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n n n n Gaming 3DS), the latest generation of game consoles continue to challenge the PC. According to a report by the NPD Group, a market research firm, the total console, portable, and PC game software industry generated $10.5 bil- lion in 2009. Of that, PC game soft- ware accounted only for $538 million. Newzoo, which publishes the year- The stereoscopic camera capability in Autodesk’s Maya (above) as well as other popular DCC software makes it easier for artists to view their scenes in anaglyph mode for simultaneous right- and left-eye views. supermarket and the stereo 3D data were grocery items, Wilbert thinks it’s time to consider the Costco model, better designed for wholesale processing and transfer. “In a typical supermarket,” he observes, “people are buying milk, bread, and eggs by the basketful. At Costco, they’re buying them by the cartful. So if you’re using the same trucks [to restock inventory], you’d need more of them com- ing in more frequently. Faster machines are always nicer, but the machines, the hardware, and the artists need to be able to maintain a certain rate of throughput to make the pro- duction reliable.” “Generally, the main need for stereo pro- duction is more rendering horsepower,” says Luxology’s Peebler. “Stereo rendering of final frames for a cut sequence using Modo takes no more RAM than single-frame rendering. It’s basically two renders back to back, so there’s only one frame in memory at a time. But dou- bling the amount of time to render while still maintaining the same rendering quality means people working with stereo 3D rendering will either need faster equipment or more time to get it done.” PC Game Resurgence? It might be difficult for younger game players to believe, but once, in the not-so-distant past, the PC was considered a superior game platform. Up until 2001 or 2002, the type of photorealis- tic visuals delivered by PC games wasn’t possible on consoles because the former offered greater memory, storage, and processing power than the consoles available at the time. But Microsoft Xbox, Sony PlayStation 2, and Nintendo GameCube changed that. With a simpler hardware setup and graphics that rival (and often surpass) those on the PC, consoles now seem to own a greater share of the consum- er’s wallet. With motion-triggered gameplay (Microsoft Kinect and Nintendo Wii) and out- of-the-box stereo 3D (Sony PS3 and Nintendo 26 June/July 2011 ly “Total Consumer Spend” report, which is based on the National Gam- ers Surveys, reports that total revenues spent on games in the US reached $24 billion in 2010. PC/Mac game down- loads and retail box sales accounted for approximately 19 percent of that ($4.6 billion). By contrast, console games accounted for close to 43 percent ($10.6 billion). The rest was distributed among casual game portals, massively multiplayer games, social networks, and mobile devices. So, how will stereo 3D change the market’s dynamics? Harry McCraken, former editor in chief of PC World magazine, has stated, “I’m skeptical about 3D gaming being a huge deal, may invest in a $149 kit to be able to play a vast collection of existing games in stereo 3D mode. Nvidia maintains a list of games rec- ommended for its 3D Vision treatment, along with ratings. According to its chart, you can get excellent stereo 3D performance from titles such as Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, As- sassin’s Creed, and Tomb Raider: Legend. Then there are other titles, like Battlefield 2142, The Sims 3, and others that fall into the Good, Fair, Poor, and Not Recommended categories. Closer to the Holodeck Gaijin Games’ Roush, who wears glasses to aid his eyesight, acknowledges that he has difficulty experiencing stereo 3D with shutter glasses. He is thankful that he happens to be working on a stereo 3D platform that doesn’t require glasses. “3D is such a young medium right now. It’s just going to get bigger,” he says. “Being in the first round of game developers to work on stereo 3D is an honor.” From the blocky, pixelated graph- ics on Atari to the latest breed of stereo 3D games, the evolution of interactive entertain- ment points to simulating reality as closely as , Zipper Interactive’s tactical third-person shooter, is another title that will take advantage of stereo 3D play on the PS3. By the end of the year, there could be 30 3D-capable titles available, including many notable sequels. simply because it’s been pretty good for several years now, and hasn’t caught on big time. It certainly has niche appeal, and Nvidia has put a lot of energy into it.” Graphics card maker Nvidia has a vested interest in PC games’ re- turn to dominance. Promoting its $149 stereo 3D kit, called 3D Vision, the company states, “Nvidia 3D Vision automatically transforms hundreds of PC games into full-3D right out of the box, without the need for special game patches. By leveraging its ‘The Way It’s Meant to be Played’ program and its close relation- ships with game developers, Nvidia provides a terrific 3D gaming experience.” That means while you wait for new stereo 3D games for the PC to be developed, you possible. Perhaps that’s why Wilbert calls stereo 3D games “a push toward the holodeck,” the re- ality simulation facility in the fictional universe of Star Trek. “It’s getting you one step closer to the holodeck,” Wilbert says. “Stereo is the gate- way to something else.” n Kenneth Wong is a freelance writer who covers the CAD, DCC, and game development industries. A recovering addict, he was nearly banned from a local Best Buy for hogging the Nintendo 3DS display unit for hours (doing research for this article). He can be reached at kennethwongsf@earthlink.net. Use your smart- phone to access related video. SOCOM 4 Age of Empires