Sony Computer Entertainment America Announces Participation at Annual Game Developers Conference

Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. announced today its presence at the annual Game Developers Conference, held from March 4-8 at the San Jose Convention Center in San Jose, Calif. The company will share the latest PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system tools and information with expert developers from around the world at the highly attended seventeenth annual conference. Sony Computer Entertainment America game developers, programmers, producers, and technology specialists will speak at various sessions throughout the conference. In addition, attendees can explore the latest development tools for PlayStation 2 at booth 1308, which will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on March 6-7, and from 11:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on March 8.

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The Game Developers Conference, the world's largest event exclusively devoted to game creators, with more than 10,000 attendees and experts from around the world, serves as a platform for sharing ideas, building skills and learning about the latest development tools and technologies significant to the videogame industry. At this year's event, Sony Computer Entertainment America experts will support developers and publishers in the creation of PlayStation 2 content by providing the latest development tools and technologies through scheduled conference presentations, panels as well as in booth demonstrations.

"As PlayStation 2 continues to lead the industry, we recognize the importance of fostering talent and development as the market evolves," said Andrew House, executive vice president, Sony Computer Entertainment America. "We see the Game Developers Conference as an opportunity to share the latest tools and information with our partners, in hopes of inspiring further creativity and innovation."

Sony Computer Entertainment America experts will be available at the booth throughout the session to share the latest development tools and technologies including:

  -- The PlayStation 2 Performance Analyzer, a new development tool for
     conducting detailed performance analysis to ensure games designed for
     the PlayStation 2 fully optimize the capabilities of the platform.
     Private 60-minute sessions will be held to provide developers hands-on
     access as well as an opportunity to speak with experts regarding how to
     best utilize the new Performance Analyzer.
  -- Experts will offer demonstrations of the expanding online capabilities
     of PlayStation 2 and provide additional information for developers
     interested in creating online-enabled titles for the platform.  Live
     demonstrations of the highly successful first party online hit,
     SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs from Sony Computer Entertainment America, an
     action adventure title that places the gamer in the role of an elite
     SEAL commander, will also be conducted throughout the session.
  -- Experts will demonstrate voice over IP technology (via USB headset)
     available through PlayStation 2 middleware software as well as games
     leveraging this technology.  Support engineers will be on hand to
     provide their insight on the benefits and opportunities of
     incorporating voice in game design.
  -- The "Linux (for PlayStation®2)" Kit, a hobbyist development
     environment providing users the ability to run a wide variety of
     computer applications written for the Linux operating system and create
     original programs and applications designed to run on Linux.
  -- Sony Computer Entertainment Europe will feature their latest
     development technology, EyeToy™, which provides developers and
     publishers tools to create games where the player's own movements,
     gestures and actions are captured via camera and transmitted to the
     game to control gameplay in real-time.

Sony Computer Entertainment America developers, programmers, producers, technology specialists as well as experts from independent development studios will be speaking on a variety of topics at the Game Developers Conference. Below is a list of Sony Computer Entertainment America and affiliated speakers:

  -- Tuesday, March 4, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Robin Green, R&D programmer, Sony
     Computer Entertainment America, in a full-day tutorial entitled,
     "Faster Math Functions," Programming Track, room B1.  Takeaways include
     code samples and the proofs that lie behind them.
  -- Tuesday, March 4, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Daniel Arey, creative director,
     Naughty Dog and Nate Fox, co-lead designer, Sucker Punch, in a full-day
     panel tutorial entitled, "All Stories Great and Small," Game Design
     Track, room A7.  This tutorial lays the groundwork for interactive
     storytelling by examining time-tested techniques in literature, drama
     and film that can also be applied to games.
  -- Wednesday, March 5, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Ted Price, president and CEO of
     Insomniac Games, in a full-day panel tutorial entitled, "Making and
     Managing the 'AAA' Game Development Deal," Business & Legal Track, room
     J2, examining the current state of software development deals from a
     legal perspective.
  -- Thursday, March 6, 9 a.m. - 10 a.m., Jason Rubin, president and
     co-founder of Naughty Dog, in a panel entitled, "Communicating With the
     Mothership: Interfacing Between American Subsidiaries and Their
     Japanese Parents," Production Track, room A2.
  -- Thursday, March 6, 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., Dan Johnson, lead character
     modeler, Insomniac Games, in a panel entitled, "Creating Character
     Models: A Review of Current Techniques," Visual Arts Track, room B1.
     This will be a moderated panel discussion on creating character models
     for today's games.
  -- Thursday, March 6, 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., Buzz Burrowes, director of
     audio, Sony Computer Entertainment America, in a sponsored session
     entitled, "Introduction to SCREAM, a Sound F/X System from Sony
     Computer Entertainment America," Audio Track, room A8.  The discussion
     will include an overview of the system's features, tools and API.
  -- Thursday, March 6, 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., Mark DeLoura, manager,
     developer relations, Sony Computer Entertainment America, "Game
     Programming Gems Group Gathering," IGDA Track, IDGA booth.  This group
     gathering is a meeting of the community of game developers who have
     contributed to the Game Programming Gems series.
  -- Thursday, March 6, 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., Jason Rubin, president and
     co-founder of Naughty Dog, and Ted Price, president and CEO of
     Insomniac Games, face off in a session entitled, "Deathmatch: Ted Price
     vs. Jason Rubin," Game Design Track, room A2.
  -- Thursday, March 6, 3 p.m. - 4 p.m., Seth Luisi, senior producer, Sony
     Computer Entertainment America, Dr. Bob Gutmann, software engineer,
     Zipper Interactive, Inc. and Glen Van Datta, director, technology, Sony
     Computer Entertainment America will speak in a lecture entitled,
     "SOCOM: Bringing a Console Game Online," Game Design Track, room J1.
     This session will discuss the challenges faced and lessons learned in
     bringing the hit PlayStation 2 title, SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs, online.
     The topics will include online game design, user interface design,
     SCE-RT™, API and backend server technologies, online game
     programming challenges, console specific programming challenges and
     localization issues.
  -- Thursday, March 6, 3 p.m. - 4 p.m., Oliver Wade, animation director,
     Insomniac Games, and Rob Titus, character lead, Naughty Dog, in a panel
     entitled, "A Review of Current and Future Animation Issues," Visual
     Arts Track, room B1.  Topics covered include pre-rendered vs. real-time
     cutscenes, different animation software and future trends.
  -- Thursday, March 6, 3 p.m. - 4 p.m., Robin Green, R& D programmer, Sony
     Computer Entertainment America, in a lecture entitled, "Spherical
     Harmonic Lighting: The Gritty Details," Programming Track, room A2,
     where he will present the math behind a new technique for lighting 3D
     models.
  -- Thursday, March 6, 4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m., Buzz Burrowes, director of
     audio, Sony Computer Entertainment America, in a panel entitled,
     "Interactive Mixing," Audio Track, room F1.  This panel will address
     vital sonic elements in a 3D environment.
  -- Thursday, March 6, 4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m., Geoff Audy and Kirk Bender,
     developer support engineers, Sony Computer Entertainment America, in a
     sponsored session entitled, "Introduction to the Performance Analyzer,"
     room A8.  Participants will learn the capabilities of the new
     Performance Analyzer and how it will help them optimize the performance
     of their titles and demystify the internal operations of the
     PlayStation 2.
  -- Friday, March 7, 9 a.m. - 10 a.m., Evan Wells, game director, Naughty
     Dog, in a panel entitled, "On All Levels," Game Design Track, room B1.
     This panel will explore level design with some of the leading level and
     game design veterans in the community.
  -- Friday, March 7, 10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m., Brian Allgeier, design
     director, Insomniac Games, in a lecture entitled, "Designing a Ratchet
     & Clank Level," Game Design Track, room B2.  This lecture describes the
     development of levels for Ratchet & Clank™ on PlayStation 2.
  -- Friday, March 7, noon - 1 p.m., Stephen White, programming director,
     Naughty Dog, in a lecture entitled, "The Technology of Jak & Daxter:
     Our Techniques for Realizing a Massively Detailed World," Programming
     Track, room J1.  White will provide an overview of the techniques and
     approaches used to create and render the detailed environments and
     characters of Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy® on PlayStation 2.
  -- Friday, March 7, Noon - 1 p.m., Christer Ericson, senior principal
     programmer, Sony Computer Entertainment America, in a lecture entitled,
     "Memory Optimization," Programming Track, room A4.  Ericson will
     address the problems caused by an increasing gap between CPU and memory
     speeds, and will give practical code and data optimization solutions
     for minimizing these memory bottlenecks.
  -- Friday, March 7, 4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m., Chuck Doud, music director,
     Sony Computer Entertainment America, in a session entitled, "Composing,
     Producing and Implementing an Interactive Music for a Videogame," Audio
     Track, room F1.  This lecture covers compositional techniques and
     approaches used to create and implement non-linear interactive music
     soundtracks for videogames.
  -- Saturday, March 8, 10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m., Jason Rubin, president and
     co-founder, Naughty Dog, in a lecture entitled, "Great Game
     Graphics ... Who Cares," Game Design Track, room A4.

For information on how to register for the Game Developers Conference, visit http://www.gdconf.com/ . Please note that speaker times and locations are subject to change, please refer to the conference program for updated information.

About Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc.

Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. continues to redefine the entertainment lifestyle with its PlayStation® and PS one™ game console, and the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system. The PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system is set to revolutionize the home entertainment market, offering the most compelling interactive content and the capability to be used as a network terminal in the coming broadband era.

Recognized as the undisputed industry leader, Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. markets the PlayStation family of products and develops, publishes, markets and distributes software for the PS one game console and the PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system for the North American market. Based in Foster City, Calif. Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. serves as headquarters for all North American operations and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

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SOURCE: Sony Computer Entertainment America

CONTACT: Monica Wik, +1-650-655-5394, or
monica_wik@playstation.sony.com, or Teresa Weaver, +1-650-655-5324, or
teresa_weaver@playstation.sony.com, both of Sony Computer Entertainment
America

Web site: http://www.gdconf.com/

Web site: http://www.playstation.com/