
Official Website | @Official_GDC | @GDC_Online | GDC GAF Meetup Thread
What's the Game Developers Conference? Source
The Game Developers Conference (GDC) is the world's largest and longest-running professionals-only game industry event. The GDC attracts over 22,500 attendees, and is the primary forum where programmers, artists, producers, game designers, audio professionals, business decision-makers and others involved in the development of interactive games gather to exchange ideas and shape the future of the industry. The GDC is produced by the UBM Tech Game Network.
This market defining conference features over 400 lectures, panels, tutorials and round-table discussions on a comprehensive selection of game development topics taught by leading industry experts. In addition, the GDC expo showcases all of the most relevant game development tools, platforms and services helping to drive the industry forward. The conference also features the fourteenth annual Independent Games Festival, the longest-running and largest festival relating to independent games worldwide, where original games compete for the attention of the publishing community, and the twelfth annual Game Developers Choice Awards, the premier accolades for peer-recognition in the digital games industry.
*Search through the full sessions scheduler here
Notable sessions taking place (no live streams though)
- Balancing Act: Narrative and Mission Design in Assassin's Creed III
- Developing a Second Screen Experience with Xbox SmartGlass (Presented by Microsoft)
- Overview of PS4 for Developers (Presented by Sony Computer Entertainment America)
- Photorealism Through the Eyes of a FOX: The Core of Metal Gear Solid Ground Zeroes (Presented by Kojima Productions)
- Empowering the Player in a Story-Rich World: Co-Directing Dishonored
- Crossing Microsoft Screens: Building Cross Platform Gameplay in Skulls of the Shogun (Presented by Microsoft)
- Into the Crucible: Forging a Triple-A Game and a Triple-A Studio Simultaneously
- Powering up Destiny’s Level Creation and Rendering with Umbra 3
- The Art Direction of DmC Devil May Cry
- PlayStation Vita Development: From Start-to-Finish and Why You Should Be Excited About It (Presented by Sony Computer Entertainment America)
- Nintendo Wii U Application Development with HTML and JavaScript
Notable sessions for Indie Developers
- How to Make an Original F2P Game
- Free Indie Games: Curating the DIY Revolution
- Design Occlusion is Killing Your Creativity
- Designing Without a Pitch - FTL Postmortem
- Indie Soapbox
- Bedroom Developments: Making PlayStation Games in Your Underwear
- Building a Great Studio Culture on a Budget
Featured Livestreams:
IGF & Choice Awards Ceremony (LIVESTREAM LINK IS HERE)
Location: GDC Ballroom, West Hall
Date: March 27
Time: 6:30PM - 8:30PM (Pacific Time)
Format: Special Event
Vault Recording: Video
About:
The IGF was established in 1998 to encourage innovation in game development and to recognize the best independent game developers. At the awards ceremony, the IGF gives out eight awards and over $55,000 in total prize money to the most innovative independent games. The awards are held in conjunction with the Game Developers Choice Awards. Learn more about the IGF at www.igf.com.
The Game Developers Choice Awards are the premier accolades for peer-recognition in the digital games industry, celebrating creativity, artistry and technological genius. Industry professionals from around the world nominate for the awards, free of charge, ensuring that the recipients reflect the community's opinions. Learn more about the GDCA at www.gamechoiceawards.com.
The Core of MGS Ground ZeroesHideo Kojima (LIVESTREAM LINK IS HERE)
Hideki Sasaki | CG Art Director, Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.
Masayuki Suzuki | Lighting Artist, Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.
Junji Tago | Technical Director, Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.
Location: Room 2014, West Hall
Date: March 27
Time: 11:00AM - 12:30PM (Pacific Time)
Format: Lecture
Vault Recording: Video
Tracks: Design, Visual Arts
About:
Join Hideo Kojima and the Kojima Productions staff as they demonstrate and explain the workflow and development process of Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes on the Fox Engine. This session will mainly cover the key components and unique methods Kojima Productions utilizes in the graphics arena to create visuals seen in METAL GEAR SOLID GROUND ZEROES. Participants can expect an overview of topics such as asset creation and rendering techniques used in the next METAL GEAR SOLID. Enjoy the session as Kojima Productions unveils the FOX Engine for the first time.
Speakers
Hideo Kojima | Corporate Officer (EVP), Contents Officer, Director of Kojima Productions, Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.
