How prevalent will the RenderWare technology be in the next-gen consoles?

moondance

Member
Will RenderWare conflict with XNA or compliment it and if developers are going to utilize it will they be getting the most out of the new hardware?
 
moondance said:
Will RenderWare conflict with XNA or compliment it and if developers are going to utilize it will they be getting the most out of the new hardware?

XNA isn't middleware itself, so Renderware won't conflict with it. Again, misconceptions about XNA abound.

As for getting the most out of the hadware, who knows..
 
Will RenderWare conflict with XNA or compliment it and
Well Renderware now requires to sign a blood contract with the devil of EA, so obviously it is evil to the core and should not be touched with a 9 foot pole if you value your immortal soul.
But then, if you work on Microsoft console you've probably already forfeited that anyhow :P

if developers are going to utilize it will they be getting the most out of the new hardware?
Anyway, like with all cross platform middleware, priority is on getting results fast, not optimal use of hardware.
 
I've been told that quite a few developers won't work with Renderware anymore since they are now owned by EA.
I do not know if it's only for "political" reasons, or if EA actually changed the licensing or pricing.
 
I do not know if it's only for "political" reasons, or if EA actually changed the licensing or pricing.
I don't know the reasons either, but Renderware's key advantage over other middleware was that it's licenses were dirt cheap.
If that changed, one of the main reason to use it would be gone too...
 
EA Renderware will use the awesome power of the next generation of consoles to make sure that every single object in the game world is backlit. AWESOME

As far as XNA goes, my knowledge is limited, but the only effect I see that having on Renderware games is that PC ports might be quicker and easier.
 
through my channels I've heard many developers are exploring other options such as Unreal Engine 2.5 and 3.0, and Gamebryo after Renderware was bought by EA.

A lot has to do with support, in who gets preference. If you are using Renderware and you are having a problem and one of EAs studios is having a similar problem, who gets the preference?
Also when using Renderware for pre-production you are showing off your game before signing with a publisher, yet EA could hear about your game through the grapevine in Renderware because they know all the games using their engine signed or unsigned. How would you feel if EA heard about your new game before any other publisher.

It just makes developers scared and willing to not take the chance.
 
Renderware only became popular due to the difficulties programming for the ps2. If another console next gen puts up a similar problem middleware will have to save the day again.
 
Problem is, stuff like Unreal is freakishly expensive compared to RW, it's not all that realistic alternative to many smaller companies.
Not sure where GameBryo stands these days though...

A lot has to do with support, in who gets preference. If you are using Renderware and you are having a problem and one of EAs studios is having a similar problem, who gets the preference?
Could also be conflicts of interest if it's any kind of genre competition. Although it's also true that EAs track record of what technologies their internal studios use is a bit of a mess, they aren't exactly known for sharing tech across the company particularly well.
I wonder if that will change with RW...
 
they aren't exactly known for sharing tech across the company particularly well.
I wonder if that will change with RW....
already mandated that all future titles will use renderware. came out in a leaked email a couple weeks ago from a VP of production or something.
 
How could the next gen of consoles not rely on Renderware? It cuts dev time down dramatically. The amount of resources needed per game shoots up every gen.

Man, Criterion is paid.
 
crazy buttocks on a train said:
unfortunately, EA is having an incredibly difficult time getting Renderware to work right on Xenon.

from god's mouth to your ears

So Xenon is going to be the least powerful of the 3 next-gen systems AND it's hard to develop for?

saturn.jpg
 
My prediction is that EA will allow Renderware to be licensed just long enough for studios to start relying on it.....then they'll shut everything down and leave everybody out in the cold, forced to learn all the new systems over again 2-3 years into the next generation.
 
:lol I forgot EA gobbled that up along w/ Criterion.

EA owns 100% of renderware?
 
element said:
already mandated that all future titles will use renderware. came out in a leaked email a couple weeks ago from a VP of production or something.
That's interesting news, and all the more reason I wouldn't touch rw personally :P


unfortunately, EA is having an incredibly difficult time getting Renderware to work right on Xenon.
It's all XNA fault!!!
 
DaCocoBrova said:
EA owns 100% of renderware?
Yes, and that's a large part of the reason why other developers are exploring new middleware options. Nobody wants to expose their game ideas to an Electronic Arts-controlled subsidiary, obviously.
 
Fafalada said:
Problem is, stuff like Unreal is freakishly expensive compared to RW, it's not all that realistic alternative to many smaller companies.
Not sure where GameBryo stands these days though...

Dunno, Epic will let you have the engine for a small fee or no cost. But when you sign a publishing deal, you have to pay them at that point.

In general, Epic does give you soild support for what you pay for. Id just basically hands you a copy of the code and wishes you luck, which is why more and more devs are going to Epic. If they have a problem or want help in implementing a feature, they know they can call Epic and talk to Tim Sweeny.
 
