What i realized from attending two Game Developers Conferences is that Americans seem to really have their heads in the sand when it comes to gaming trends and the “next big thing.” Companies like Blizzard have flat-out rejected the lucrative microtransaction payment model for online games, while Far East companies like Nexon and QQ [...] Keep Reading

i split my time between MMO talks and entrepreneurship sessions at this year’s Game Developers Conference. The conference had a fair number of sessions featuring CEOs who discussed how they went from owning small startups to riding around in limousine hot tubs. i also attended a series of roundtable discussions called “Start-up Survival [...] Keep Reading

Game Developers Conference 2008 is over and it’s time to return to the snowy North. Here are my picks for the best and worst of everything i experienced there. Best New Game Announcement i was pretty impressed with APB, the new multiplayer game announced at a keynote by Realtime Worlds. Realtime Worlds also developed Crackdown, [...] Keep Reading

i’ve been to a few great sessions at GDC 08 so far, and i’m sure i’ll write about them at some point. Before we get to that, i want to get this ugly little rant off my chest. Easily the weakest session so far has been “Now That We’re All Here: Next Steps in Online [...] Keep Reading

Massively’s Tateru Nino has succinctly spelled out why mainstream media plays dirty pool in its coverage of “new” media in Why mainstream media hates the Internet, games, MMOs and you: Games and the Internet are ultimately perceived as a threat to mainstream media’s long-term profits and marketshare. Mainstream media doesn’t want you spending hours meeting [...] Keep Reading