Video Game Industry Elite Gather for the 11th Annual D.I.C.E. Summit

LAS VEGAS, Feb. 8, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --  The 2012 D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit kicks off today,  marking the 11th anniversary of the video game industry's most prestigious and exclusive event. Continuing through February 10th, the 2012 D.I.C.E. Summit is being held at the Red Rock Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.

The 2012 D.I.C.E. Summit will also host the 15th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards (IAAs) ceremony on February 9, 2012. The IAAs focus on peer-based voting and are viewed as the highest honor of recognition in the interactive entertainment industry. GameSpot will be airing a live webcast of the IAAs in its entirety via GameSpot.com, Twitch.tv/gamespot and Youtube.com/gamespot on Thursday, February 9th at 7:30 PM PT / 10:30 PM ET. Actor, stand-up comedian and long-time game enthusiast Jay Mohr will be returning as host.

The three-day conference includes nearly 20 speaking and panel sessions covering current and future state of the industry as well as the trends and key issues affecting gamers, publishers and business leaders alike. This year's program features some of the industry's most well renowned and influential leaders in the space pulled from veteran talent and today's brightest minds, including:

• Sefton Hill, Rocksteady Studios
• Tomonobu Itagaki, Valhalla Games Studios Co., Ltd.
• Tim Sweeney, Epic Games – 2012 Hall of Fame recipient
• David Jaffe, Eat Sleep Play
• Todd Howard, Bethesda Game Studios
• Seamus Blackley, Innovative Leisure with special guests:
  • Ed Logg, 2012 Pioneer Award recipient
  • Richard Adam
  • Ed Rotberg
  • Owen Rubin
• Ted Price, Insomniac Games
• Frank Pearce, Blizzard Entertainment
• Mike Capps, Epic Games
• Eric Hirshberg, Activision Publishing
• Richard Hilleman, Electronic Arts
• Michael Pachter, Wedbush Securities
• Jesse Divnich, EEDAR
• Perrin Kaplan, Zebra Partners
• Gabriel Leydon, Addmired, Inc.
• Adam Sessler, G4TV, Host
• Jamin Warren, Kill Screen Magazine
• Isaac Gilmore, 3SJ Tactical Solutions
• Anita Frazier, The NPD Group
• Glen Ballard, Augury
• Alex Lieu, 42 Entertainment
• Dr. Delores M. Etter, Texas Instruments Distinguished Chair
• TJ Galda, Electronic Arts

"Each year the top talents and  minds of the interactive entertainment industry come together at the D.I.C.E. Summit to openly share, collaborate and grow, not only the business, but the art of our industry," said Martin Rae, president, Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences. "This year's lineup of speakers is exemplary, bringing together cutting edge talent with veteran experience. We're excited to see where each speaker and panel participant will bring us with their presentations."

Pioneer Award Recipient:
Ed Logg is being honored this year for his revolutionary work during the early days of Atari's coin-op arcade development, which helped kick off gaming as we know it today. Joining Atari's arcade division, Logg was instrumental in the development of a string of wildly successful games - Super Breakout in 1978, Asteroids in 1979, Centipede in 1980, and Millipede in 1982. Further inspired by his son's love of Dungeons and Dragons, Logg developed a fantasy dungeon-crawler Gauntlet for Atari Games in 1985. Ed helped blaze a trail into modern gaming and inspired hundreds of thousands of gamers to bring their skills to the development table; turning hobbies and dreams into a reality.

Hall of Fame Inductee:
This year the AIAS is proud to induct Tim Sweeney of Epic Games into the AIAS Hall of Fame. Tim is well respected throughout the industry for his technological innovations, advancing many of today's highly successful PC, console and mobile games. Tim's development of the Unreal Engine and award-winning franchises such as the "Gears of War" and "Unreal Tournament" series have been catalysts in the evolution of gaming and have pushed the boundaries of what game developers can create and implement in today's top titles.

Special Events:
In addition to the conference sessions and the Interactive Achievement Awards, the AIAS will host several other activities during the Summit:

• The Annual D.I.C.E. Summit Poker Tournament hosted by Mad Catz: The tournament will be held on Tuesday, February 7 at the acclaimed Rocks Lounge at the Red Rock Casino & Spa.

• The Annual D.I.C.E. Summit Golf Tournament hosted by NVIDIA: The tournament will be held on Wednesday, February 8 at the gorgeous Badlands Golf Club.

• The D.I.C.E. Go-Karting Tournament hosted by Nexon America: The Tournament will take place at the Pole Position Raceway in Summerlin, Nevada, on Wednesday, February 8.

• Kicking off the conference on Wednesday, February 8 at 2 – 3:45pm G4TV's host, Adam Sessler and Zebra Partners' Perrin Kaplan will be moderating "Hot Topics" sessions hosted by Digital River featuring 3 debate sessions between various industry leaders.

• Martin Rae, president, Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, will be giving the opening remarks right before the D.I.C.E. Summit Keynote, "Why We Create, Why We Play," by Bethesda Game Studios' Todd Howard on Wednesday, February 8, from 6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. 

• The Summit Welcome Party will take place on Wednesday, February 8 at the fabulous Cherry Nightclub.

• IAA Post-Awards Party hosted by EPIC Games: The post-awards party will take place in the Pavillion Ballroom. Party goers can enjoy music, dancing, cocktails and hors d'oeuvres to celebrate the Interactive Achievement Awards winners. 

• Into the Pixel™ (ITP) Exhibit and Auction, presented by VGMarket. ITP is an exploration and celebration of the art of video games.  The exhibit enables published game artists to be reviewed and recognized by the public and by their peers.  Funds raised at the auction will support the AIAS Foundation

• The Indie Game Challenge is an initiative by the AIAS, GameStop and The Guildhall at the Southern Methodist University to support the independent games movement by providing aspiring game developers – professional and non-professional – with an opportunity to showcase their skills and present their games to top publishers.  The winners will be announced February 10th at the Indie Game Challenge Awards ceremony.  This year's finalists include:

• Blendo Games - Atom Zombie Smasher
• Eyebrow Interactive - Closure
• Zeroscale - Demolition Inc.
• Team Nitronic - Nitronic Rush
• Paradox Shift - Paradox Shift
• EmptyClip Studios, Inc. - Symphony
• Ty Taylor and Mario Castaneda - The Bridge
• Team Dream - The Dream Machine
• The Fourth Team - The Fourth Wall
• Facepalm Games - The Swapper

SOURCE Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences