QuakeCon 07: Press Conference
Show Begins @ 4:00pm Pacific, 6:00pm Central, August 3rd
7:12: It's over. Carmack is hanging around longer to answer more personal questions, but I'm not hanging around to write about them. It's been fun! I need food!
7:07: Is the age of a ten-person team over? Carmack: you wouldn't want to be a ten-person team competing against Rage, but a ten-person team could even be overkill on a DS project. This ties back into his hope for a bottom-up approach, where you start off with a more manageable project then work up.
6:59: Question about Carmack's involvement in OpenGL. Carmack believes one of his big successes in the industry was getting Apple to adopt OpenGL and keeping it relevant to hardware vendors. However, he believes that DirectX 9 is actually currently a better platform than OpenGL. id still uses OpenGL on PC, "partly due to inertia" and partly due to Mac development.
6:56: Vista and DirectX 10. There is no DX10-only feature driving Rage, due to multiplatform development. "But the honest truth is that there's nothing [in DX10] that I'm dying to get my hands on." Carmack believes we're not even close to maxing out DX9.
6:51: Multicore architecture is inevitable but not desirable. "There are no benefits" to multicore architecture; much better to have a theoretical incredibly powerful single processor. However, that is not practical unfortunately. With 8 processors or less, you will do course grain parallelization and assign different processors to different tasks--but beyond that number, you have to start looking at it more like one big sea of processors, which requires a totally different attitude to programming. Introduces difficulties for game development. However, game development will "rocket past" more traditional research into parallel processing.
6:49: Question about the state of science education. Carmack: Science education probably isn't as good as it could be, but what's "miraculous" about the world today is that the "sum total of human knowledge" is available to everyone. "I basically learned rocket science over the internet." Again, Carmack is an optimist. "There are plenty of smart kids being born right now, it's the richest environment in history for them to be born into, and I expect great things. Has lots of interests, maybe he'll go onto fusion reactors after video games and rockets.
6:47: Carmack looking forward to direct retinal scanning. Currently, we're rendering more data that's going into your retina than what's actually being processed by your brain. This could be put to better use with direct retinal scanning much more so than with endlessly higher resolution physical monitors.
6:44: We are "within small integral values of all that matters" when it comes to graphical presentation issues. Talking about doing things like true genuine motion blur sampled at 4x 60fps, rather than current fake motion blur. He did some tests himself, but found that it may not be all that perceptible. 30fps to 60fps is a big difference, but 60fps to 120fps isn't really. "It's amazing how many pixels we're rendering even at 720p that really don't matter."
6:42: Considers himself an engineer, not an entrepreneur. (Notes that he's sunk $3 million into his rocket ship company, to laughter of crowd, though he does expect that to pay off someday.) id "has done pretty good, and I'm not unhappy with where we've ended up."
6:38: Finds "intellectual land grab" that comes along with software patent abuse to be "fairly reprehensible." Some companies trolling around industry suing developers. id has not been targeted specifically. "This is not what the patent office was supposed to be about." Carmack is an optimist about most thing, but the patent office is not one of them. "It's supported by cadres of lawyers, and lawyers become lawmakers."
6:34: Agnostic on HD-DVD vs. Blu-ray, not a big videophile. Using Blu-ray because it's in PS3--he thinks Blu-ray still costs more than two DVDs, but he's not sure. Probably not going to do an HD-DVD distribution for Rage because it's just an extra cost when already doing Blu-ray. Theoretically if it turns out not to be any more expensive to do a PC HD-DVD distribution, they might do it, but otherwise they'll just do Blu-ray and DVD.
6:32: Rage will have co-op.
6:31: Question about Havok and its potential to complicate open sourcing engines down the road. Carmack says Raven licensed Havok for Quake 4 rather than use internal physics engine. He didn't think that was a good idea and still doesn't. They won't be doing that with id Tech 5.
6:29: Question about MS' .NET framework. Carmack notes that id does not use any managed code. However Microsoft has done some good things. Often Microsoft does something poorly at first, then improves it. Can't deride that strategy too much, because it has made them the most powerful software company in the world. However, id will never really go into that kind of Microsoft managed code area.
6:26: Early on looked like Steam was "just another middleman," but there are definite positives to digital distribution. Believes next generation of consoles may not have optical media. id was looking into its own distribution channels but decided it wants to stay a development company and not a publisher. Back when Wolfenstein and Doom were coming out, Carmack notes they decided not to go the publisher route even though it would have been available at the time.
6:24: Question about whether Carmack's rocket could reach North Korea. Audience laughs. Carmack explains that rocketry is coming a long way, and might get to the point where citizens could build such things, which is a frightening thought but also exciting.
6:19: Carmack chose to held off on virtualizing geometry until id Tech 6--important to pick your battles and solve problems when they're possible. Stuck to texture virtualization for id Tech 5. As far as other problems to solve, was talking to AGEIA about entirely destructible world--imagine Quake 3 Arena but where entire world is destructible. "That's a research problem in its own right, and somebody should be doing that." Asks physics people why we haven't seen that yet. Though Carmack hasn't been a big proponent of physics acceleration, he says the ball is in their court to show us what can be done. He doesn't really have time to try it because of all the stuff he's doing, but he hopes someone else does.
6:18: Computer may run out of batteries soon!
6:16: Question about why Carmack's PS3 complaint is about texture memory whereas questioner thought difficulty with system was processor architecture. Carmack says that currently, texture memory is the company's biggest problem. Carmack has said Microsoft's triple-core processor is a better decision than PS3's Cure architecture--and while some people probably like the Core architecture, it's still Carmack's opinion that the symmetric Xbox 360 architecture is a "much, much better design."
6:14: Question about why Enemy Territory game logic runs at 30fps while renderer runs at 60fps. Carmack: "Enemy Territory has had significant performance problems throughout its development" due to a variety of reasons, including multiplatform development. "I'm still a little queasy about the architecture here of running the renderer at a higher framerate than the game logic...but it's not the direction I personally would have taken. I would have tried harder to get the gameplay to run at a higher tick rate. Rage is certainly running at a 60hertz tick rate across the board."
6:08: Catch-up post from about 15 minutes ago: Carmack doesn't really have any interest in Xbox Live Arcade or Wii Ware or whatever, even though id will release Quake Arena Arcade. Essentially, he doesn't like the artificial limitations associated with that kind of development: all the limitations imposed by the manufacturer mean that you can't exploit the system's hardware. This is in contrast to, for example, DS, which is much less powerful than those machines but when developing for it you can push the machine as hard as you want, whereas XBLA etc. development relies heavily on texture compression tricks and other things that Carmack does not find particularly interesting or challenging from a programmer perspective.
6:06: "Eventually, id Tech 5 is going to be open-source also." "The policy is that we're not going to integrate stuff that makes it impossible for us to do an open-source release." All id engines eventually become open source. It's more of a personal principle than a business decision. "As a personal conviction, it's still pretty important to me, and I'm standing by that."
6:04: I'm back! Sorry, 3G connection went down. Despite misgivings about PS3 hardware, Carmack prefers the openness of the system's network architecture, rather than Microsoft's extremely closed attitude. However, he notes that despite this principled objection to Xbox Live, he does believe it to be extremely well implemented and "unquestionably" good for gamers.
5:39: New Wolfenstein game will be rather different from past Wolfenstein games. However he still loves simple games, like Quake Zero and planned Quake Arena DS game. "Honestly, I sit down and look at Enemy Territory, and I'm a little overwhelmed."
5:35: id is likely to do Quake Arena type of game on Nintendo DS. Carmack likes that is has wi-fi and has game sharing without everybody needing a cartridge. Referring to Metroid Prime Hunters--"The first time I looked at it, I thought, 'That's really cool!' but it doesn't hold up." "You can't play it for half an hour, or an hour." Carmack's early inclination is to build a DS game that's Quake Arena-themed, but leave it more like Doom 2-style deathmatch. Would be more digestible on a portable without that full 6 degrees of movmement, you could play it a lot longer with less fatigue. Talked to publishers about it, haven't signed any contracts yet, but Carmack wants it to happen and is likely to be next DS project. Carmack would kick it off, then let another team handle the heavy lifting on DS.
5:32: Have ideas for a potential id Tech 5 Quake Arena game with really detailed custom avatars, etc., but Quake Zero focus for now. "It's gonna be fun for now, and it's setting the stage for the next big monster thing on there." Hope to target every platform. DS turning out well, hope to do Wii game for Orcs & Elves (while some id Tech 5 technology could work on Wii, whole engine wouldn't really work). "While graphics and everything are great, the really important things that are going to happen in games are the interface." Wii remote isn't be-all-end-all, but it's a good step and he's happy for Nintendo, even though id and Nintendo weren't always the best of friend. Working with Microsoft is good. Working with Sony is a pain because everything has to be filtered through Japanese side. Might eventually look at PSP. "A year ago, I may have been more excited about doing a PSP game than a DS game," but DS turned out better for Orcs & Elves.
