Game on.(management of Game Developers Conference )(Editorial)

It's March, and those in the gaming community are preparing to "head West" in anticipation of the annual Game Developers Conference in San Jose. This journey, which has been made by many an ambitious and talented game developer, ends and begins at the doors of the San Jose Convention Center, where garners, developers, and wanna-bes all converge to rub elbows with the gurus, share their creative knowledge, and search for employment at top-notch studios.

However, there is more to game development than being energized and party-ready; it's big business--especially when Hollywood comes knocking. The success of the theatrical release of Peter Jackson's remake of King Kong, for example, resulted in a major coup for game maker Ubisoft, as the developer released versions of the title for all major game platforms in advance of the movie's box-office debut. This month, as we ready for GDC, contributing editor Martin McEachern goes behind the scenes at Ubisoft to see how Hollywood and the game developers combined their creativity to walk hand in hand--straight to the bank.

But the stroll can be a long one for game developers that don't continue to refine and streamline technology and creative work flow within the studio. One of the most ambitious technological advancements for game developers--and the entertainment industry overall--is Collada. Originally initiated by Sony Computer Entertainment to help accelerate the development of content for its PlayStation 3 consoles, Collada is now an open standard that is being developed by The Khronos Group. It is based on an XML schema for 3D authoring applications, allowing developers to freely exchange digital assets without loss of information. In essence, multiple software programs can be combined to create power ...