This was a fun way to start the Never Ending Film. I hope it freaks you out a little. It was fun trying to make my two year old look scary.
See the finished work at NeverEndingFilm.blogspot.com.
1. ISN’s Gaming Contest - Of course I’m going to list this one first. 
Intel’s Software Network and GarageGames are hosting a Game Demo Contest.
Brad Werth said, “The Game Demo Contest is a follow-up to a similar effort we did in 2006. We are looking for PC game demos that push the technological edge by showing good threading practice or by implementing cool mobility features that make the game easier or more fun to play on a laptop.”
You’ll hear more about this at GDC (Game Developer Convention) in two weeks, but I’ll go ahead and say the prizes in this one are amazing.
2. FuturePlay 2007 is asking for teams to submit games for their competition this year. They are asking for games in the following categories: Indie Games, Student Games and Serious Games.
Important dates: March 16, 2007 - deadline for a 1 or 2 page concept via email; August 1, 2007 - deadline for winners of round 1 to submit a fully working game; November 15-17 FuturePlay conference in Toronto, Canada where winners will exhibit their games and collect their prizes.
Full details are available on www.futureplay.org/games
If you are a developer, I hope you’ll take advantage of these opportunities to give your work the spotlight. There’s nothing like a little competition, especially to a gamer, so get cracking. I can’t wait to see what you come up with.
Jim Vinson posted a delighted email to the videoblogging group tonight announcing that Dr DivX for Mac is now open source. I’m sure this was an ordeal, but I’m glad to see it was important enough to devote the resources to making happen.
I’ve been meaning to get into the meat of this for a while but have been swamped. CV does a much better job than I would have anyway with this screencast explaining the Web 2.0 TDK and some possible uses. I love that you can see whether or not the user has a single or dual core pc and how many CPUs as well.
ISN’s Web 2.0 TDK (click to view video)
*Note: The Web 2.0 TDK is free to download (and royalty free as well). If you have implemented it, please email me so I can let everyone there know that their work is being used.
For those of you who weren’t chosen to receive the Halo 3 beta, you can pick up a copy of Crackdown today and download the beta via XBox Live. (That’s where I’m going right now!)
This is really smart marketing as this game is reaching a valuable segment of gamers (the Halo fanbase is legendary, and those who would want to play the beta are even more invested in the franchise). I mean, do we really think that Crackdown just went gold because people want to play it? Heck no, people are buying this game because they want the beta.
It will be played by the people who will drive valuable, and measurable, WOM and if it’s any good, they will talk about it incessantly. Of course, if it sucks, the entire world will hear about it too.
Either way, this is a sneaky, almost coercive, way to market a game (and I like it).