5:24: "None of my core opinions have really changed about [the PS3]," and 360 and PS3 are more similar than any two gaming platforms ever, "but if you have a problem moving [a game] over, it's probably going to be because of the PS3." However id has hired one of the best PS3 programmers do ensure that all of id's stuff is top-notch on PS3--PS3 engine will be just as good or potentially better in some ways, but it will have required much more effort than the other platforms. Quake Wars (which uses id Tech 4) on PS3 lagging way behind. Would like to just release 360 game first, but Sony wouldn't really get behind that. However, id Tech 5 will be ready for all platforms. "One of the things that will be really unfortunate" about multiplatform and 60fps target is less upward mobility. Most id titles have been targeted for 30fps on most systems, with expectation that higher-end machines will do more. "Obviously, it's worked well for us over the years." However with multiplatform focus, it changes things because intending to run at 60fps on Xbox 360 and PS3, "which are essentially previous generation PC hardware," adds challenge.
5:19: Talking about freedom developers will have across different genres and types of games, should allow teams to more effectively share assets. "We have a well-deserved reputation for doing good technology with very poor tool interfaces." Generally, id's tech is controlled by text configuration files, etc. That is changing. "Specifically, Epic has done a much better job of making nice, pretty tools." "We don't intend to address that side of doing a lot of hand-holding and support," but company has hired dedicated tools guys to create "pretty GUIs" and tools for id's tech.
5:13: Carmack believes Enemy Territory: Quake Wars sets current standard for nice looking outdoor game. However it only really revolutionizes environment texture, whereas Rage will eliminate texture constraints throughout. Advantages not immediately noticeable--you can carve your name in a rock anywhere in the game, etc. "We're certainly not giving up on the quest for graphical wow," but advantages to development are just as significant. New tech doesn't solve geometry problems if you throw too much stuff into the game, but within the realm of working with surfaces, it removes all constraints.
5:10: Talking about game in development prior to Rage, and about 30fps versus 60fps. id has made decision to target 60fps with its engine and games. Thus, licensees can shoot for 30fps if they like, and do more visual stuff, or stick with the 60fps goal. "At 30fps with modern graphics hardware, you feel you can do almost anything." "But at 60 hertz...you're left with a lot less decision freedoms, and it's kind of nice." Easier to just say "No you can't do that with 60 hertz."
5:05: Carmack wants to get oscilliscopes out and measure where every single tiny bit of latency is coming from, everywhere from network code to mouse inputs and everywhere in between. Will be easy to do on Mac because he can work with them and they own all the hardware on the computer. Though Macs probably won't start winning game benchmarks, he does feel that Macs could be ideal for incredibly responsive gaming, due to Apple's 100% handling of all hardware in the machine. People haven't analyzed latency in an incredibly scientific way to really optimize as completely as possible, so he wants to do that. "We can work on making it the absolute most responsive experience possible." Thinks industry should look at that in general.
5:00: Talking about Quake Zero. Carmack's idea for how to start a second team at id, which has never existed before. "Even at id, we can't just snap our fingers and say, 25 of the best developers in the world, drop what you're doing and come work on this." Brought in some new people to start staffing up, eventually will grow to team of 20-30 people working on Quake 3 Arena game powered by id Tech 5. For Quake Zero, will spiff up graphics slightly and allow people to play for free. Visuals have never been the key thing--people used to run with all graphics settings turned down. "The core gameplay goodness was there." "Quake Arena was always my favorite game, my favorite id game." Not the company's biggest blockbuster, but "I have always liked the simple, straightforward and elegant game." These days gamers like big intricate productions, which is why Carmack lets Willits head up design and he sticks to tech. Working with Apple to ensure Quake Zero will run on Mac. id is a private company, so he can talk about unsigned projects; so while everything tonight is not guaranteed, it's stuff id is trying to do.
6:58: id presenting at Apple came up "almost randomly." id has made a profit on every Mac game version it has ever released. Was planning on announcing id Tech 5 and multiplatform support at E3, but decided to do it at the Apple thing. "I really want to possibly do something on the iPhone." Current id games wouldn't work, "but it's a neat device that I'm certainly looking forward to have people work on." Wants a smart phone so he can control his rocket over wi-fi through his phone.
6:51: Talking about enjoyability of going back and forth between DS 3D engine programming and crazy Rage programming. Has gone back and looked at his earlier code, making it much easier to create the DS engine. Did the whole 3D engine in about 3 days. Met with mobile developers at the Apple thing, all talking about how they make mistakes all the time. Carmack: "Can't the guys who made the mistakes the first time just make the chips right this time?" Other devs: "Yeah, but most of those guys are too rich to care anymore." id is pleased with how mobile dev is going, games selling well etc. However, Carmack was expecting faster technical advancement with cell phones than has actually occurred. They've gone through three phone generations with Doom RPG, Orcs & Elves, and Orcs & Elves 2, but the specs haven't improved all that much. "We've pretty much tapped out what we can reasonably expect to do on this modest development platform." Next project will probably step it up more. "On one hand, a really high end cell phone should kick the crap out of a Nintendo DS" but development environments are all much less efficient and more wasteful. Java "makes things one tenth as fast as it should be."
