Summit Launches Experience Rooms, eSports and Magic Tournaments, Roundtable Sessions
LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences is pleased to announce world-renowned game creator and auteur Hideo Kojima will join film director, screenwriter, producer and novelist Guillermo del Toro to present the Thursday afternoon Keynote Address at the 2016 D.I.C.E. Summit (#DICE2016) conference, taking place Feb. 16-18, 2016, at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center.
Final Speakers Added to #DICE2016 Conference:
In a session titled “A Conversation with Hideo Kojima and Guillermo del Toro,” these master storytellers will offer insight into their creative vision and the driving forces behind their artistic pursuits. Moderated by longtime video game host and producer Geoff Keighley, this conversation will revisit some of their fondest memories from their own individual careers as well as some of the pivotal moments from each other’s work that remain a constant source of inspiration.
Thursday morning, Todd Howard, game director and executive producer at Bethesda Game Studios, will be joined in conversation by comedian and avid gamer Pete Holmes, the returning host of the 19th D.I.C.E. Awards and creator/star of the upcoming HBO show Crashing. Touching upon topics central to the conference theme – The Art of Engagement – this session will explore open world storytelling and design, the influence of fans on the game making process, how fan communities extend the life of a title through their creations and contributions, how previous games influence design decisions, and more. With Pete as the moderator this discussion is sure to be filled with entertaining moments along with inspiring insight!
The full list of D.I.C.E. Summit speakers can be found here.
New Experiences and Events at the D.I.C.E. Summit:
In addition to the usual networking experiences at the D.I.C.E. Summit such as the annual golf, poker, and go-karting tournaments, the 2016 D.I.C.E. Summit experience will host a number of new opportunities to augment its attendee experience. Participants have a chance to learn and test out products in Experience Rooms, gather for a Magic: The Gathering tournament, participate in an esports tournament, and join conversations at the roundtable sessions.
The Experience Rooms will feature some of the newest concepts in tech:
- castAR is an industry-leading mixed reality company that will offer consumers a best-in-class shared reality experience. It is a versatile 3D platform which brings new worlds, adventures and stories to life. castAR is the key that unlocks a new brand of playful entertainment, right at your tabletop.
- Epic Games will give D.I.C.E. attendees the chance to dive into Bullet Train, the studio’s Unreal Engine 4-powered VR demo praised for its thrilling, fast-paced interactivity. Bullet Train is an action-packed experience supporting Oculus Touch motion controls.
- NVIDIA is enabling developers to build amazing VR content with its industry-leading GeForce GTX GPUs and GameWorks VR SDK. They will partner with developer Sólfar Studios to take attendees to the top of Mount Everest in virtual reality. Using the room-scale HTC Vive headset, one can cross the treacherous crevasses of the Khumbu Icefalls, scramble up the icy Lhotse Face, and reach the summit for a stunning view from Earth’s highest point.
- StreamTV will be showcasing on their 65″ glasses-free 3D TV on the game P.A.M.E.L.A., an intense and unforgiving open-world survival experience in a fallen utopian city ravaged by a horrific disease. Built on a 4K-panel technology, Ultra-D™ is the only glasses-free 3D solution that delivers both stunning images and content conversion from any 2D or 3D source.
Other new events include:
- FACEIT, a popular eSports platform, will be hosting a custom built Celebrity 1vs1 CounterStrike esports tournament. D.I.C.E. attendees have a chance to face-off and fight it out against some of FACEIT’s top talent!
- On Tuesday evening, Min Kim (AIAS Board of Directors Chairman) and Wizards of the Coast will host the first Magic at D.I.C.E., a tournament of Magic: the Gathering amongst the industry’s top creative and business talents including Brandon Beck, Michael Capps, Rob Pardo and Vince Zampella. All players will convene at the D.I.C.E. Arcade to compete in a Limited format tournament featuring cards from the latest sets, Battle for Zendikar and Oath of the Gatewatch.
- Golfstream is an interactive indoor premium golf gaming experience for beginners, experts and everyone in between that uses state-of-the-art AR technology engineered by rocket scientists. At the D.I.C.E. Summit Golfstream will be inviting attendees to participate in a friendly competition and play Golfstream firsthand at the nearby TaylorMade Golf Experience.
- New to D.I.C.E. 2016 will be the inclusion of focused Roundtable Sessions. Each year, the AIAS is challenged to find ways to facilitate new networking opportunities that will enrich the attendee experience. Based on the overwhelming success of our roundtable experience at the 2015 D.I.C.E. Europe event in Barcelona, AIAS will extend this concept to the U.S. Summit. You can learn more about the roundtables topics here.
Tickets and meeting rooms for the 2016 D.I.C.E. Summit are still available, click here to register for the conference.
Related: Hideo Kojima Inducted into the AIAS Hall of Fame at the 19th D.I.C.E. Awards Ceremony
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