Vermont Digital Arts

Gaming Ouroboros at the Global Game Jam 2012

Elliott — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 01:15:26 +0000

Now and then, as a professional 3D technical artist and game designer, I find it’s helpful to step out of my usual routine and make a game over a weekend. Why? Because it keeps life fresh and exciting while providing a rare sense of instant gratification in the crazy world of video game development. Making a video game over a weekend isn’t easy for one person alone. For this, Global Game Jam was created.

Read the rest here

Spin Spell HD for the iPad

Elliott — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 18:30:36 +0000

Play SpinSpell HD for iPad now!

Vermont Digital Arts Heading to Unite 2011 in San Francisco, CA!

Elliott — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 19:19:14 +0000

We’re officially attending Unity Technology’s annual Unite Conference this week in San Francisco. Last year’s conference in Montreal was so amazing on so many levels we had to attend this time around no matter the cost. Check back for updates … Continue reading →

Scared to make 2D games in Unity?

Elliott — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 20:45:18 +0000

Scared to make 2D games in a 3D engine? I often hear that game engines like Unity, which are thought of as primarily for 3D game development, are overkill for creating 2D games. I couldn’t disagree more. The benefits to developing 2D games in Unity like publishing to multiple platforms including iOS, ease of use, configurable cameras, supportive developer community and lots of available assets to use far outweigh the negatives.

Come May 3rd and watch Alex Schwartz and Yilmaz Kiymaz of Owlchemy Labs present at the Boston Unity Group on how they made their 2D game Smuggle Truck in Unity 3D.

Yilmaz and Alex will demystify the process of not only creating the 2D game but also address physics, multi-resolution builds and more.

*Bonus They will have code to give a way to make the job easier for you!

See you there!

3D Stimulus Day 2011!

Elliott — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 19:11:25 +0000

Do you like 3D? Want insider info on tips, techniques and trade secrets? Sign up and come to 3D Stimulus Day April 9th, 2011 at Mount Ida College, Newton, MA!

Presentations this year include:*

Chad Moore of Turbine and Rigging Dojo, with Job Hunting Tips for 3D Artists
Alex Schwartz and Yilmaz Kiymax of Owlchemy Labs, presenting Mixing 2D and 3D in Unity
A panel-discussion with various tech artists from local game companies, mediated by Chad Moore
- Ryan Griffin, Senior Character TD, Turbine
- Elliott Mitchell, Vermont Digital Arts
- Brandon Bateman, Senior Tech Artist, Turbine
- Farley Chery, Instructor, ITT Institute and Bunker Hill Community College
- Justin Woodard, Technical Artist, Turbine
Willem Van Der Schyf, Tencent Boston, presenting his Workflow for Character Creation using Max & ZBrush
Afternoon networking session upstairs with demos from various individuals including 3d Camera Technology, Mocap with Kinect and Motion Builder and lots more!!!

Great Eastern Technology will be sponsoring the 3rd annual North East Digital Artists Group’s 3D Stimulus Day event. For more details you can visit their web page.

Be sure to check out and demo Spin Spell for iOS and with Brass Monkey for web, Mac and PC during 3D stimulus day.

Boston Indies Presentation – Bootstrapping, Spin Spell & What’s Next

Elliott — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 16:15:21 +0000

South Park icons of Elliott Mitchell and Dan Koniezcka of Vermont Digital Arts

Elliott Mitchell and Dan Konieczka of Vermont Digital Arts presented Bootstrapping, Spin Spell & What’s Next at the Febuary Boston Indies Gathering in Cambridge, MA just before GDC and PAX East.

Want to learn more about the presentation? Thankfully Ben Wiley wrote it up on his blog – The Lion Rampant. Click here to read his writeup.

Slides? But of course:

Vermont Digital Arts- Boston Indies Feb 2011

View more presentations from vtda.

Elliott Mitchell – PAX East – Starting Your Own Game Company

Elliott — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 20:48:26 +0000

Come see Elliott Mitchell, founder of Vermont Digital Arts, speak on the “Starting Your Own Game Company” panel at PAX-East

Elliott Mitchell - Founder of Vermont Digital Arts

IGDA Dev Center
Friday, 2:00pm – 2:50pm

Blurb: Founders of game development studios will share anecdotes and advice for budding entrepreneurs who would like to get started on the right path but don’t mind receiving a heavy dose of reality. Topics include company structure, team recruitment, project development, publisher relations, original vs. pre-existing IP, platform/genre focus, branding — and whether or not to run a “virtual studio.”

http://east.paxsite.com/schedule.php

SpinSpell HD – BrassMonkey – Game Time Media Table – CES 2011 Demo

Elliott — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 20:31:46 +0000

SpinSpell HD – BrassMonkey – Game Time Media Table – CES 2011 Demo

Thanks to Chris Allen of Brass Monkey for demonstrating Spin Spell to onlookers at CES this year in alcatel-lucent’s Booth. This is just a demo – The first step in porting to the web and controlling with a mobile device. Enjoy!

SpinSpell HD – BrassMonkey – Game Time Media Table – CES 2011 Demo from Elliott Mitchell on Vimeo.

It’s Official – Spin Spell with Brass Monkey at The Pax East Made in Mass Party

Elliott — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 20:21:28 +0000

Look for us at The PAX-East Made in Mass Party. We’ll be sharing a table with Owlchemy Labs and Evolve: Life In The Group. Come demo three versions of our game Spin Spell!

http://paxeast031011.eventbrite.com/

Vermont Digital Arts at PAX East – Made in MA – Party 2011

Elliott — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 21:24:26 +0000

Come and meet Vermont Digital Arts at the PAX East “Made in MA” Party 2011 and play our games! We’re going to showcase our Spin Spell our physics driven, 3D spelling game for the iPhone, iPad and the web browser (controlled by Brass Monkey).

What? Vermont Digital Arts will be at the PAX East “Made in MA” Party 2011? How’s that you ask? Well, Elliott Mitchell, President of Vermont Digital Arts, is an active member of the Boston Area game development scene. Elliott co-founded two Boston based groups – The Boston Unity Group (BUG) and The North East Digital Artists Group (NEDAG). Elliott is an active member in the Boston Indies, the Mass Technology Leadership Council, MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge – NE Games SIG, Boston IGDA Chapter (2011 Global Game Jam team project) and so on.

If you’re up for a trip to Boston, Massachusetts go to the PAX East “Made in MA” Party 2011 – This party is open to the first 1K of industry folks wanting to demo indie and AAA games made in Massachusetts ( & Southern Vermont!! ). This event is not to be missed!

See ya there!

http://paxeast031011.eventbrite.com/