CONFERENCE CONTENT
2007 Presentations and Audio
Recordings
Please note: some presentations and audio recordings are not
available by request.
Audio
Graphics
Producer and Business Development
System Programming for Windows and Xbox
360
AUDIO
Making noise on
Microsoft platforms is more dynamic and powerful than ever!
Presentations will cover the array of tools, libraries, and services
provided for adding sound to your title, including the Microsoft
Cross-Platform Audio Creation Tool (XACT) for Windows, Xbox 360, and
XNA Game Studio Express. Other topics include case studies of titles
that have pushed the envelope for audio innovations, audio
middleware technologies, programming the native low-level audio
layer, developing cross-platform audio strategies, using real-time
effects and audio compression formats, and working with
multi-channel audio. This track is intended for audio programmers,
composers, sound designers, and audio directors, and will offer
applicable content for both expert and novice game developers.
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Presentation |
Speaker |
Description |
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Audible Authority: Understanding Microsoft Audio
Programming Interfaces for Games |
Scott Selfon & Ian Lewis |
The
consistency of fully programmable software-based audio
is here today on Windows and Xbox 360. This presentation
will cover the XAudio programming interfaces for Xbox
360, as well as how DirectSound on Windows Vista and XP
can be harnessed to provide consistent high fidelity
audio experiences. The Microsoft Cross-Platform
Authoring Tool (XACT) also now exposes more power and
visibility to the game programmer, which will be
discussed here, along with future plans to leverage
XAudio on Windows platforms as an optimized,
cross-platform low-level audio engine.
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Tools, Glorious Tools: An Overview of Microsoft Audio
Tools, Libraries and Utilities |
Scott Selfon & Ian Lewis |
From creating non-repetitive
sound effects and interactive scores to XMA compression
and media center music playback, audio offerings in the
XDK and GDK provide functionality to help make getting
audio up and running easier and more streamlined than
ever. Here we cover the ins and outs of the Xbox 360,
XNA Game Studio Express, and Windows audio offerings,
including the Xbox Music Player service, the X3DAudio
positioning library, XMA and other compression
technologies, an introduction to the Microsoft
Cross-Platform Authoring Tool (XACT), and real-time DSP
effects. |
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Critical Audio Analysis: Audio Content Reviews and
Beyond |
Scott Selfon & Ian Lewis |
Among many others services,
the Microsoft Game Technology Group offers audio content
reviews to interested titles in development. In this
lecture, we will discuss the techniques and measurements
utilized to help provide technical and creative advice,
as well as the general review methodology utilized to
isolate the most commonly seen challenges and successes.
Examples will be offered to discuss and illustrate how
titles are succeeding in raising their audio quality to
the next level.
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XACT Rebooted: New Features in the Microsoft
Cross-Platform Audio Creation Tool
|
Scott Selfon |
A newly redesigned and
optimized property-editing window is just one of many
innovations coming soon to the Microsoft Cross-Platform
Audio Creation Tool (XACT), the high-level audio
authoring tool and engine for Windows, Xbox 360, and XNA
Game Studio Express. This presentation covers extensions
made to XACT's programmability in response to developer
requests, as well as other upcoming feature work focused
on continuing to refine the programming-content creation
pipeline. |
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GRAPHICS
Are you dedicated
to taking full advantage of the graphics processing power available
on Xbox 360 and/or Windows/D3D10? Would you like to know more about
how to squeeze every last ounce of performance out of your graphics
engine? Are you interested in hearing war stories about real-world
development on both Xbox 360 and Windows Vista (D3D10) – and finding
out what really works (and of course what doesn’t)? Learn
all this and more in graphics talks running the full range from deep
exploration of platform technologies to real-world experience from
other graphics experts in the field.
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Presentation |
Speaker |
Description |
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D3D10 Unleashed: New Features and Effects
|
Shanon Drone |
Direct3D 10 has arrived in
Windows Vista! Get up-to-speed on the latest graphics
hardware and software infrastructure in Windows. Learn
about the breadth of new Direct3D 10 features -
everything from geometry shaders to resource views - and
how to leverage those features for cutting-edge visual
effects in your next Windows title. Attending this
introductory talk is a great way to prepare yourself for
the more advanced Direct3D 10 content presented later in
the conference.
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Seven Ways to Skin a Mesh: Character Skinning Revisited
for Modern GPUs
|
Matt Lee |
Character skinning is a
technique that is commonly used in games, and is
commonly expensive as well. Modern GPUs have new
features and different performance characteristics than
GPUs of a few years ago, and old assumptions are wearing
thin. With the advent of shader model 3.0, Xbox 360, and
Direct3D 10, it's time to revisit character skinning and
rebuild this technique for better performance on the
hardware of today and tomorrow. Many skinning methods
and optimizations will be presented, including details
on the memory export features of Xbox 360.
