Leveraging the power of meta-gaming to transform the way people play games
Apocalypse Studios, the AAA game studio behind Deadhaus Sonata, today announced a partnership with Tafi, the leading provider of 3D avatar solutions, to use Tafi's avatar and character creator technology for both in-game use and beyond. Apocalypse Studios was founded by Denis Dyack, the creator of many critically acclaimed video games including Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain, Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem, and Metal Gear Solid: Twin Snakes.
For Apocalypse Studios, this partnership builds on its mission to transform the way people play video games by utilizing a cloud-first approach, the highest quality standards, and a deep social media integration. For Tafi, this partnership represents its first foray with a AAA game studio powered by Amazon Lumberyard, the only high-fidelity 3D engine to be fully integrated with cloud services.
"The age of Meta-gaming is upon us," said Denis Dyack, founder of Apocalypse Studios. "I have been a huge fan of Tafi's Daz Studio software for years due to its best-in-class technology and huge selection of high-quality 3D assets. When I learned that Tafi released its first-of-its-kind avatar and character creation SDK, I immediately recognized the power to allow gamers to experience Deadhaus Sonata outside of the game itself. We have been extremely impressed with its capabilities not only for its on-demand, streaming character creation in run-time, but also for its ability to bring the character experience into other immersive applications and virtual worlds."
Apocalypse Studios' first title, Deadhaus Sonata, is a narrative-driven action RPG designed for today's medium – a free-to-play single or co-op multiplayer adventure with direct integration into cloud services. Tafi's character creator technology will enable Deadhaus Sonata to leverage run-time morphing and other game-changing features, giving players the freedom to customize their character and in-game experience.
"We are thrilled to partner with Apocalypse Studios," said Preston Woo, Chief Strategy Officer of Tafi. "We love the innovative, cloud-first approach of the company, and the collaborative nature of Denis and the team. We see this as an incredible opportunity to showcase our SDK's abilities in the AAA gaming environment while enabling the advent of meta-gaming. We expect that this partnership will be a true game-changer for the industry."
"Players are looking for more opportunities to experience game worlds as active creators, and meta-gaming gives studios new ways to grow their community," said Amar Mehta, General Manager of Amazon Lumberyard. "We're excited to see how Apocalypse Studios and Tafi are partnering to collaborate on innovative meta-gaming capabilities in Deadhaus Sonata to give players a dynamic, engaging, and highly personalized experience."
With the flexibility of Tafi's SDK, Apocalypse Studios also has plans on pioneering the meta-gaming experience, a concept that entails widely expanding the game experience into additional applications beyond the initial game itself. Tafi's avatar and character creation SDK system uniquely makes it possible for avatar and video game characters to be implemented into different platforms such as video conferencing, live streaming, social media, mobility, and companion apps – allowing game characters and content to seamlessly travel outside of the game itself.
