle: not so: look at red orchestra
[19:42] ThTruffleShuffle: they got a multi-million dollar deal out of the mod scene
[19:42] Aaron4281: yea... thats a totally different context
[19:42] ThTruffleShuffle: same as counterstrike
[19:42] Aaron4281: those are mods, with relatively large internet-coordinated teams
[19:42] Aaron4281: jenova made his game with one other guy
[19:43] ThTruffleShuffle: counterstrike was originally 3 people
[19:43] okamilink: well, the game that's coming out on PS3 isn't made with one other guy
[19:43] Aaron4281: right, but not too many more
[19:43] okamilink: i agree that there are new avenues opening up but in many ways it seems similar to older days, too
[19:44] okamilink: so a bit like getting back to where it was before
[19:44] Aaron4281: maybe so in terms of scale
[19:44] justinallynhall: alex garden is a serial entrepeneur
[19:44] justinallynhall: started his first company as a teen
[19:44] Aaron4281: but before, there was no xbox marketplace or whatever sony's thing will be called
[19:44] justinallynhall: has started multiple companies since then
[19:44] Aaron4281: and even though there are a lot of things to get through, to get your game on one of those
[19:45] Aaron4281: its still a big deal that it even exists
[19:45] Aaron4281: it kinda means that if your little flash game gets dugg 5000 times, you might get a pitch meeting
[19:45] ThTruffleShuffle: designing the game for testability will reduce testing in the end
[19:49] ThTruffleShuffle: two-day weekends tend to become one day weekends
[19:50] ThTruffleShuffle: keep feature creep in check...RJ
[19:50] okamilink: I kept it well in check, thanks.
[19:50] ThTruffleShuffle: Microsoft project is not as good as excel
[19:50] okamilink: (ahaha)
[19:53] okamilink: I like economics.
[19:54] justinallynhall: I am 2/3rds of the way to having an understanding of fine arts
[19:54] marientina: 2/3rds?
[19:54] marientina: that is not possible
[19:54] marientina: you're never supposed to geta full understanding
[19:55] marientina: and if you say you do you're full of crap
[19:55] Aaron4281: take it offline
[19:55] marientina: you just like having the last word aaron
[19:55] marientina: no matter what that is
[19:55] Aaron4281: just giving you a taste of your own tylenol3
[19:56] justinallynhall: aaron's last word is usually "poo on you"
[19:56] Aaron4281: justin's last word is "bmdw"
[19:56] ThTruffleShuffle: that is a phrase, not a word
[19:56] Aaron4281: ask him what that stands for
[19:56] justinallynhall: scott, have you been to SIGGRAPH?
[19:57] marientina: scott is not typing
[19:58] ujmiii: has left the chat
[19:58] ujmiii: has joined the chat
[19:58] marientina: justin could disseminate his 2/3 arts understanding to luke perhaps
[19:58] Aaron4281: haha
[19:59] justinallynhall: I need instructional materials to help me marientina!
[19:59] marientina: not that poster
[20:00] ujmiii: you all are hilarious. there's nothing like viewing the back channel without being there
[20:00] marientina: feel better jack!
[20:00] justinallynhall: aw
[20:00] ujmiii: working on it.