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The Motion Factory has announced plans to port their game development tool Motivate to the Mac as well as Sony PlayStation 2 and Sega DreamCast. Motivate is used with animating characters in games. This is The Motion Factory's description of Motivate:
Motivate(TM) is the company's unique suite of tools for creating truly interactive, intelligent, 3D characters and environments for next-generation games. The Motivate system is powered by breakthrough research in robotics and real-time process control technology. Motivate's animation engine features Real-time Motion Synthesis, allowing character motion to be generated on-the-fly in response to dynamically changing environments. Designed to work seamlessly with the animation engine, Motivate's behavior programming framework introduces a new paradigm for creating sophisticated character logic.
The Motivate system includes the Motivate Runtime Engine, which manages real-time character animation; the Motivate Development Tools, which streamline the character authoring process; and the Motivate SDK, which allows game developers to extend and integrate Motivate. The Motivate Server technology allows Motivate to be used for multiplayer, network-based titles. Later this year, in addition to Windows 95, 98 and NT, run-time engines for Sega DreamCast, Sony Play Station 2 and the Macintosh platforms will be available.
The company has also announced VC funding from BankAmerica Ventures, SofInnova, and Digital Media Group. Funding is always important for development companies, especially when in the process of expanding platform coverage.
Congratulations and good luck to The Motion Factory!
The Mac Observer Spin: Such a change! Motivate is a popular development tool in the PC gaming world. Having the Motion Factory bring this package to the Mac is a big boost for Mac game development. It is also a big boost, and don't underestimate the importance of this either, in using Macs in any kind of development. While the PowerPC kicks butt over the Pentium line, most high-end 3D work, especially for games, has been on either SGI models or Windows NT. Now we see more development tools making their way to the Mac, helped in part by Apple's recent commitment to OpenGL.
For The Motion Factory to receive funding AFTER announcing a Mac effort is also very significant. Once upon a time, say 12 months ago, it was virtually impossible for Mac developers to get any funding. BankAmerica Ventures, SofInnova, and Digital Media Group apparently didn't mind it at all! Life is good.
The Motion Factory
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