• The Game Developers Conference (commonly known as GDC) is one of the largest annual conferences in the world where video game developers gather to discuss industry issues and present new products.

• 1. When: February 18-22, 2008
  2. Where: Moscone Center in San Francisco, California
  3. Hours: Wednesday and Thursday: 10:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M and Friday: 10:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M.
  4. Primary Keynote Speakers: John Schappert and Ray Kurzweil
  5. Startup LaunchpadOfficial Site: Startup Launchpad was held to aid those who want to launch a game business
  6. Audio recordings from the conference are available for purchase for $7.95 a pieceGDC Radio: [1]
  7. Over 250 exhibitorsOfficial Site: Exhibitors List

• Conference History Fast Facts

  1. First Held: 1987
  2. Where: In the living room of Chris Crawford
  3. Twenty-seven designers attended
  4. Second conference was held during the same year
  5. Crawford developed The Journal of Computer Game Design
  6. The 2009 conference is slated for March 23 - 27Official Site: Game Developers Conference 2009

• Features

  • Expo
  • Networking events
  • Awards shows (Independent Games Festival and the Game Developers Choice Awards)
  • Tutorials
  • Lectures
  • Roundtables discussions

• Roundtable Topics

  • Programming
  • Design
  • Audio
  • Production
  • Business and management
  • Visual Arts

• Speakers

  • John Schappert - Microsoft Corporate's Vice President
  • Ray Kurzweil - Inventor & Futurist
  • John Debney - Composer at Audio Keynote
  • Rob Pardo - Blizzard Entertainment's VP of game design
  • Allan Alcorn - CTO, IMMI
  • Ralph Baer
  • Rod Humble - Head of The Sims Studio, Electronic Arts
  • Dave Jones
  • Raph Koster - President of Areae, Inc.
  • Peter Molyneux - Head of Studio at Lionhead Studios
  • Michel Guillemot- CEO and President of Gameloft

• Partial Sessions List

  • Crysis in the Making
  • Dynamic Cinematic Gameplay: Creating Strangehold's "Tequila Bombs"
  • E Pluribus Unum: Matchmaking in HALO 3
  • Stories Best Played: Deconstructing the Best Interactive Storytelling
  • Storytelling in Bioshock: Empowering Players to Care about Your Stupid Story
  • Experimental Gameplay Sessions
  • The Changing Landscape In Composer Game Music Underscore Deals
  • Audio Post-Mortem: Halo 3
  • Game Music and the AFM
  • G.A.N.G. Demo Derby - Music
  • How to Break All Rules and Yet Make a 90+ Game
  • Procedural Data Generation in Far Cry 2
  • Mashups, Mods & Machinima: Who Owns the Rights to Your Blood, Sweat & Tears
  • Practical Light and Color

• Partial Exhibitors List

  • 2K Games
  • Academy of Art University
  • Activision
  • Adobe Systems
  • Akamai Technologies
  • Bellevue University
  • Big Fish Games
  • Blue Castle Games
  • Crytek
  • Dell Inc
  • DeVry University
  • Disney Interactive Studios
  • Logitech
  • Microtech Systems

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