New England Institute of Technology Winter 2014

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1 Autodesk Reveals Cloud-Based 3D Character Generator This week Autodesk expanded its cloud offering with the launch of Character Generator, an easy-to -use, web-based application that enables virtually anyone to create customized, rigged and readyto-animate 3D characters. Once designed, characters can be exported for a wide range of applications - from populating game scenes, to learning animation and modeling, generating models for pre-visualization, design visualization and more. Character Generator requires five cloud credits per highresolution character download for customers on Autodesk subscription or rental plans. Students and educators receive free access to the product, and a lighter version of the app for creating low-resolution and crowd characters is accessible for anyone to try at no cost. Create, customize, and download your rigged 3D characters from a catalog of over 100 body types, ou its, hairstyles, and physical a ributes in a few simple steps. For a free three year educa onal license for students and educators, visit: h p:// on/ free so ware/character generator Formerly dubbed "Project Pinocchio," a popular Autodesk Labs experiment that resulted in the creation of thousands of characters, Character Generator was designed with customer feedback integrated throughout development, and houses a robust library of pre-built male, female and creature characters. Using intuitive slider and selection functions, users can combine and morph the physical attributes of the pre-built models from body traits to facial features, skin color, hair styles, clothing and more to create unique characters. Upon completion, users on Autodesk subscription or rental plans can leverage cloud credits to export their 3D creations to software packages such as Autodesk Maya, Maya LT and 3ds Max for further customization and animation, or use in game engines like Unity. Key Character Generator features include: An extensive collection of male, female and fantasy characters, from which users can blend two different sources to create an original design. A virtually limitless selection skin, eye, hair, clothing and shoes to choose from Targeted blending options to refine characters on a per feature basis. The ability to save characters in the cloud and modify them in the future as needed Autodesk subscription and rental customers will receive access to a body, bone and blend-shape facial rig collection compatible with Autodesk HumanIK middleware to enable keyframe, motioncapture or facial animation in Autodesk software FBX and Maya publishing options for customers on Autodesk subscription or rental plans. For more informa on visit: h p://area.autodesk.com/products/charactergenerator (from Computer Graphics World)

2 Page 2 NEIT Gamers Guild Launches! The Game Developers Network student club is expanding to include more ac vi es in the gaming field. As a result, the club will have a new name, the Gamers Guild. The club will now feature video games, table games: development, design and play. The Gamers Guild will be mee ng at 11:00 AM on Friday, March 14 in room N212. We will be elec ng new officers and recrui ng volunteers for the Spring Quarter: Gamers Guild Mentors. Remember your first quarter in VGDD? Kind of unsure about your new program, new people, etc. We d like to extend a helping hand to the new First Quarter students star ng this Spring. If you would like to volunteer to be a GG Mentor, your help would be appreciated. We ll pair you up with one or more First Quarter students who may need some experienced advice or simply to explain what is happening in the Department. We don t an cipate it taking too much of your me during the Quarter, but we think it will make a huge difference to the new faces that will be joining us. Will look great on a resume too! If you can t make the mee ng on Friday the 14th, fear not, just Bill Culbertson (wculbertson@neit.edu) if you are interested in Mentoring and we ll make sure you are included. Also on the agenda will be a brainstorming session of what ac vi es you d like to see in the Gamers Guild over the coming year. Advisors DJ Johnson, Bill Culbertson and Sco Lambert have some thoughts from projects to major events, but, we d like to hear from you! The FM Global co op! Presenta ons by representa ves from FM Global will be held on Monday March 10. There will be a morning and evening session for Q and A. Come see what the opportuni es are! Here is the info: Monday, March 10 th from 11:30 am 12:30 pm in S200J and in March 10 th from 5:30 pm 6:30 pm. N210

3 Page 3 Visit NEIT at PAX EAST! This year, NEIT will have a large booth at the major gaming event April 11,12 and 13. As you may know, this is the pre eminent gaming show on the East Coast. The conven on will be held at the Boston Conven on Center. The NEIT booth will feature something many of you will recognize the Virtusphere! Hot off its appearance at Power Game Day, the Virtusphere will on display and open for demos to the more than 70K a endees expected. Sadly, if you don t have ckets at this point you re probably out of luck. The event has been sold out for months. Well, out of luck unless you are one of the few who will be able to a end using one of the VGDD Department passes! If you really, really, really want to a end find Jordan Dubreuil (check his office hours on the chart in the IT Faculty hall bulle n board) to get your name onto the list of hopefuls... ASAP!

4 Page 4 Win up to $5,000 USD in cash and Adobe software! Submit into either or both of the two submission sessions for free 2014 Submission Sessions: Session 1: January 27, 2014 April 18, 2014 Semifinalists announced in May 2014 Session 2: April 18, 2014 June 20, 2014 Semifinalists announced in July 2014

5 Page 5 Win $5,000/$25,000 in the first Boston Infinite Crisis Tournament. 8 Teams play for $5,000 and free tickets to PAX for the chance to play for $25,000 on the big stage/streamed online. Warner Bros. Games and local game developer Turbine Inc. announces a Boston-area collegiate Infinite Crisis tournament. Turbine Inc is pleased to announce a tournament open to Boston-area colleges with their videogame-in-development, Infinite Crisis. Teams will compete for a prize pool of $5,000 and the winners will be invited to take part in the $25,000 Infinite Crisis PAX East Invitational Tournament. PAX East is the largest video game event on the east coast and takes place April at the Boston Convention Center. As a prominent game developer in the Boston area, Turbine is excited to be able to host this opportunity for local students to get involved in our own burgeoning esports scene. The tournament will be held on Sunday, March 23 rd, 2014 in the new District Hall, located in the heart of the Innovation District. Spectators are welcome. Teams wishing to represent their college should contact Benjamin Cavallari, by Friday March7th, to register, get information on the game including where to download it and further rules of entry benjamin@academicrelations.net