🎮 Sony plans to use AI to speed up game development, Starcraft shooter and new trailers...
🎮 Sony plans to use AI to speed up game development, Starcraft shooter and new trailers...
Sony on AI usage to speed up game development, The possibility of Starcraft shooter, The Last of Us Season 2 - New Trailer, The Day Before devs are back and asking for money and more!
Hello friends,
Today is October 1st 2024 and I hope you’ve had a great week 🙌
In today’s news:
🎮 Sony on AI usage to speed up game development
🎮 The possibility of Starcraft shooter
🎬 The Last of Us Season 2 - New Trailer
🎮 The Day Before devs are back and asking for money
⚡ Lightning Round!
🫡 True Tribute!
😄 Personal Update
All of this is brought to you in a 5 min format ⏲️
Let’s dig in!
🎮 Sony on AI usage to speed up game development
Sony recently published a new Corporate Report for 2024 where they went in-depth discussing the usage of AI and machine learning to shorten and improve the game development process.
It all starts on page 16 where Sony says:
Reinforcing Our Technology Base to Help Maximize IP Value
We are bolstering technologies that can help creators engage in maximizing the value of their IP in efficient, high-quality ways, including sensing and capturing as well as real-time 3D processing, AI, and machine learning. Building on these initiatives, we are moving toward solutions for delivering our IP rapidly and at low cost to a broader range of fans.
They also continue that they are putting an extra emphasis on Volumetric Capture Studio, which generates 3D data from people and locations to render high-quality images.
There are also some examples of how machine learning helped already-released projects:
For instance, we reused 3DCG components from a music video shot using virtual production to produce a game set in the same world, and released a proof-of-concept CGbased short film using the Unreal Engine. We used machine learning in the production of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, a game released last year that proved a major hit. By applying voicerecognition software in certain languages, we were able to automatically synchronize subtitles with each character’s lines, thereby significantly shortening the subtitling process. In India, a multilingual society, we are conducting research using AI technology and machine learning to shorten dubbing and translation processes.
My personal opinion is that AI is great, it’s a wonderful tool that with the right usage can work miracles and help a lot of people, game dev companies included. However, there has also been a lot of talk about plagiarism, creativity, and technology replacing people in the industry. And with major companies like Sony doubling down on AI usage, this debate is surely set to continue in the following years. It would be great if this sector was properly regulated, it may solve a lot of these debates.
What do you think about it? Do you think AI is the answer to the ongoing question of rising production costs?
🎮 The possibility of Starcraft shooter
According to the recent IGN interview with Jason Schreier about his upcoming book on the history and future of Blizzard, the company is still dreaming up a Starcraft shooter and the Starcraft 3 is somewhere very far away.
He said:
They are working on a StarCraft shooter, StarCraft is not dead at Blizzard. This felt like such an interesting and useful nugget to include because it really just shows you that Blizzard cannot quit StarCraft shooters.
He also added that it’s kind of a coin flip at the moment. It could come out or it could get cancelled. And that it’s the third attempt for Blizzard to create a Starcraft shooter with the earliest attempts being dated to 2002.
Honestly, I’d be down to play something in the Starcraft universe. A shooter may be cool, especially if it’s something like a third-person shooter like Space Marine 2. But with Microsoft calling the shots, I’m very sceptical to get my hopes up…
Would you play something like that?
🎬 The Last of Us Season 2 - New Trailer
HBO just released yet another trailer for the upcoming season of the acclaimed series and it’s amazing!
So many new things are teased in this footage. So far I have caught these ones:
Joel is having therapy sessions (or something of the similar matter)
The familiar landscape of Jackson
Ellie playing the guitar with Joel’s song playing in the background and how she plays for Dina
Jesse that looks ripped as f
Tommy and the onslaught of Jackson
Abby
And Isaac torturing someone
And I honestly can’t wait to see it. Unfortunately, there’s no official release date yet as the trailer vaguely says 2025… I’m still waiting though for a PC port for the second game that was allegedly in development. But perhaps they are going to sync their release dates with the second season as it’s not uncommon for the companies to do so.
Are you excited for the second season of this masterpiece?
If you haven’t subscribed yet, this button is just for you ⤵️
🎮 The Day Before devs are back and asking for money
Do you remember these guys from a year ago?
