From SlamWiki
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A Overview of the SLAM Development Process
Using our technology we can develop commercial video game applications very rapidly. But our process is not merely clever code application it also channels developer mindset to become more production orientated for casual game development.
Technology the Casual Game Killer
Casual games do not require expensive skilled 3D programmers. A casual game player is just as impressed with the intelligent use of 2D, live action video or pre-rendered sequences. By programming a game using the features exposed in our pragmatic approach, flights of fantasy involving expensive bleeding edge technology are avoided.Take this example of Who Wants to be a Millionaire:
Eidos version of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire uses real time “robo” Chris as a presenter.
SLAM version of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire uses real life Chris Tarrant as a presenter
The programmers desire to include real time 3D graphics gives the presenter an Uncanny valley makeover. The restrictions that a real time engine give to the artists make it difficult for the host to be displayed perfectly. This makes approval difficult and increase the development and management time.
Our with our SLAM treatment a casual gamer will be just as impressed with the video footage. Using our pragmatic approach has the added bonus in the reduction in licensor approval. It is very difficult for a presenter or his agent to complain about the likeness in a video!
Obviously on some occasions, it may not be possible to book studio time with a particular talent. With the game Family Fortunes we took the approach to produce a fun caricature of the host Vernon Kay. A model was created and approved by Vernon and we pre-rendered the set sequences using voice over that was made in a convenient studio.
Development Cost the Casual Game Killer
Our solution provides a scalable alternative to employing a multi-platform programming team. Absolutely no specialist skill at porting between platforms is required. Using our system code can genuinely be developed without access to the target platform as the game can be completely coded on a PC system.
The costs associated with developing video game content can be considered as a bar to entry for the owners of some IP. The cost of our tech has innovated the way some companies operate.
Tele 7 Jeux is a company ubiquitous with paper based puzzle magazines across France. They own literally thousands of hand compiled puzzle IP in the shape of cross words, arrow words and logic puzzles.
Slam productions worked with the Croatian team Ocean Media to produce a PC version of this very parochial product. We ported this PC code to DS and Wii in a matter of hours. The result is a game containing quality puzzle content developed just for the French market place.
Packshot of the game Mot Fleche developed in SLAM published by White Park Bay
The Compliance Casual Game Killer
Whilst our system abstracts the development to accommodate the compliance issues required by the platform holder, the approval process can throw anomalies. By developing with this mindset skills can matched more effectively. Developing games in low level languages requires the core coders to be responsible for all the elements of the coding. By managing the development using SLAM it is not necessary to employ your best creative people to get your games thru platform compliance testing.
Employing the SLAM technology allows the innovative management techniques normally associated with the mobile phone game production. By using SLAM, games can developed by a core team and the porting along with the compliance can then sub contracted to third parties. (As I have described above).
An example of the level detail required by Nintendo to get a game approved
Crunch Stress Reduction
Before a game is considered finished it needs to be scrutinized by publisher and then platform holder before it can be published. This submission process can be particularly arduous. Our industry has even got a name for this “crunch”. Submission fatigue is often sited as the worst period in the development of a game for most people in the game business. Developers who having fought to bring their game to life then have the toilsome task of checking that the game is fit for platform. Late nights are the norm and tempers become frayed. The Slam core run time has been thru this process on most platforms many times. Each iteration is genuinely is a build upon the previous submission. Whilst the stress will never go completely away, the Slam development system subcontracts some of this stress. For example SLAM has:
- Virtually no memory allocation issues.
- We have standardized the Save / Load / Format / sequence approved by Nintendo and Sony.
- Built in debug and error messages giving extra value to error reports.
- Standardized submission documentation for each platform. As the run time is the same, the submission documents are virtually identical.
- Custom platform compliant functionality integrated yet abstracted for each platform so your developers need not worry about:
- DS stylus operation/ Backup memory saving / Wireless support / hand writing recognition / sleep mode support
- Wii Remote operation / NAND Memory / Strap screen warning messages
- TRC compliant PS2 Memcard support / Dual Shock functionality
- TRC compliant PSP mecard support / Game sharing and wireless play
- PC compatibility, Network Play and installer.
Development Tool Confidence
Our system has been developed in such a way as to facilitate training the novice coder with the least amount of inconvinence to the core development team. A coder can be creating submission quality titles with about 3 hours of training.
The SLAM development system has a shallow learning curve. Most developers with experience of coding in C, C++ or Visual Basic should be relatively comfortable with its concepts.
All of the SLAM technoloogy is described within a technical Wiki which can be acessed here: Technical Home
Our system includes a plugin that works with Visual Studio 200X and also now is shipped with Visual Studio Express. This plugin provides a consistent interface that most developers are familiar with.
A screen shot of the custom plug in made to integrate the SLAM production tools into Visual Studio
We have also standardized the creation of native assets. All the graphics and audio that appears or is played in or games is added to the project via the plug and is compiled into native format at runtime. Below are screenshots of the audio and texture building tools that are built in to the IDE plugin. We use this tool to manage our graphic and audio assets across the platforms that we support.
A screen shot of the Texture management tool integrated into Visual Studio
A screen shot of the Audio management tool integrated into Visual Studio
Knowledge Transfer
As part of our development process we have documented all of our experiences to date and logged them on to (this) SLAM Wiki.
This knowledge is the first port of call for any SLAM developer.
Not only do we log the key information for programming SLAM but we also inform the developer on font, graphic, audio and video creation. Tips are given for the submission process for each of the platforms that we supply. We also maintain a bug tracking system that is used to log issues for the SLAM system as a while.
The key features of developing using the SLAM system
- Code can genuinely be developed in isolation from the target platform
- Equipment costs are reduced as coders do not need exclusive access to target platforms
- Learning curve for the system is shallow as the code is very similar to C / C++
- Reduced development time as no in depth knowledge of all target platforms required
- Reduced training times due to knowledge transfer from the SLAM wiki.
- Project management time reduced by use of the in Standard submission documentation
- One developer really can be responsible for the development of multiplatform applications
- Casual games can be developed at extremely reasonable cost
- Compliance issues have been addressed by Slam core code numerous time.
- The code base has been tested and approved on multiple releases
Further Details
- Production Overview
- Technology Overview
- Technical Home