January 2009

FEATURES

2008 Front Line Awards

By Michael Boccieri, Tom Carroll, Noah Falstein, Jeremy Gordon, Damian Kastbauer, Noel Llopis, Albert R

Tools have taken an even greater focus as game development becomes more complex. But what to choose? For the 11th year, we bring you the brightest stars of the industry behind the industry, showcasing the best tools of the past year. As voted by you, the readers, we proudly announce the winners of our prestigious tool awards.

iDevelop

By Nicholas Olsen

The iPhone has become a popular format for both consumers and game developers alike, as it offers accessibility, a self-publishing model, and a wide userbase. But not everyone has had a chance to crack open the SDK. Here, Nicholas Olsen offers a primer to help curious developers get started on the new platform.

Postmortem:
Media Molecule's LittleBigPlanet

By Siobhan Reddy

LittleBigPlanet's codename was The Next Big Thing, and the support the game received from Sony and from the press shows it. The game makes bold strides into the arena of user-generated content on consoles, and this postmortem simultaneously chronicles both the game's and the company's creation.