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Under the Hood: Revving Up Shader Performance |
Shanon Drone |
So you've got a fast GPU,
but your shaders are still lagging in the quarter-mile?
Running inefficient shaders with lots of stalls can be
like running the hardware at half speed. Between ALU
count, GPR usage, control flow, fetch latency, and other
speed bumps, tracking down performance-limiting
bottlenecks can be more elusive than ever. This talk
shows how to run diagnostics on your shaders and use
HLSL annotations and platform-specific tricks to get
your engine running on all cylinders |
Rapid-Fire Material Systems with Direct3D 10
|
Sam Glassenberg |
Direct3D 10 is designed from
the ground up to empower you to blast way more unique
objects, materials, and realistic clutter into your
scene. Discover opportunities to get the best small
batch performance and exploit the leap forward in shader
programmability in shader model 4.0 to achieve a new
level of visual diversity. Learn how to design
massively-scalable Direct3D 10 material systems on the
new platform. This talk will also examine how to
leverage major advancements of the new Direct3D 10
Effects system to efficiently manage the building blocks
of a material: shader code, device state, and material
data. Grab the reins of DirectX 10 hardware and software
to cram as much variety as possible into every frame!
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Getting Past 30 Hertz
|
Matt Lee & Mike
Burrows |
Enabling high-performance
games requires an arsenal of tools and techniques. This
presentation will demonstrate the practical use of CPU
and GPU performance analysis tools on both Xbox 360 and
Windows. You'll come away armed with the knowledge
needed to make your titles truly blow everyone away.
Particular attention will be paid to the most recent
additions to PIX on both platforms, such as the new
sampling profiler and trace analysis. We'll also cover
general techniques gleaned from practical experience in
the field.
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HDR the Bungie Way
|
Matt Lee |
Adopting a linear high
dynamic range (HDR) lighting model introduces a number
of challenges to your rendering pipeline that must be
overcome if you want to integrate high-performing HDR
into your title. It pays to understand which challenges
are important and why. Learn the "Bungie way" to balance
range, precision, and performance in your render
targets, calibrate color-spaces for consistent colors,
and make effective use of auto-exposure, post-process
effects, and tone-curves. Full analysis and pretty
pictures included!
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PRODUCER AND BUSINESS
DEVELOPMENT
Learn everything a
producer or business development attendee needs to know for
Microsoft gaming platforms. Learn about recent developments in the
Games for Windows and Games for Windows – LIVE program. Hear
about our marketing and retail efforts. Get updates on Xbox LIVE,
DirectX 10, Marketplace, Dashboard updates, in-game advertising, and
much more! You’ll leave the conference with a solid understanding of
how to be successful building games for all Microsoft gaming platforms.
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Presentation |
Speaker |
Description |
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Xbox 360 and Games for
Windows Update |
Mark Maslowicz |
Submitting your title to Game Quality may be the last
step in the process but leaving it until the last minute
can be very costly. Endless hours spent trying to meet
tight street dates are too often made fruitless by
simple mistakes in the submission process. This session
will give you a rundown of all you need to know in order
to submit your title successfully, giving you the best
possible chance of making sure your title gets into test
first time and without delay.
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A Producer's Guide to
Surviving In-Game Advertising |
Mat Adams |
There is no question that the cost of game
development is rising. With the next generation of games,
however, there is a great opportunity to both offset the rising
cost of development, and create a more dynamic and immersive
gameplay experience by including advertising in your next game.
Massive has spent the past few years enabling developers to
satisfy this demand without sacrificing aesthetics or gameplay.
If you are considering how to implement in-game advertising in
your games, this talk is a must-attend session that covers the
business model behind in-game advertising, as well as the
integration process and how it affects game development
schedules.
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The Microsoft Game Quality
Team Presents Certification Uncovered |
Alex Mundy |
This session
covers the game processing and testing roles within the Game
Quality Team (A.K.A. Xbox 360 Certification Team). Learn about
the types of testing conducted, a day-by-day schedule for a
typical game going through certification, and the various
networks used for testing your game submission. This session
also presents the optimal submission timeline required to hit
your desired street date and the most common failure issues for
both Compliance and Functional. This talk is particularly
relevant to producers and game testers. |
Xbox 360 Game Submission:
How to Ensure that Your Title Makes It Into Test
|
Simon Chapman |
Submitting your
title to Game Quality may be the last step in the process but
leaving it until the last minute can be very costly. Endless
hours spent trying to meet tight street dates are too often made
fruitless by simple mistakes in the submission process. This
session will give you a rundown of all you need to know in order
to submit your title successfully, giving you the best possible
chance of making sure your title gets into test first time and
without delay. |
Making Great Games for
Windows Vista
|
Chuck Walbourn & Skip McIlvaine |
With the launch
of Windows Vista, millions of your customers are already playing
games on this innovative new operating system. There are many
things you should be aware of to ensure they have a satisfying
experience. This talk covers important Windows Vista concepts
and features as they relate to games, and then discusses the top
issues affecting titles on Vista. Topics include dealing with
User Account Control, installation and Game Explorer
integration, graphics issues, and many other features that can
make your game stand out on Vista. |
Xbox LIVE on Windows and
360: Are Your Games Dead or LIVE?
