StjohnColon.com

St. John Colón

StjohnColon.com

About Myself

• Master of Fine Arts – UCLA, 1995 • 13 Years in Video Games industry• Developer, Teacher, Gamer, Freak

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My Work

Fine Art

Code

Illustration

Videogames

"Julia Dream" - Aquatint Etching - 1991

"Pro Bono Publico" - Digital Print - 1995

Parasite Eve – Square USA , 1998

Spongebob Squarepants: The Movie – THQ/Heavy Iron Studios , 2004

Ratatouille – THQ/Heavy Iron Studios , 2006

Ratatouille – THQ/Heavy Iron Studios , 2006

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Why Video Games?Top Ten Video Game Facts

1. U.S. computer and video game software sales grew six percent in 2007 to $9.5 billion – more than tripling industry software sales since 1996.

2. Sixty-five percent of American households play computer or video games. 3. The average game player is 35 years old and has been playing games for 13

years. 4. The average age of the most frequent game purchaser is 40 years old. 5. Forty percent of all game players are women. In fact, women over the age of

18 represent a significantly greater portion of the game-playing population (33 percent) than boys age 17 or younger (18 percent).

6. In 2008, 26 percent of Americans over the age of 50 played video games, an increase from nine percent in 1999.

7. Thirty-six percent of heads of households play games on a wireless device, such as a cell phone or PDA, up from 20 percent in 2002.

8. Eighty-five percent of all games sold in 2007 were rated "E" for Everyone, "T" for Teen, or "E10+" for Everyone 10+. For more information on game ratings, please see www.esrb.org.

9. Ninety-four percent of game players under the age of 18 report that their parents are present when they purchase or rent games.

10. Sixty-three percent of parents believe games are a positive part of their children’s lives.

source: http://www.theesa.com/facts/index.asp

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Video Game Growth

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2002 2004 2005 2006

U.S. Revenues for Entertainment Software ProductsS

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Source: The NPD Group

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The Future of the Industry

• As of 2006, there were about 80,000 direct and indirect U.S. workers in the industry.

• Game developers typically earn nearly twice the average college graduate rate ($73,000/year)

• Rising costs of development:– In 1990 it cost about $40,000 per game.– In 2004 it cost about $10,000,000 per game.– Halo 3, released in 2007, cost about

$30,000,000 to develop.Source: http://www.theesa.com/facts/pdfs/VideoGame21stCentury.pdf

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Impact of Industry in California

• California accounts for 40% of industry employment in the US.

• Videogames added $1.7 Billion to the California economy in 2006.

• The 2006 rate of growth was 12.3%, nearly three times the overall growth in the sate economy.

• $92,300: The average salary of an entertainment software employee.

Source: http://www.theesa.com/

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What is the role of the UI Designer in Videogames?

• Are UI Designers viewed as artists or designers?

• What are the differences between UI for Videogames and other disciplines?

• What common ground do these fields hold? What sets them apart?

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Object Oriented Navigation

• No Mouse. • Default selected element must be defined.• Currently selected object must be

apparent.• Scripting flows spatially from object to

object.• Objects must be remembered, or

referenced.• Menus can be hierarchical or contextual.

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Object Oriented Navigation

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Object Oriented Navigation

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Object Oriented Navigation

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Object Oriented Navigation

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Object Oriented Navigation

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Object Oriented Navigation

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HUDs

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TRC/TCR requirements

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Thanks!

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