[April Fool] AGS to move to PS3

Pumaman · Sun 01/04/2007 00:01:16

I've pasted Sony's press release below, and after that I'll explain what it means for you guys.
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Sony Europe PR-20070401/A

Sony signs exclusive deal to bring adventure gaming to PS3

LONDON, ENGLAND, 1st April 2007 - Sony Corporation, recognised world leader in consumer gaming, today signed an exclusive contract with BigBlueCup LTD -- the company responsible for the development of the Adventure Game Studio software suite -- to bring its adventure game creation software to the PlayStation (R) 3 gaming platform. This will open up the world-beating PlayStation (R) 3 console to run both commercial and "homebrew" games created with the AGS software.

Justine Kiding, spokeswoman for Sony Europe, said "This is a fantastic opportunity for gamers and game creators alike, as a whole new genre of games are made available to PlayStation owners. For game authors, it will open up an entirely new market of PlayStation (R) 3 gamers who will be able to buy Sony-approved AGS games through the new PlayStation Home internet service."

Chris Jones, the author of Adventure Game Studio and head of BigBlueCup LTD, said "I'm thrilled to finally be able to reveal this agreement, which has been in negotiation for several months. By converting AGS to work only with PlayStation (R) 3 consoles, game authors will have access to an exciting new market of gamers that has plenty of room for expansion. It also provides a secure platform that is not subject to the piracy worries that are faced by developers for the PC."

A new version of the Adventure Game Studio software, supporting the PlayStation (R) 3, is due to be released later this month, and conversions of several popular existing games such as the Ben Jordan series and Apprentice are expected to follow shortly afterwards.

ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS
(1) The PlayStation (R) 3 console is the newest, most advanced games console available today. With a fast-growing user base it is expected to overtake the sales of Bravia 42" HDTV's by the end of Q4 2007.
(2) Adventure Game Studio is a software package, founded in 1999, that allows people to make their own adventure games. Over 700 games have been produced to date, with more being released every week. It can be found at http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk

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So what does this mean to us as AGS users?

As of AGS 2.8, the AGS Editor will still be a Windows application but it will only create games for the PS3. A development kit will be available for easily testing your games on your PS3 console.
Unfortunately under the terms of the exclusive contract, I am not allowed to develop the Windows version (or any other ports) any further; so you will no longer be able to create Windows EXE files, and the Mac and Linux ports will not be able to run new games.
AGS 2.72 will still be available for people who want to make Windows games to continue doing so, however there will be no further updates to this version.

Doesn't this mean that the re-write of the editor was a waste of time?

Not at all! In fact, the main reason for the porting of the editor to .NET was to allow it to incorporate compiling games for the PS3. The Windows game engine has not undergone any recent updates because it is being totally re-written for the PS3, which will become clear in the new version when it is released at the end of April.

What is BigBlueCup LTD?

In order to sign a contract in the business world, I needed to create a limited company and transfer the AGS copyright to this company. But don't worry, I'm its only employee!

Your feedback on this is welcome. I know that some of you will be disappointed with this decision, but I hope you all appreciate the fanstastic opportunity that this brings to you as game developers!

Kweepa · Sun 01/04/2007 00:05:16

Great news!
Presumably the games will be available as part of the download service.
[EDIT] Oh, I see Ms Kiding answered that already.

Pesty · Sun 01/04/2007 00:07:20

Oh man, this sounds pretty cool. I can't wait to be able to see AGS games in high def!

Esseb · Sun 01/04/2007 00:08:29

That's great! I'm glad I waited and bought a PS3 instead of a Wii.

Will the games for AGS PS3 be in higher resolutions? I didn't fork out good money for a HDTV just to play low resolution games on it. I want 1080p, or at least 720p minimum.

MrColossal · Sun 01/04/2007 00:09:01

I'll stick with the old version because I only have a Wii and a PS2 and no plans to get a PS3

Good news for you I guess!

scotch · Sun 01/04/2007 00:11:25

How will we get hold of devkits, and how much will they cost? It's an interesting move, I must say, I didn't think Sony would actually listen, but they seem to genuinely want interesting indie stuff for their download service.

By the way, is any of the 3d hardware going to be made use of in the PS3 port?

Edit: Why PS3 by the way? AGS on microsoft's XNA would be nice too... hope you're getting paid!

Renal Shutdown · Sun 01/04/2007 00:14:44

I was personally on hoping for a contract with Nintendo. I'd had some cracking ideas for Wii-mote based puzzles. I'm going to have to completely rethink them now.

Ghormak · Sun 01/04/2007 00:15:46

Is this going to integrate with Home somehow? Like, you can meet people and play the games together somehow?

