matthughson.com

Magic City Man

2009-07-20T14:13:00.001-07:00

Prototype #1 for June

2009-07-16T17:43:00.000-07:00

U.S. consumers liked what they saw in Activision's Prototype making the open world action game June's bestselling title by an impressive margin. Last month, its single-console sales doubled those of the game it was often compared to, Infamous.

- Kotaku

Pong Solitaire v0.1

2009-07-07T21:24:00.000-07:00

In a recent post I talked a bit about how I want to start doing some more development in my spare time again. And I actually have been working on, what was supposed to be, a really simple game. As usual though, what seemed simple on paper, got quite complex as things progressed.

So I've decided to take a break from that project and make something even simpler. And what's simpler than Pong? Over the last two nights I've be working on this little game (found below). It's kind of a mix between Pong and Break Out. It's as mundane as Pong with the Single-Player-ness of Break Out. The goal is just to keep the ball up for as many hits as possible.

I have lots of ideas on how to add to this, and will post updates on this blog as I do so.

You will need to install Flash Player 10 to play it, if you haven't already. Please post any bugs you find in the comments section!

Edit: July 8th, 2009 - Looks like the font didn't get embedded properly and so it shows up as your default system font (probably Times New Roman) on everything but the Press Start screen. I'll put in a fix in the next version.

(Play Fullscreen)

For anyone who is curious: this was made in Flash 10 with ActionScript 2. The fully commented source can be downloaded here. You will probably need Flash CS4 to open the fla file.

Penny Arcade on Prototype

2009-06-23T20:34:00.001-07:00

(click for full comic)

Prototype was featured on Penny Arcade last week!

When musicians and actors enter pop culture they get spoofed on The Simpsons; for games there is Penny Arcade. This is a pretty huge moment for me!

Don't Hate the Playah

2009-06-10T18:45:00.000-07:00

It's been a bit of a rollercoaster with reviews today. I made the mistake of checking IGN right before bed and found what has to be one of the most scathing reviews I've ever read (Seriously, 5.5/10 for graphics!?). That really soured what had been an amazing day for me.

Anyway, I want to wait until the dust settles before talking about the reviews in depth, but as a whole I'm pretty blown away by how much of an effect these reviews have had on me, both good and bad. This is the first retail game I've really felt a significant part of. I received a lot of game credits while working on core tech at EA Canada (we made the online lobby systems used in almost all of their sports titles), but never really had a real emotional investment in any of the products. Developing Prototype has been a very different experience.

I definitely feel the sting now when people bash the game, and get a bit of an ego boost when it gets a good review. It all feels very personal this time.

It's really made me realize how kind of ridiculous it all is; to put this amount of time into a single product, just to have it reduced to a score out of ten with just a few hours of playtime. I've spent 2 years working on Prototype, others on the team have been even longer, and most people will basically decide if this game if worth their time and money with a 30 second trip to metacritic.

And really, that's the point of it all, obviously. We send our games to get reviewed with the hopes that the score is high enough to convince someone to invest in it. In the case of Prototype, sitting at a metacritic.com rating in the high eighties, that's all working in our favor for the moment. None of this is really new to anyone; like most, I've had these thoughts long before working on games myself. And I don't think that has to change or anything; that's not my point.

My point is I've spent all my time over the past two years focusing on Prototype, and haven't really don't anything in the way of personal game projects. I have a lot of ideas that have been sitting on the back burner for a while now, and I the last few days have really re-energized me. I don't want to wait another few years before my work sees the light of day.

So starting tonight I'm going to (re)start some personal projects, and use this blog as a development diary. Having a place to post my progress and get feedback should keep my motivation to do these personal projects long after this initial energy surge has passed.

Rooster Teeth Comic - On The Fritz

2009-06-10T13:24:00.000-07:00

(click for full comic)

Probably won't make any sense if you haven't played the Prototype yet...

So Far, So Good

2009-06-09T20:45:00.001-07:00

Reviews for Prototype are starting to pop up, and so far things are looking really great! It's sitting at 93% average right now, so we are super excited (anything above an 80% is considered to be doing really well). It's bound to drop from that, but it's a great place to start.

