John Gaudiosi

Editor’s note: Eric Peterson, president and CEO of Vicious Cycle Software, can talk about the rise of the Triangle’s video game industry with authority. After all, he has been involved in game involvement dating back the better part of two decades in Chapel Hill and elsewhere, from the days of Hasbro Interactive (formerly MicroProse) and since 1999 at Vicious, which now has new owners. In the second installment of an exclusive two-part interview with WRAL TechWire, Peterson talks about the Triangle’s gaming evolution plus the pressure of working with Hollywood and plans by Vicous to expand into mobile gaming.....

Vicious Cycle Software has a new publisher/owner in Little Orbit, the Santa Ana, Calif.-based publisher that focuses on Hollywood licensed games from DreamWorks Animation, USA Network and Disney. The game maker will remain operating in the Triangle and has plans to expand both its Vicious Engine business and its game development operations. Eric Peterson, President/CEO of Vicious Cycle Software, talks about the company’s growth and what’s in store for the future in this exclusive interview. How did your company come to be in the Triangle? The Hasbro Interactive offices in Chapel Hill (formerly, MicroProse Software) were closed in December...

RALEIGH, N.C. – Cliff Bleszinski, the former Epic Games design director, started his first day at work as CEO of Boss Key Productions on July 20. He and former Epic Games co-worker, Arjan Brussee, who is COO of Boss Key, will hire 15 to 20 people to develop the free-to-develop, free-to-play game called Project Bluestreak. The studio is being funded by Nexon, which is also publishing the sci-fi arena-based shooter game in 2015. Bleszinski talks about his new studio in this exclusive interview. What’s the transition been like for you as CEO of your own studio? It’s very daunting...

Microsoft is laying off 18,000 employees over the next year. While the majority of these layoffs (12,500) come from its recently acquired Nokia Devices and Services division, nearly the entire staff of 200 in the Xbox Entertainment Studios division will be losing their jobs in the coming months. The head of Xbox Originals, Nancy Tellem, told me back in May in New York City that Gears of War was among the games the Entertainment Division was focusing on to find potential episodic opportunities for live action. “We’re looking at all of the IP that Microsoft owns like Halo, Age...

A lot has changed with Epic Games’ first free-to-play PC game, Fortnite, since it was first announced a few years ago. The game now runs on Unreal Engine 4 technology and the gameplay experience has evolved to bring invading monsters out with storms that sweep through the area during the day and at night. Epic allowed select press members to play an early Alpha version of the four-player cooperative gameplay and get a taste of the five versus five competitive gameplay at its headquarters recently. Fortnite lead designer Darren Sugg explains what’s new with the game and discusses the...

The former Design Director at Epic Games has taken off the past year and a half to recharge and enjoy his new marriage. Now Cliff Bleszinski is ready to get back to work and launch Raleigh’s newest video game studio. On July 8, Bleszinski will announce the full details of his new studio, Boss Key Productions, and his first game, which is rumored to be an online PC game codenamed Project Bluestreak. Information will be revealed at www.bosskey.com. Bleszinski has been building his new studio this year, filing paperwork with the North Carolina Department of the Secretary of State...

Epic Games has a long-running relationship with Apple, dating back to the introduction of the iPhone 4 in September 2010. It was at that press conference that Epic-owned Chair Entertainment debuted Infinity Blade running on Unreal Engine 3. Each subsequent sequel in the bestselling iOS-exclusive franchise has debuted at an Apple press conference, showcasing what Unreal technology could do with Apple hardware and software. At Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, Epic CEO and founder Tim Sweeney and lead platform engineer Josh Adams were on stage to show Unreal Engine 4 running on the new iOS 8 software with...

While the business model for its upcoming Fortnite multiplayer online game has yet to be revealed, Epic Games is entering the free-to-play space with its reboot of Unreal Tournament. Adding a new twist to the crowd-funding phenomenon that Kickstarter and Indiegogo have established, Epic Games will develop the new Unreal Tournament with fans. The PC game franchise has an avid mod community, which has taken the Epic game into new directions over the years. “We know that fans of the game are as passionate about Unreal Tournament as we are,” said Steve Polge, Epic senior programmer and Unreal Tournament...