Quoteand conversions of several popular existing games such as the Ben Jordan series and Apprentice are expected to follow shortly afterwards

Also, dibs on making my Home character look like Ben Jordan.

MrColossal · Sun 01/04/2007 00:16:24

There's always the sixaxis, renal shutdown.

Rui 'Trovatore' Pires · Sun 01/04/2007 00:16:32

Does that mean you're finally gonna make some money out of this whole AGS thing, CJ? You sure deserve it!

Privateer Puddin' · Sun 01/04/2007 00:16:54

Wow, this is exactly what Sony needs to win this generation of consoles.

Hmm, I wonder if Microsoft/Nintendo will try sign up SLUDGE/Wintermute now?

Will we be able to use the innovative SIXAXIS controller or will be purely usb keyboard and mouse? I hope we can, I'd just love to see how BJ would implement all that twisting and turning.

Guess I will be going into my student overdraft overall!

Renal Shutdown · Sun 01/04/2007 00:20:18

Quote from: scotch on Sun 01/04/2007 00:11:25
How will we get hold of devkits, and how much will they cost?

The PSone and PS2 had games made by anyone. Sony's a cash magnet. They'll throw out the Devkits and just rake in a share of our profits.

CJ, do we have to release the stuff thru BigBlueCup Ltd, or thru Sony directly? In either situation, how do we get paid, if at all?

Eric:
WTF is a sixaxis? Is it as naughty as it sounds?

Pumaman · Sun 01/04/2007 00:26:04

QuoteWill the games for AGS PS3 be in higher resolutions? I didn't fork out good money for a HDTV just to play low resolution games on it. I want 1080p, or at least 720p minimum.

Well, AGS will be modified to support 1280x1024; and this will then be run through filters on the PS3 to upscale the graphics to full HD quality.

QuoteHow will we get hold of devkits, and how much will they cost?

They'll be available from Sony, but the price is currently commercially sensitive information so I can't really talk about it yet.

QuoteBy the way, is any of the 3d hardware going to be made use of in the PS3 port?

Yes, AGS will be making full use of the 3D hardware to improve performance. But as adventure games are 2D, don't expect to notice too much difference here!

QuoteCJ, do we have to release the stuff thru BigBlueCup Ltd, or thru Sony directly? In either situation, how do we get paid, if at all?

I'll provide more information in the coming weeks, but basically you'll go through Sony directly, and they'll take a cut of the game price for their services.

Esseb · Sun 01/04/2007 00:30:11

Quote from: Renal Shutdown on Sun 01/04/2007 00:20:18
Eric:
WTF is a sixaxis? Is it as naughty as it sounds?

It's Sony's Emmy award winning game controller supporting a full six degrees of freedom.

Rui 'Trovatore' Pires · Sun 01/04/2007 00:30:39

I'm gonna go sulk in a corner now because CJ didn't answer my question, the one that showed him how much I cared for his work.

<goes sulk in a corner because CJ didn't answer his question, the one that showed him [CJ] how much he [Pires] cared for his [CJ's] work.>

Renal Shutdown · Sun 01/04/2007 00:36:40

Do you get a cut of that profit, too, CJ? Or are you just getting an upfront contract?

What's the res for HD anyhow, as it's getting upscaled from 1280x1024?

In other news, I'm now not going to Mittens this year, as I've just ordered my PS3.

Scotch, M0ds, everyone else who owes me favors, get your pants on: It's pay day.
At least the upped resolution means I won't have to reduce the sketches and pixellise anymore, I can just paintover.

Also, what's the situation on 3d sprites on 2d-ish backgrounds, a la Resident Evil?

EDIT:

An Emmy? The TV version of the Oscars? How the hell did they win one of those?

Hm.. I guess I'll find out what all the fuss is about in a few days.

Darth Mandarb · Sun 01/04/2007 00:48:22

I'd been hearing rumors of this ... Glad to see it FINALLY happened!

I mean, the future is HD!!

Vince Twelve · Sun 01/04/2007 00:50:25

Does this mean that the deal I was hearing rumors about with Nintendo has fallen through? I was really hoping to port Linus onto the DS...

edmundito · Sun 01/04/2007 00:51:06

Dude, but the 360 roxors teh consolorx. What have you done?!

I'm thinking about leaving the ags community, indefinitely. :'(

nihilyst · Sun 01/04/2007 01:13:09

Wow, great thing! Too bad the PS3 is way too expensive for me

I guess I'll have to wait.

Will scripting on PS3_AGS be the same as on the PC or will it be much more difficult?