Tomorrow the embargo on reviews is lifted and we should start seeing reviews from all the big websites start showing up. Looking forward to what they have to say!

Prototype Released in North America!

2009-06-09T08:26:00.000-07:00

Prototype should be on store shelves in North America this morning, and with that it has now been released in all target territories!

Prototype Released in Europe

2009-06-05T17:09:00.000-07:00

Prototype came out in Europe today! Only 4 more days until the North American release on June 9th!

Gaming Front Prototype Review

2009-05-27T09:55:00.001-07:00

Another review for Prototype has come in, and Game Front has also scored the game at 90%! (The "85%" at the top of the article is aparently a user determined, hype rating or something).

Unfortunately, I'm 90% sure these guys have not actually played the full game yet, but I'll take what I can get at this point.

http://www.gamingfront.net/news/711/prototype-review/

Gamestop Pre-Order Commercial

2009-05-22T09:27:00.000-07:00

I was watching TV last night and saw a Prototype commercial! I didn't even know they were out there, so it was a pretty awesome surprise. It's actually done by GameStop to promote their pre-order campaign. Check it out below.

Final Prototype Preview Event

2009-05-21T14:57:00.000-07:00

Last week, Activision hosted what will probably be the last big preview event for Prototype before launch. From what I understand, we won't be at E3, so this is it!

The resulting preview articles have started to hit the web and so far have been extremely positive!

Here are some of my favorites so far:

EuroGamer

Powers dictate pace, just as clearly as kills used to mean skills, as you set about doling out violence in Jackson Pollock tangles of blood and brain: most enemies are mere flies, so Radical sends swarms after you, and soon the shattered streets of New York are filled with huddled groups of soldiers, and rampaging mobs of raw-skinned mutants.

Destructoid

If you asked me to think back to the last game I had so much fun playing that I actually let loose with a sound generally reserved for the moment you go flying down a rollercoaster while playing it, I would have been hard-pressed to come up with one. After all, many games are fun, but there's a difference between the kind of fun you have in a silent-but-enjoying-oneself kind of way and a loud, excited, unable-to-keep-it-to-yourself kind of way.

Edge

We spent much of Bionic Commando (our review, from E202, will be posted here tomorrow) pining for Treyarch's Spider-Man 2 and querying the dearth of worthwhile successors. There's Crackdown, of course, but the presence of its own imitators makes the lack of particularly good ones even more frustrating. But then, in a dark corner of Activision’s recent London games presentation, our champion appeared. Prototype was basically finished, and it took a Radical employee to yank us off the controls before we played 'too much'.

First Prototype Review

2009-05-21T09:51:00.000-07:00

The very first review for Prototype has just been released. It's from the UK magazine, PSW. And they gave it a 9/10!!

We actually got a digital copy of magazine last week, and it looks amazing! They've given us a multi-page review with a ton of thought and effort put into the look and layout. Not to mention our review is the Cover Story for that issue!

It came in at just the right time too. That morning, the reviews for inFAMOUS started popping up online, and it was getting really stellar reviews.

Regardless of whether they should or not, people seem intent on comparing our games. So seeing that it was being so well received by the press, really kind of put some of us on edge.

I don't think we need to beat them or anything like that, but I really think because of the perception that we're competing, it is really important that we are at least in the same ballpark of review scores.

This first review goes a long way in releasing some of that pressure!

Playstation World Blog

Prototype is Done!

2009-05-15T18:47:00.000-07:00

A ton has happened in the month and a half since my last post, the most significant for me: Prototype has gone Gold! We sent our first attempts at certification (builds of the game which need to be tested for bugs and compliance to certain rules) to Sony and Microsoft late last month, and managed to pass all of them on the first pass! That's pretty impressive from my experience, and it really shows how solid the game has become. I guess an extra year of development might have helped a little...

Tons a press has gone out as well. Too much for me to remember actually, but here are my favorites:

First off we have released the opening cinematic of the game. It obviously all prerendered but does an amazing job of capturing what the game is all about.

