Game Creation and Careers

Get expert advice on all aspects of game creation from the masters of the games. Saltzman reveals expert advice via interviews with the industry's best-known and most admired game designers like Wil Wright, Peter Molyneux, and Tommy Tallarico, just to name a few. Throughout Masters of the Game, Marc Saltzman chats with more than 150 of the world's most-connected, top-notch game designers about how to create stellar games and break into the business today. Topics covered include creating games for the new generation platforms such as X-Box, Playstation 2, and GameCube - including online console game design tips and techniques. Massively multiplayer computer games, PDAs, and cell phone game development are also addressed. Saltzman discusses in detail the business side of the game industry, and the pros and cons of working with well-known franchises. Additionally, readers learn how to successfully sell their own shareware via the internet and how to produce PR and marketing on a shoestring. There is also a section on game design schools and courses, plus key conventions, organizations, and publications. Finally, readers find dozens of rare, never-before-seen sketches, storyboards, 3D renders, and documents. This in-depth reference is a "must read" for anyone in the game industry.

Marc Saltzman has reported on the bourgeoning consumer technology industry for the past seven years as a freelance journalist, author, lecturer, consultant, and radio and TV personality. His specialties lie in video gaming, computer software and hardware, Internet trends, gadgets, and consumer electronics. Along with his weekly syndicated columns with Gannett News Service, USAToday.com, and CNN.com, Marc contributes to more than three dozen prominent publications, including USA Today, LA Times, Newsweek, Modern Maturity, Playboy, Playboy.com, Golf Digest, National Post, GlobeTechnology.com, Access magazine, and Tribute magazine.

Gannett News Service is the USA's largest newspaper group in terms of circulation. The company's 99 daily newspapers throughout the U.S. have a combined daily paid circulation of 7.8 million.

Marc Saltzman was one of the first journalists in the world to break open the MP3 phenomenon in late 1997 on CNN Interactive (CNN.com). He correctly predicted this controversial audio file format would revolutionize the recording industry. His 10 books with Pearson Education and McGraw-Hill/Osborne are: Internet Games Directory (1996), Gamer's Web Directory: Sites, Cheats and Secrets (1997), Quake II Strategy Master (1998), Game Design: Secrets of the Sages (1999), Game Design: Secrets of the Sages, Second Edition (2000), Game Design: Secrets of the Sages, Third Edition (2001), Marc Saltzman's 250 Best Palm Games (2001, on CD), Marc Saltzman's Top 300 Games for the PocketPC (2002, on CD), Game Design: Secrets of the Sages, Fourth Edition (2002), and DVD Confidential: Hundreds of Hidden Easter Eggs Revealed (2002).

Marc also contributed to Supercade, Van Burnham's book chronicling the visual history of the video game industry (MIT press). Marc has also written popular in-game manuals for Quake II (id Software/Activision) and Sin (Ritual Entertainment/Activision).

Beginning in May of 2001, Marc became a technology expert at CNN, the Cable News Network. Marc is often a guest to talk about an array of high-tech issues, be it video games, the Internet, computers, or consumer electronics. He can be seen on the television show, Next @ CNN, which airs Saturdays at 3 p.m. (EST) and 4 p.m. (EST) each Sunday. The show won first place in the News Magazine category of the National Headliner Awards, announced Friday, March 16, 2001, by the Press Club of Atlantic City.

Marc also makes regular appearances as a high-tech expert on the CBS Early Show, CNN Headline News, Breakfast Television (BT!) in Toronto, and TechTV Canada. Beginning in April 2003, Marc began hosting his own TV show, dubbed TKO. Considered "Entertainment Tonight meets consumer technology," TKO appears on four national networks in Canada: Global, Prime, CH, and MenTV. More information on the show can be found at http://www.pyramidproductions.tv. Speaking of Global, Marc is also the host of "TechWise," a twice-a-week feature on the national MoneyWise program in Canada, hosted by Peter Kent and Dierdre McMurdy. The popular show airs coast-to-coast on CanWest Global and the Prime Network.

Marc also writes for and hosts two radio shows. The first is "Tech Talk with Marc Saltzman" on Canada's largest talk station, CFRB (1010AM in Toronto). The hour-long call-in program airs live on Sunday evenings. CFRB's parent company is Standard Radio. The second radio program is heard exclusively on Canada's largest new rock/alternative station, Edge 102 (102.1 FM in Toronto). Now in its seventh year, the pre-recorded segment airs twice a day, entitled "Cyber Escapes with Marc Saltzman." Edge 102's parent company is Corus Entertainment. Marc enjoys delivering seminars on the ever-changing world of high-tech (as far as Hong Kong!) on how to best break into the interactive entertainment industry. Marc also moderates a panel each year at the annual Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) on this very same topic. Marc has also been an official "Best of E3" judge for the past five years, nominating the best computer and console games and most promising hardware for the annual trade show. Marc is also a judge for the annual "Codie Awards" established by the SIIA (Software and Information Industry Association) to recognize innovative software and information products. Marc is a paid member of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA), contributing to the violence committee. In August, 1997, Marc was decorated by the University of Toronto's Alumni Association as an "outstanding graduate" for his success across many mediums: print (books, newspapers, magazines), the Internet, television, and radio.