|
David Shaw |
LIVE on Windows and Xbox presents unmatched
online opportunities for game developers. Session invitations,
ubiquitous voice, and achievements are just a few of the
features that continue to revolutionize the industry. But what
else lies within the LIVE toolbox? What opportunities for gaming
innovation await your creativity and passion? How can LIVE
features help drive sales of your game and increase player
retention? How can you integrate the most robust online feature
set onto multiple platforms with minimal code? Whether you’re
creating single-player or multi-player titles for Xbox 360 or
Windows, and whether you are new to LIVE or in the know, this
talk will help you get the most out of LIVE.
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SYSTEM PROGRAMMING
FOR WINDOWS AND XBOX 360
Making today’s
multi-core architectures work effectively is becoming more interesting
with each generation. This track focuses on getting the most out of
profiling and performance tools, exciting new features of the Xbox
360 SDK, lessons we’ve learned over the last two years of real world
title development for Xbox 360, and tips and tricks for making sure
your Windows Vista title is ready for prime time.
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Presentation |
Speaker |
Description |
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Sublime C++ for Games |
Bruce Dawson |
As game programmers, we
aspire to create C++ code that is straightforward yet
efficient, simple yet complete. Meeting the lofty goal
of sublime C++ is a difficult but worthy effort. This
wide-ranging presentation covers techniques that will
put you on the path to C++ nirvana. Topics include
efficient STL, fast cross-platform vector math, 64-bit
programming, pointer aliasing, and other common
performance issues. Expect illumination, inspiration,
and maybe some controversy, too!
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Making Great Games for
Windows Vista |
Chuck Walbourn & Skip
McIlvaine |
With the launch of Windows
Vista, millions of your customers are already playing
games on this innovative new operating system. There are
many things you should be aware of to ensure they have a
satisfying experience. This talk covers important
Windows Vista concepts and features as they relate to
games, and then discusses the top issues affecting
titles on Vista. Topics include dealing with User
Account Control and other security features, Game
Explorer integration, common re-distribution and
installation mistakes, changes to the DirectX runtime,
64-bit desktop computing, the new display driver model
and many other features that can make your game stand
out on Vista.
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XDK Redux: New Features
and Tools for Xbox 360 |
Zsolt Mathe |
Over the past year, many
exciting enhancements and features have been integrated
into the Xbox 360 Development Kit (XDK). New features
range from file event monitoring, host migration support
and reliable UDP to game disc caching, compression APIs
and video capture. This presentation will highlight a
number of these features, provide demos and share
thoughts on how to effectively integrate them into your
next Xbox 360 title or development process.
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Xbox 360 CPU Performance
Update |
Bruce Dawson |
Improving game performance
on a fixed platform requires both great tools and
techniques. The Xbox 360 CPU performance tools are
continuing to improve, but you have to know how to use
them and what to do with the results. This talk covers
the latest CPU performance tools, gives recommendations
for how to apply the results of those tools, showcases
new information on making the compiler generate
efficient code, and provides assembly language
optimization advice for those times when every clock
cycle is critical.
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Games for Windows - LIVE
Essentials |
Zsolt Mathe |
Games for Windows LIVE
brings a new generation of online gaming to Windows.
Join us to hear about how LIVE can provide you with the
technology to fully enable your games for multiplayer
gaming and extensive community. The LIVE platform
provides you with identity, achievements, automatic
patching, extensive matchmaking, cross-platform
connectivity, voice communications, anti-cheat
technology, NAT traversal and more. This talk, intended
for developers, will cover the features, requirements,
best practices and differences from the Xbox version.
Also included will be a sneak peak of new and upcoming
LIVE features and some cool demos!
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Multi-Core Memory
Coherence: The Hidden Perils of Sharing Data |
Bruce Dawson |
Creating threads is
straightforward, but communicating between threads in an
efficient and reliable manner can be very tricky. This
talk covers synchronization techniques such as critical
sections, spin-loops, and lockless programming, as well
as pitfalls such as false sharing. The talk introduces
high-level techniques and explains their low-level
consequences -- including the complexities of
out-of-order reads and writes. |
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