Here’s a small recap:
The Day Before, a very ambitious survival MMORPG was announced back in 2021 by a company Fntastic
Followed by a few trailers and gameplay overviews, it became one of the most wishlisted games on Steam ever
Then it was released in December 2023 and it shut down after only a few days (along with the company)
The game was a complete disaster. Most of the users thought that it was a scam as the game (if you can even call it like this) was a buggy mess that was an extraction shooter in it’s core. There was no mechanic or a feature in the game that worked, it looked awful and it quickly became an internet sensation as one of the most disastrous projects in the history of AAA. And then developers said in an X post that “sh*t happens”, refunded everyone and closed up shop. There were also rumours about stolen assets in the game, mismanagement on all levels and coercion of people to work for free on this game.
Fast forward to today, Fntastic 2.0 is back with a new pick and a Kickstarter campaign. I’m not even kidding. Here’s what they said on X:
Everyone deserves a second chance. We deeply apologize to everyone for The Day Before and take full responsibility for what happened.
Check out our plan, Fntastic 2.0, where we share how we’ll fix our past mistakes and are preparing to return better.
Regaining trust will be tough, but we're motivated to make more games if our Kickstarter succeeds. With its 'all or nothing' model, contributions will be refunded if we miss the target. We value your support, and all funds will go to development, not profit.
I mean, I have to hand it to them, they got some nerve getting back like that. But I sincerely doubt that anyone in their right mind will back them now. They completely ruined any trust a community had for them, they almost got away with what I can only describe as fraud and all they could say at the time is “sh*t happens”. As a person who was looking forward to playing The Day Before, I can say that I’m outraged. But this whole situation is hilarious.
Do you believe in second chances like this or are these guys irredeemable?
⚡ Lightning Round!
1…2…3…Go!
🎮 Assassin’s Creed Shadows will have base-building elements
According to Eurogamer, the latest developer diary video posted by IGN China (now removed, but re-uploaded elsewhere) has revealed that players will be given an acre of land that serves as a blank canvas on which to build. On it, you can drop down buildings and customise their looks, plus lay down paths and other smaller objects such as water wells.
So, it looks like the newest AC has something else prepared besides just stabbing people.
🎮 Former QA on Halo Infinite issues
Insider Gaming shared last week a very interesting take on why Halo Infinite struggled with issues. He says it was due to a number of factors, but one of the biggest is Microsoft’s “contracting policies”.
Microsoft’s contracting policies are single handedly one of the biggest issues that Halo faces. Can you imagine how difficult it is to do your best work knowing that they’ll get rid of you in 18 months and there’s nothing you can do about it?
The self inflicted brain drain is maddening to watch, and it’s (in my opinion) why most Microsoft exclusive titles are seeing a downturn in quality. They’ve created a business environment in which the talent they should be trying to cultivate is being pushed out the door and is then nabbed by other studios.
As a former QA, I agree that this environment is ridiculous, but for some reasons, it’s a great business model for the majority of companies. Especially when we talk about QA…
🎬 John Wick is back! Well, almost…
The latest addition to the John Wick universe introduces Ana de Armas as an infamous assassin affiliated with the same faction as John. It also features a bunch of familiar characters such as Winston, Charon and even a flashback with the Man himself. And it introduces a bunch of new ones, like a guy played by Norman Reedus.
Very exciting 🤩
🫡 True Tribute!
Today I wanted to salute
and the recent publication about the detailed analysis of why the vast majority of playtime is now spent on older games! has one of the biggest game-related Substacks on the platform and the content is just pure gold. Besides all the amazing interviews, analysis and insights that Ryan has to offer, each edition includes a mix of spicy and widely-discussed news links and occasional essays. It’s an amazing newsletter that you should definitely check out!
😄 Personal Update
Well, I’m finally done with setting up the Discord server! 🎉
I still have a bunch of things to figure out and I’ll spend most of this week wrapping it up, but if it all goes well I should be able to determine the official launch date quite soon.
Also, I’d like to say additional thanks for everyone who continues to sign up to be a part of the Inner Circle! Your support and attention mean the world to me!
Stay tuned for the official launch date in the following weeks.
This is all the news I have for you folks today.
Thanks for making it this far! 🙌
If you feel like supporting me and my work, consider Powering-Up GameDev Relay 🎮
Have a great week!
Alex from Gamedev Relay.
It will be fantastic if Blizzard could bring back StarCraft Ghost or a shooter in the StarCraft universe. My childhood game, I am happy to hear StarCraft is still being ideated at Blizzard. The only issue it will be going up against Warhammer Space Marine.
Well, if Fntastic really refunded everyone then I think the game wasn't really a scam but rather a case of overly enthusiastic approach to game development, while neglectic low skills in the team.
I say, we give'em a chance. But no money, before publishing the game ;-)