So Xenon is going to be the least powerful of the 3 next-gen systems AND it's hard to develop for?
Let's us start with some questions on this statement.
What gives you the impression that Xenon is going to be the least powerful? Time of release? Hardware partners? If anything 'Revolution' will be the least powerful if Nintendo comments hold true, 'gameplay over technology'.
I've been hearing comments that Xenon is no more difficult then Gamecube. Now if a developer was used to making PC based games, then they will have a difficult time. Because it doesn't work like a PC. Also take into consideration that all development is on alpha kits at this time, so it would inherently be a little difficult.

what competition does renderware have?
Unreal Engine
CryEngine (Far Cry)
Gamebryo/net immerse (Dark Age, Morrowind, Munch's Oddysee, Sid Meier's Pirates)
intrinsic alchemy
touchdown entertainment (formerly lithtech)
Source (HL2, Vampire)

there are others, but that is off the top of my head.
 
How could the next gen of consoles not rely on Renderware? It cuts dev time down dramatically. The amount of resources needed per game shoots up every gen.

Heh, i dont know about that. Progammers at my place curse Renderware at every step. I'm thinking gamebryo would have been better in the long run, not to mention cheaper.
 
I was mostly just trolling.

I'm not even factoring Revolution into this, because at this point whatever "innovations" Nintendo brings to revolution will probably factor more heavily than hardware power (out controller has no buttons! like the U-force!)

Xbox Next will be weaker than the PS3 from a pure hardware standpoint. I'd be willing to bet a pound of flesh on that.

Also, it seems that a lot of the goodwill that MS built up over the lifespan of the Xbox from PC-Centric devs was due to the ease of development. If they're going to have to learn "custom hardware" on the X2, even if it's mitigated by XNA, some of the shine is going to come off.
 
How would you feel if EA heard about your new game before any other publisher.

Quite happy if it was interesting enough to get me a pitch.


I think renderware is a good thing. Only problem is the fact that you don't get perfect use of resources as its middleware - not as good as coding directly yourself. I don't think you'll see the best from renderware until maybe the next-next generation. I think by then there will be hardware acceleration of renderware available.
 
I guess the better question is, how would you feel if you are making a street racing game with renderware without a publisher? Or perhaps a hockey game? or a soccer game?

Are you comfortable telling an EA company the features that make your game better then the EA game?

Some genre that EA has a stake in knowing what is coming up.
 
Renderware is just a new revenue stream for EA.

Even if their games stop selling, licensing cash will be coming in.
 
crazy buttocks on a train said:
unfortunately, EA is having an incredibly difficult time getting Renderware to work right on Xenon.

from god's mouth to your ears

eh? I don't find that believable.. Xenon is the only one among next-gen consoles that has dev kits out.. so it means they're coding it for Xenon first, of course they're going to have problems.
 
element said:
I guess the better question is, how would you feel if you are making a street racing game with renderware without a publisher? Or perhaps a hockey game? or a soccer game?

Are you comfortable telling an EA company the features that make your game better then the EA game?

Some genre that EA has a stake in knowing what is coming up.

Whats with the conspiracy theory?

Nothing in the renderware contract is forcing you to hand over your source code and secrets every 28 days.

If you need complex hands-on tech support, then it'll be on a small code module and the tech-guys will have no idea what the game is like or what its 'amazing killer features' are.
 
You can't imagine a situation where you would have to tell Criterion what you want to do, to get them to help?? If you have a particularly complex or innovative idea that they couldn't have anticipated when manufacturing their engines, I imagine you probably would have to.
 
Yes, and that's a large part of the reason why other developers are exploring new middleware options. Nobody wants to expose their game ideas to an Electronic Arts-controlled subsidiary, obviously.

This is interesting.

I'd imagine Criterion or anyone associated with them can't drum out their own either.
 
from my understanding, Renderware is somewhat informed of the genre and features of a game before setting up a pre-production payment plan (small amount is paid for up front by the developer, while majority of the engine is paid for upon getting signed), which most smaller devs do.

Even if you don't share major features. How important is it for EA to have an idea that 5 developer have signed pre-production deals for a racing game? Able to find out who these companies are, and if they are a threat to their marketshare.
 
Some tools which fall under XNA (and NDA!) make developing for Xenon a dream...

Just as one example there's a PIX performance analysis tool which is pretty much 100% required to make a game make use of the full performance of the system...

It's not a machine.

I think MS is going to go over that tool and lots of other things at GDC so even if they don't show clips of games they will be, like usual, teaching developers how to make great graphics right off the bat and without a lot of head banging required with Sony hardware..

Renderware was used in 1 out of every 4 games for PS2/Xbox...it's likely to stay that way next gen.
 
thorns said:
eh? I don't find that believable.. Xenon is the only one among next-gen consoles that has dev kits out.. so it means they're coding it for Xenon first, of course they're going to have problems.
I've been hearing the same thing, however.
 
I'd bet Sega won't be using Renderware anymore, and neither will any of the other companies that EA has pissed off :P
 
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