Hideo Kojima joined Konami in 1986. He has consistently led the production of the Metal Gear series from the first title (released in 1987) to the newest titles. As a world renowned game creator, Kojima was honored with a "Lifetime Achievement Award" at the 2009 Game Developers Choice Awards and recognized as one of the "10 Important People to Watch" by Newsweek in 2001. The award-winning Konami developer continues to take on new challenges in the production of the latest Metal Gear titles, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance and Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes.
Hideki Sasaki | CG Art Director, Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.
Hideki Sasaki joined Konami in 1996. He was part of the Environment Art team for MGS1 and moved on to be the lead character artist for MGS2 - MGS4, directing and creating popular characters throughout the series. Currently, he is overseeing the art direction of MGS: Ground Zeroes as the CG Art Director.
Masayuki Suzuki | Lighting Artist, Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.
Masayuki Suzuki joined Konami in 2012. He is currently overseeing the lighting in Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes.
Junji Tago | Technical Director, Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.
Junji Tago joined Konami in 2003, and immediately played a big role in MGS4 as he directed the player program and physics engine. He is now the lead for the development of the Fox Engine.
Classic Game Postmortem: X-COM (LIVESTREAM LINK IS HERE)
Julian Gollop | Independent, Gollop Games
Location: Room 2014, West Hall
Date: March 28
Time: 10:00AM - 11:00AM (Pacific Time)
Format: Lecture
Vault Recording: Video
About:
Firaxis' and 2K Games' recent X-COM: Enemy Unknown is actually a remake of a series that began twenty years ago. It all started in 1994 with MicroProse's UFO: Enemy Unknown, entitled X-COM: UFO Defense in North America, a real-time base management simulation with turn-based tactical combat and an engaging story of alien invasion. The marriage of its distinct Geoscape and Battlescape views represented the game's strategy and battle modes, respectively; and they provided what felt like two different and compelling games in one. In this postmortem, Julian Gollop will lay out the tactics he deployed in directing, co-designing, co-programming, and even co-drawing the first, and often highest regarded, UFO/X-COM entry.
Speaker
Julian Gollop | Independent, Gollop Games
Julian Gollop began his game development career in 1982 by making games for various 8-bit and 16-bit home computers. This work led to a contract with MicroProse to produce X-Com: UFO Defense. After producing one more X-Com game for MicroProse, Julian went on to build his development company with his brother Nick, and produced games for Virgin and Namco before moving to Bulgaria. There he joined Ubisoft as a designer/producer, and built a team to make a 3DS release title, Ghost Recon: Shadow Wars, and then took on the role of creative director for Assassin's Creed III: Liberation for the PS Vita. He recently left Ubisoft to become an indie developer working on a remake of one of his earliest titles.
Brave New World: New Bungie IP (LIVESTREAM LINK IS HERE)
Christopher Barrett | Art Director, Bungie
Joe Staten | Writer, Design Director, Bungie
Location: Room 134, North Hall
Date: March 28
Time: 4:00PM - 5:00PM (Pacific Time)
Format: Lecture
Vault Recording: Video
Tracks: Visual Arts, Design
About:
Two decades of success in the gaming industry is no small feat, but after ten years of Halo, Bungie found themselves faced with a tremendous challenge: to build a whole new world, filled with even more amazing mysteries, places, creatures, and opportunities for player investment. For the first time ever, Bungie creative directors will discuss their world building techniques, from concept to production. Attendees will walk away with key insights into Bungie's battle-tested design process. They'll get a glimpse of the brave new world that has been built, a place where the next ten years of great Bungie adventures will unfold.
Takeaway
In a presentation filled with concept art and design case studies, attendees will learn about Bungie's world building pillars, and see how these were put to use to create Bungie's next great universe of games.
Intended Audience
While the talk is focused on art and design collaboration, takeaways will be useful for members of all game development disciplines who are eager to improve their team's world building process. There are no prerequisites.
Speakers
Christopher Barrett | Art Director, Bungie
Christopher Barrett has spent eleven of his twelve years in the gaming industry at Bungie. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York.
Joe Staten | Writer, Design Director, Bungie
Chances are, if the Bungie logo is on the box, Joe Staten had a whole lot to do with it. Over the past eleven years he has been essential to the studio's success, having contributed his creative vision to publishing, design, writing, cinematic, and creative teams. Staten also authored the New York Times Best Seller, Contact Harvest, and provided the voice for Halo's beloved cannon fodder, the Grunts.