April 22nd, 2013
The science behind goose bumps is fairly well understood – but that ‘music chill’ you get sometimes when you hear certain melodies or sounds – well not so much. Could it be that what you hear evokes a specific emotional reaction?
Scientists are not sure but Cogswell College is offering a class this summer, “Theory and Practice of Sound Work” that may dig a little deeper into the issue.
Take a few minutes to watch this short video to learn a little more about this phenomenon.
What music or sounds give you ‘music chills?’
Tags: goosebumps, Music chills, science of goosebumps, science of music chills, theory of sound work
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April 19th, 2013
Ever been to a presentation where evil trolls seemed to have taken over every technical apparatus around? Nothing worked right and the poor presenter muddled through the best he could while dealing with a blank screen, no audio or wrong slide deck.
Now imagine yourself in the situation. Entrepreneurs often have to think on their feet and be prepared for any eventuality.
This article in Inc.com offers some helpful tips to deal with presentations that run into technical glitches and how to avoid them in the first place.
Tags: glitches in presentation, Presentation problems, technology issues during presentation, tips to deal with presentation problems
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April 18th, 2013
Ever wonder what it would be like to be a team member on a AAA Title game? Cogswell College alumnus, Will Christiansen, talks about his experience and shares examples of his work on Halo 4 in this edition of inside 343 Industries.
“Sitting and working right at the crossroads between design, functionality and how our worlds come to life is what the primary role is for a Gameplay Animator at 343,” said Christiansen.
According to Will, there is always something new and different to challenge him in his work. Take a few minutes to check out his hand-keyed animations in his Halo 4 demo reels.
Tags: 343 Industires, Game Play animator, halo 4, Will Christiansen
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April 17th, 2013
One of our alumni played this game at GDC and said, “It was a weird but euphoric experience. Definitely want to see where this is going!”
The company is currently looking for funding using Kickstarter and has almost reached its goal. The game is the brainchild of Robin Arnott, the sound designer for Antichamber and creator of “that creepy gasmask game” Deep Sea.
Check out the game and let us know what you think.
Tags: SoundSelf game
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April 16th, 2013
If you live and die by the GPUs (that’s Graphic Processing Units for the uninitiated), you know the time these chips save you every time you redraw a 3D scene.
In this tutorial from the session he led at the 2013 GTC, Laurence Emms from Pixar, gives a brief overview of the history of GPUs, a discussion and demo of how GPUs are used at Pixar and the future of GPU development in the industry.
What solutions have you used to make your workflow faster?
Tags: Animation pipeline, Laurence Emms, Pixar Renderman
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April 15th, 2013
Students have used their ballpoint pens to doodle – well, since ballpoint pens were invented. But this is crazy awesome!
Can’t imagine how many hours artists put into producing the artwork for this unique game. Beak-nosed creatures scamper, Mario-like through this fantastical world encountering all sorts of bad guys and adventures along the way.
Check out this short video and let us know what you think about their efforts.
Tags: Ballpoint Universe, game art with ballpoint pens, hand-drawn game art
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April 12th, 2013
So Project Awakened didn’t reach its Kickstarter funding goal. Now what? In the case of Phosphor Games, the company decided to see if they could find investors through their website and a founder’s program – which looks suspiciously like the Kickstarter format.
While the potential to reach their fundraising goal looks remote – 29 days left to raise $150K – they are trying to listen to their fans and provide the game experience fans say they want.
In this article by Penny Arcade, Justin Corcoran, CEO of Phosphor Games, talks about their Kickstarter experience and the steps they took to breathe new life into their project. Equally interesting are the comments made by the readers about the game and chances for success.
Do you think this is a viable option for failed Kickstarter campaigns?
Tags: crowdsourced funding, Kickstarter, Phosphor Games
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April 11th, 2013
Join Justin Mauldin, Director of Marketing at Papaya Mobile in this Application Developers Alliance interview.
He talks about the need to understand your niche audience, the importance of engaging influencers in the pre-launch period and how to stand out among the million other apps on the market. Learn the steps you need to take to avoid becoming a zombie app.
Check out the video.
Tags: Justin Mauldin, Marketing your app, Papaya Mobile, tips to market your app
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April 10th, 2013
Sequels can often be a disappointment as the next in a series cruises on the coattails of the original. Sequels have the reputation for lacking imagination and a unique story. They stick to the tried and true and fail to explore new territory or character growth.
Using BioShock Infinite as the example, Games Radar uncovers eight lessons all other sequels should learn in order to avoid the sequel blahs.
Anyone played the game yet? What are your thoughts?
Tags: 8 lessons for sequels, BioShock Infinte
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April 9th, 2013
Here’s something for all our animation fans.
Top Gun meets crop duster? Let’s see what the little guy can do. When it becomes a Disneyland attraction, can’t wait to go on that ride.
In typical Disney fashion, the trailer shows off great character development and ‘feel like you’re part of the action’ scenery.
Check out the trailer.
Set to hit the movie screens in August, do you think this film will give Pixar’s “Cars” a run for its money?
Tags: Disney's Planes, Pixar's Cars
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