6:45: "I have a specific strategy we're attempting to pursue here." Bottom-up approach to IP. Traditional route is have a smash movie or whatever, then bring out triple-A content across platforms, then start chopping game down to fit on all the different platforms. "Its this downgrading process, basically." "All too often, you end up getting things that are pale shadows of what was great originally." "Everybody knows that the game industry is risk-averse, and for good reason." Rage is costing tens of millions of dollars. People ask why developers don't try new things. "It's all well and good when it's not your $20 million." On the other hand, something like Orcs & Elves starts with a relatively modest project, get people interested, then bring up to a more powerful platform like DS. "Instead of porting down, porting up is wonderful." More memory, faster processing speed, etc. You have existing proven game, but everything about it is better. If Orcs & Elves DS is a success, bring the mobile sequel to DS, if that's a success, redesign and bring franchise to Wii. Maybe eventually, do a spinoff in id Tech 5. Trying things out on the lower end allows lower-risk innovation and ability to build up an audience. DS is 1/1000th of the power of a top-notch platform like the ones that will run Rage. Rage is apparently massive, will ship on 2 DVDs or one Blu-ray.
6:41: "That is the name. Rage is the game we've been working on internally, and there's quite a story behind it." Talking about when id was deciding on next game. Initially, after Doom 3, id was working on a different game. First working on dark survival horror island game codenamed Darkness. "Obviously somebody else has already picked up that name now." Worked on it for about a year, but it wasn't really panning out, and eventually decided to can it. id has that freedom as independent studio, not all devs have that luxury. Lots of love within id for the road warrior kind of atmosphere--running over people, not just shooting them. Tim Willits leading up design. Carmack: "Maybe it was time for id to do something that isn't too dark." Lots of bright, sunny outdoor areas. Audience laughs and cheers.
6:39: Carmack on stage, talking about his unveiling at the Apple show. "Everybody knows we're going to do a good job with the run and gun action stuff...but we are branching out." Driving, other gameplay as well. Trailer time! Incredibly detailed character models and environment, depth of field, camera following fly buzzing around, even fly is incredibly detailed. NPC addresses screen, good facial animation. Numerous driving scenes, looks sort of Motorstorm-esque. Game title is Rage.
6:36: id Tech 5 logo on screen. Crazy shit surely incoming. "I think we still have the most important announcements to go." John Carmack will be talking about it, Hollenshead is introducing. "There's another option out there for developers and publishers to use other than what's out there on the market." Hollenshead: id Tech 5 will run equally well on any platform, not in any company's pocket, "and for you press, you can print that."
6:30: Doom RPG logo on screen. Katherine Kang of developer Fountainhead Entertainment and John Carmack's wife comes to stage. Talking about Orcs & Elves 2 for mobile, announce at E3. Coming by end of year. Also talking about Orcs & ELves for DS this year, also announced at E3 ad has been on show floor. Showing game on DS. Killing everything in one hit. "Wow, I am very powerful today." Competition for show attendees to win phones or other stuff. Back to Todd.
6:28: Quake 3 Arena logo on screen. Still 10th most popular game on GameSpy. "We appreciate what you guys have done over the years in building the popularity of the game. ... We also like 'free.'" "We at id are building a second team, our first project is Quake Zero, which means zero cost, zero hassle. You'll be able to play Quake 3 in your web browser for free, supported only by advertising dollars."
6:27: Quake Arena Arcade announced, developed by Pi Studios and id for Xbox 360. It just keeps coming. No real details yet.
6:26: Holy shit they are not slowing down. Every single id game on Steam, going all the way back to Commander Keen. QuakeCon attendees can buy all the games in one package for $59.95.
6:24: Hollenshead: "Would you like a Wolfenstein movie?" Audience: confused cheering. Return to Castle Wolfenstein feature film in development. Writer and director Roger Avary (Pulp Fiction, Silent Hill, Beowolf). Produced by Samual Hadida (Resident Evil, Silent Hill, Good Night and Good Luck). This makes way more sense than a Doom movie. Could theoretically (?) be badass.
6:23: Hollenshead: "You guys ready for some Wolfenstein news?" Crowd is, but apparently they aren't. More information coming soon. Raven developing, Threewave Software contributing to multiplayer.
6:22: "So when are you going to get this box in your hands?" Audience: "WHEN IT'S DONE!" Hollenshead announces release date for PC: October 2, 2007.
6:21: Bunch of Enemy Territory: Quake Wars gameplay footage.
6:17: It's on! Todd Hollenshead on stage. "Thanks to all our sponsors." Next year QuakeCon is coming back to Hilton Anatole.
6:00: It appears the keynote will begin a bit later than originally scheduled.
