Intel has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Havok , a provider of software and services used by digital media creators in game development.
Havok’s 3D software powers online worlds including Linden Lab’s Second Life, as well as a variety of console games on Xbox, Wii and PlayStation.
According to Intel, the acquisition will enable developers in the digital animation and game communities to take advantage of Intel’s innovation and technology leadership in the creation of digital media.
Well known games using the Havok platform include BioShock,” “Stranglehold,” “Halo 2,” “Half Life 2,” “The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion,” “Crackdown,” “Lost Planet: Extreme Condition,” “MotorStorm” and “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.” The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
(via Metaversed)
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As an intel employee, good job.
This will allow games based on this engine to run better as it will utilize intel dual and quad cores better and better.
Nice out of the box thinking. Me like it a lot.
So this way intel will strengthen its presence in multimedia and gaming industry. I wonder if it already has a presence or this is the first time the company is venturing into this field
Intel will use it as a way to cash in on the opportunity to bring graphic card power up-to-speed with processing power. MMORPG, virtual worlds and even casual games need more and more graphic power all the time which typical consumer PC’s may not be able to handle. Interesting startegic move.
I didn’t realize they had such a presence. I love BioShock, Crackdown, Halo and others.
Interesting move
rc
trading tennis
I’ve used Havok and I like their product.
I gotta say, my first reaction is that this is the end of Havok. Why? Because:
1) Intel will want Havok to run better on Intel machines, so much for AMD. Now, why would any developer want to use Havok if it doesn’t perform on ALL their customers machines?
2) Intel doesn’t make the processers for the Xbox 360 or the PS3, IBM does so again, conflict of interest.
Electronic Arts bought the largest middleware company in the games market, Renderware, and nearly overnight they were dead. No one trusted EA to be in a position of power over EAs competition.
It seems like this Intel - Havok deal could easily become a similar situation
Best physics engine ever made, and it just keeps getting better with Source which is a modded version of it. Havok was as big a step forward in gaming as 3D polygon graphics.
You know who was the complete fool here? Sony, MS and Nintendo for not buying them first. I always wondered why they didn’t. Whoever owns Havok controls the market for realistic shooters. It’s that simple.
Excellent! The havok engine is the best. I loved bioschock and HL2 and oblivion to death. Can’t wait to see the next generation games.
I think some of you are missing the story. Havok competes with PPU (physics processing) add-in boards and can help position Intel against an AMD accelerated “everything board” (ATI GPU-based graphics, physics, and even AI).
Intel is pushing multi-core, so any software solution that needs a few [dozen] of those 80 cores is good for Intel, as it lessens the lure of consumers buying a smaller CPU with bigger 3rd party add-in boards.
I’m guessing the Second Life connection is less direct . Second Life needs lots of cores on the server side, so there’s some synergy. But isn’t as clear a path to fatter CPUs in the home as, say, P2P virtual worlds might be.
As a developer, I’m hoping this means that Intel will substantially lower or eliminate the cost of Havok to get it in more games and worlds.
Havok will reak havok on intell. This acquisition makes no sense at all. But I guess it’s all that was left since MS bought Bungie several years ago. Isn’t Halo cool though?
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Well, it think its about time. I always been intel supporter. Its about time intel support for gaming.