Torchlight Editor now available

If you are enjoying Torchlight - I know that many of our readers and writers are - then you will be interested to hear that, as promised, Runic Games has released the official editing tools for its popular action RPG. Available at FileFront, the Torchlight Editor (or TorchED, for short), requires the latest edition of Microsoft .Net installed if you want to use the editor and requires a bit more load time the first time you run it. The editor uses Raw assets and has to compile some data, so expect it to take a bit of time of the first run.

Those looking for tips should check out Runic Games’ Top Ten Helpful Hints for running TorchED at forums.runicgames.com. Finally, Runic Games emphasized that it will not be hosting modifications made by users. For a great place to find them as they become available, check out the Runic Games Fansite at runicgamesfansite.com and the Torchlight Insider at torchlightinsider.com.

SOE opens Usability Lab to the development masses

Sony Online Entertainment will now provide in-house “Usability Lab” services to outside companies. it announced today. So just what the hell is a “Usability Lab?” SOE says that it is a disciplined approach to product development that incorporates user centric feedback throughout the process to produce a better end product.

SOE’s Usability Lab was originally created to test the company’s in-house products, with Free Realms being the first major game title to benefit from the process. During the development process Free Realms was vigorously tested in the lab; everything from the tutorial and user interface to the gameplay mechanics were tested and tweaked during the process. This allowed the development team to make necessary changes to the game prior to launch, and made it so that users didn’t have to endure massive changes after the game was in service..

The SOE Usability Lab consists of “top of the line” PCs and PS3 systems, and is able to accommodate projects varied in size and scope - unless they are on the Wii or Xbox 360 - I would assume (they are owned by Sony after all). The services offered include usability testing, heuristic evaluations, focus group testing and feedback, and product evaluations.

For more information about the Usability Lab visit www.soedevservices.com.

ARMA II mod tools released

Bohemia Interactive has released the modification tools for its recently released military simulation shooter, ARMA II. The tools are completely free, and will be supported by Bohemia and the community at large. These tools allow players to create camo, models and weapons, vehicles or even whole new environments which they can then share with thousands of people online.

The ARMA II mod tools require ARMA II version 1.03. The tool suite consists of model editing and animation package, texture convertor and viewer, a packer, sound and lipsync utilities, a tool to edit and compile fsms used in ARMA II, conversion tool and more.

Find out more about these tools by visiting community.bistudio.com.

Capcom’s Spyborgs gold, in stores late Sept.

Capcom announced that its arcade-style brawler Spyborgs has gone gold, has been approved by Nintendo of America will be available September 29 exclusively for the Wii. In Spyborgs, players take control of heavily armed cyborgs as they pursue a nefarious traitor - the worst kind of traitor out there, folks. Players will also have the ability to team up in 2-player co-op and face over 35 stages filled with boss battles and enemies that only a team of two can defeat. Gear up. Spyborgs is rated T for Teen by the ESRB at an MSRP of $49.99.

There’s not much there, but check out the official announcement on Capcom’s Unity Blog.

Nintendo’s DSi App Strategy

The Nintendo DSi will be more than just a portable gaming system if Nintendo has its way, according to a Develop Magazine report. While there have been some moves towards that in Japan the effort have been somewhat vapid. At the Nintendo Developer Conference in London this past week the company laid out its plans to vigorously support non-game applications and encouraged third-party developers to create them.

The only real example of such a third-party application, Namco Bandai’s Mojipittan Shiritori Clock, which was recently released in Japan. In theory, developers would be able to use the DSi’s microphone, camera and multimedia capabilities to create these bite-sized and relatively cheap apps. These apps, if anyone decides to make them, would be sold in the DSiWare shop channel, like they are in Japan.

And then there are the bite sized games, that feature little games at a low price-point. In Japan those games include Katamari Damacy, Phantasy Star 0 Mini, Hacolife and Decode. While the aps may be interesting to some, these small games are very telling on just who Nintendo thinks its competition is: Apple’s iPhone and iTouch. Much like aps and games for these platforms, the DSi games will carry a very small price point.

No doubt DSiWare will be an important part of Nintendo’s discussion at GDC next week.

Hothead Games Gets ‘Radical’ New CEO

It looks like there’s been a bit of the ol’ corporate shuffle going on this morning over at the offices of Hothead Games, the company behind the Penny Arcade Adventures games. Earlier today, the studio announced that it has managed to corral former Radical Entertainment president and CEO Ian Wilkinson as its new president and CEO, effective immediately. Wilkinson oversaw Radical’s growth from a startup company to an established industry player, culminating in Radical’s sale to Vivendi Games, which merged with Activision last year. As part of the change, former Hothead Games president and CEO Vlad Ceraldi will shift gears, taking on a new role as Director of Game Development, while Chief Operating Officer Joel DeYoung will move from COO to Director of Game Technology.

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Savannah Offering Free Rent for Game Devs

In these rough financial times, everyone is looking for a good deal … even game developers. Answering the call, The Creative Coast Alliance (TCCa) and the Savannah Economic Development Authority (SEDA) have teamed up for an interesting incentive to draw game developers to the Savannah, GA area. The two organizations are offering up to one year of free rent in their Game Development and Digital Media Center, currently under development on the first floor of their newly constructed Class A office building on the Savannah River. According to the announcement made today, the new facility will offer digital media companies “a competitive advantage and it comes conveniently combined with Savannah’s renowned quality of life, lower cost of living and lower cost of doing business as compared to other media hubs such as the Bay Area, Austin, Montreal and Los Angeles.”

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