This trailer, Breed Something New, is probably my favorite trailer yet. I didn't actually like it the first time I saw it, but it's grown on me.

The box art for the game has been released, I really love what they did. This actually came out of Activision (although it used pieces of art done at our studio) and I think that's maybe what we needed to get something a little outside the box; at least as far as it's concerned compared to everything else released so far for the game. It's really nice to see something that isn't black, brown, or 'grungy'.

And to finish it off, some fluff from IGN: The Ten Commandments of Prototype

The Story Of Prototype

2009-04-03T12:46:00.000-07:00

Aparently there is one! Who knew!?

10 Reasons to Buy Prototype

2009-03-27T10:20:00.000-07:00

Out of this World: The Official Site

2009-02-11T21:04:00.001-08:00

It's hard to believe but there is actually an up to date and current website for one of my favorite games of all time, Out of this World (aka Another World). I just happened across it the other day and was blown away.

The site appears to be created and maintained by the creator of the game and includes some really amazing details about its development. Everything from the original concept sketches to low level details on the coding and scripting process used to create Out of this World.

The biggest surprise though, was to find that early in 2006 the game was re-released for Windows under the name Another World: High Resolution Collector's Edition. As the name implies, on top of having all the original art, it includes the option to turn on high res background and with 32-bit colours. Other than the graphical upgrades, it appears the game is a carbon copy of the original. The screen shot below is taken from the upgraded version.

NYC Comic-Con 2009: Even More Prototype Coverage

2009-02-07T10:42:00.001-08:00

Couple additional articles came out from the convention.

Crispy Gamer has an interview with one of the lead designers on Prototype. They talk about a lot of the inspiration for the game, as well as a lot of the design philosophy behind the project.

1up and Kotaku both have posted impressions articles. Nothing really new there if you've read the IGN and Joystiq articles from yesterday.

NYC Comic-Con 2009: More Prototype Coverage

2009-02-06T11:03:00.000-08:00

The New-York City Comic-Con is starting today, and Prototype is set the have a pretty huge presence. From what I have heard another game was not able to make it, so Prototype has become the focus for Activision this year. That starts with a 40 foot by 50 foot banner inside the convention center.

We been working really hard the last few weeks on putting together a demo for the show floor, which will be the first time the public will have a chance to go hands on with the game.

A lot of coverage has already hit the web, starting with IGN and Joystiq both putting up some really positive previews.

There are also a couple new videos out as well.

A new trailer showing a ton if gameplay footage.

Next is a 2 part series of some hand-held footage of the actual demo we made. It is being demoed by one of our producers, Max.

And finally, here is a video DC release to promote the Prototype comicbook they are working on.

Prototype Comic Details Released

2009-01-21T10:49:00.001-08:00

Some new details on the Prototype Comic have been released, including a new cover inked by Jim Lee.

Sounds like they are taking a look at the story from a different perspective from the game:

Follow New York homicide detectives as they track a serial killer unlike any they've ever faced, and enter a new era where human extinction and monstrous evolution collide!

Hopefully with comic-con coming up, we should have some more info released soon.

CES 2009: Prototype Preview on Kotaku

2009-01-09T10:10:00.000-08:00

Kotaku put up a nice write up on what they saw at CES. Check it out here.

CES 2009: Prototype Preview on IGN

2009-01-08T10:45:00.000-08:00

IGN put up a new preview for Prototype. If you can take IGN's writing and what appears to be a complete lack of proof reading, check it out here.

Along with it they've posted some new game-play videos (that actually show the front-end!). I've embedded those below.

CES 2009: New Prototype Trailer

2009-01-08T10:21:00.000-08:00

Didn't even know this one was coming. Looks pretty sick though!

Prototype CES Videos ..."Leaked"

2008-12-10T10:53:00.000-08:00

Read the full story here.

Prototype makes 1up.com's list of Games to Watch in 2009

2008-12-09T17:58:00.000-08:00

1up is running a month long reveal of The Games to Watch in 2009, and today Prototype was featured. It has a short interview with our marketing lead, and a couple new screen shots.