http://www.mary-margaret.com/Public/Blog/index.cfm en-us Thu, 09 Sep 2010 00:00:00 -0600 Full Partner http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/serious-games-showcase---challenge/ http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/serious-games-showcase---challenge/ webmaster@mary-margaret.com (Serious Games Showcase & Challenge Team) Thu, 09 Sep 2010 12:00:00 CST November 29 - December 2, 2010 Orlando, Florida, USA Call for Serious Games Entries http://www.iitsec.org/ and http://www.sgschallenge.com Serious Game developers are invited to submit their original PC-based serious game to the Fifth Annual I/ITSEC Serious Games Showcase and Challenge. The goal of the Serious Games Showcase and Challenge is to promote innovative game-based solutions to training problems. Finalists in the Serious Game Showcase and Challenge will be selected by a panel of serious games leaders in the military, industry, and academic fields, and will be invited to showcase their serious game at I/ITSEC 2010, where over 18,000 attendees will view and vote on each of the finalists. The Challenge is open to a wide range of contestants; categories include student, government, and business. Awards will be provided to top contestants in those categories. Entered games can address any training objective pertinent to High School age or older audiences. All entries will be judge ... http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/cover-letters-get-your-foot-in-the-door/ http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/cover-letters-get-your-foot-in-the-door/ webmaster@mary-margaret.com (Beverly Garland) Tue, 07 Sep 2010 12:00:00 CST One of the more time-consuming aspects of applying for a job is writing the cover letter. True, you might also revise your resume somewhat to highlight your particular skills as they apply to the job opening, but with a cover letter, you are usually starting from scratch. It has sometimes taken me half a day to write a good one, especially when applying for a position that is a sideways or forward leap from others I've held. Some people understandably are put off by this task and skip it. Who wants to spend half a day on something that might not even yield a result? People who don't take the time to craft a strong letter are absolutely missing the boat! A cover letter is your "first impression." It's a way for you to take the hiring manager on a guided tour of your skills and tell him/her in certain terms how you match the criteria for the job. You might even be able to propose a position for yourself that they don't have yet. How important is a good cover letter? When I was reviewing ... http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/how-three-industry-vets-choose-to-waste-their-free-time/ http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/how-three-industry-vets-choose-to-waste-their-free-time/ webmaster@mary-margaret.com (Joe McCloud) Tue, 07 Sep 2010 12:00:00 CST What do video game industry veterans do when they're not working? If you answered "play video games," you'd be correct! Joe McCloud, Mike Herauf, and Brian Harvey spend plenty of time exploring mystical lands, strategically building troops to take out an alien threat, and freeing the world from terrorism - all from the comfort of a chair. From QA, art, and level design to production, developer relations and marketing, these three Bay Area natives have held nearly every type of video game position between them for the past 18 years. Yes, they love video games. But you may be surprised to find out what else they choose to spend their free time doing. Back in March, Joe and Mike stumbled on a sub-culture popular mainly amongst women called haul vlogging. What is haul vlogging? Girls go shopping, "haul" home their purchases, and then create a video to show the world their loot. Mind-numbing? Check. Narcissistic? Yup. Strangely captivating? Joe and Mike seemed to think so - enough that the ... http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/dallas-game-developers/ http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/dallas-game-developers/ webmaster@mary-margaret.com (Robin McShaffry) Wed, 01 Sep 2010 12:00:00 CST There is something special going on in Dallas, and not a lot of people know about it. People move to Dallas and don't want to leave. It's a great place to raise a family. The cost of living is much lower than on the West and East coasts. Hate winter? Dallas has a temperate climate and very little snow. When it does snow, it's a holiday. Love summer? Well, you'll get a lot of that in Dallas, too. Arts, sports, nightlife, education -- it's all there and it's all Texas-sized. For many years, Dallas has been home to some of the most dynamic companies in the game industry. Great developers remain there, even through reorganization and hard times. Pioneers such as id Software are still there and still going strong. MMN partners Robot Entertainment and Gearbox Software are made up of several long-time Dallas residents and are hiring. Other successful companies in the area include MumboJumbo, Terminal Reality (creators of the Infernal Engine),Nerve, Bonfire, Blockdot, and many smaller independ ... http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/aaron-thibaults-first-meal-as-a-zombie/ http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/aaron-thibaults-first-meal-as-a-zombie/ webmaster@mary-margaret.com (Aaron Thibault and Mary-Margaret Walker) Mon, 30 Aug 2010 12:00:00 CST Aaron, I assure you, can be serious. But he also gives great hugs!! I've known him for so long that we always find each other at events and conferences to catch up on family, life, work, to have a debate or two and of course to share a couple of great hugs. His zombie meal choice doesn't surprise me at all! MM: If you didn't go into games, what would you be doing? AT: Searching for my true calling while stunt acting for kicks. MM: Who has been your biggest influence or mentor in the industry? AT: Jack "Stretch" Williams at Origin Systems, my first mentor in the industry. He always stayed cool under pressure! MM: What's your favorite quote? AT: "Do nothing which is of no use." -Miyamoto Musashi MM: What's your claim to fame? AT: I once got busy in a Burger King bathroom. And I've got my own dance. MM: What is your most treasured possession? AT: First Father's Day card drawn by my son. MM: If you were a zombie who is the first person you would eat? AT: Swiss Miss. I have a sweet tooth. M ... http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/alex-rigopulos-ceo-of-harmonix-joins-the-ablegamers-foundation-advisory-board/ http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/alex-rigopulos-ceo-of-harmonix-joins-the-ablegamers-foundation-advisory-board/ webmaster@mary-margaret.com (Mark Bartlet) Fri, 27 Aug 2010 12:00:00 CST Mary-Margaret Network is excited to announce the newest member to the AbleGamers Foundation Advisory Board! With our own Mary-Margaret Walker on the board, we are all the more excited to see this fantastic addition and the voice he will bring with him. Harpers Ferry, WV - August 12th, 2010 - Alex Rigopulos, CEO of Harmonix Music Systems, maker of the mega-smash-hit Rock Band series, has joined the Advisory Board of the AbleGamers Foundation. "I am honored to sit on the advisory board for the AbleGamers Foundation and be a part of an organization that is striving to ensure that all people, regardless of abilities, can enjoy the fruits of the video game industry," said Mr. Rigopulos. Since 2004, AbleGamers has pushed for greater accessibility for people with disabilities in the digital entertainment space. "I think this is a great sign that the mainstream video game industry is starting to see the value in the communities that the AbleGamers Foundation supports," said Mark Barlet, Pres ... http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/women-in-animation-international-calling-all-animation-studio-bands/ http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/women-in-animation-international-calling-all-animation-studio-bands/ webmaster@mary-margaret.com (Jan Nagel ) Fri, 27 Aug 2010 12:00:00 CST Friday, September 3rd, 2010 Los Angeles, CA Women In Animation International (WIA) announces its upcoming "Battle of the Animation Bands" concert. This evening of indie music will be held in late September in Hollywood and will feature bands created at animation, visual effects and game studios. Bands will be selected by the Women in Animation board from CDs submitted to WIA before the deadline of Friday, September 3rd. All music genres are welcome; however, music with a dance-able beat is preferred. At least one member of the band must work for an animation, visual effects or game studio. In "Idol" style, the evening's "Battle Star" will be chosen by the audience and win a very huge, very tacky trophy. So, don't miss this chance to strut your Stratocaster and prove that animators can rock the house! If you have a band, please mail a CD of your work to: P.O. BOX 17706, Encino, CA 91416. Or e-mail a link to your demo to Rita Street: . If you have questions concerning the event or wo ... http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/gearbox-and-robot---2-great-tastes-in-dallas/ http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/gearbox-and-robot---2-great-tastes-in-dallas/ webmaster@mary-margaret.com (Robin McShaffry) Thu, 26 Aug 2010 12:00:00 CST Mary-Margaret Network is helping two great studios in Dallas with their hiring: Gearbox and Robot. Both have fantastic projects in the works, have great reputations in the area and the industry and are actively seeking game developers. Gearbox Software is best known for its work on Borderlands and the Brothers in Arms series, as well as on downloadable content for Halo and Half-Life. The titles currently in development are still under wraps. Level Designers are the most sought-after candidates at Gearbox. Leadership skills and single- and multi-player experience are a must. Show us your best work! Gearbox is also hiring for several other junior and senior art, programming and design positions, which can be viewed at our job board. Robot recently announced its latest title in development - Age of Empires Online! Robot is always seeking the best talent to round out their small, focused team. Currently, multi-talented game programmers are very much in demand at Robot. If you're looking to ... http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/future-game-on-european-research-and-development-conference/ http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/future-game-on-european-research-and-development-conference/ webmaster@mary-margaret.com (The FGO team) Thu, 26 Aug 2010 12:00:00 CST September 9th, 2010 @ 8:30am Paris - Porte de Versailles Future Game On is a new annual event uniting game developers, publishers and researchers from the video game industry and its many branches, from professional applications to consumer-oriented games. FGO is organized by the clusters Cap Digital and Imaginove along with partners Capital Games and ACM SIGGRAPH. FGO will encompass a series of conferences presenting top quality technical and scientific papers to a mixed industry/academia public. The event will highlight the state of the art of European video game research and will be an opportunity for major video game actors to present their latest innovations in different fields. Speakers include: Casey Hudson, Executive Producer/Project Director on Mass Effect 2 and Vice President, BioWare Jason Della Rocca, Founder, Perimeter Partners: "The Innovation Dilemma: Surviving on the Bleeding Edge" Scott Easley, Associate Director, USC GamePipe Laboratory, Viterbi School of Engineerin ... http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/the-robots-are-leading-us-into-the-futrethe-future-of-age-of-empires/ http://www.mary-margaret.com/playing-for-a-living/the-robots-are-leading-us-into-the-futrethe-future-of-age-of-empires/ webmaster@mary-margaret.com (Laura Ramsey) Thu, 26 Aug 2010 12:00:00 CST From one of the most iconic series in real-time strategy games for Windows PC comes a new way to grow your empire. Robot Entertainment has teamed up with Games for Windows LIVE to bring us Age of Empires Online. With a series that sold over 20 million copies, you can imagine the anticipation for its newest counterpart! Looking for a way to show your dominance over your friends, or even perfect strangers half-way around the world? How about taking over their village? Or better yet, let them put in long hard hours growing it into an empire and then methodically take it all away from them piece by piece! Age of Empires Online is historically based on Greek civilization. The game allows players to go on missions with other players, be part of a continually growing online capital city (even when you are sleeping) and take part in a fascinating historical period. Join the adventure, get drawn in by the rich story line and historical detail. Start off with a small village and become increasin ...