Ubisoft La Forge is the research and development network inside Ubisoft which recently expanded its team to include members from five Ubisoft studios across four nations. Celebrating five years since its official kick-off and the work it has done to develop new and innovative tools and technologies, explore new paths with researchers and academicians, and connect the worlds of games and science with its unique mission, the team has developed a series of five podcasts to shine a light on that mission and introduce their work to the world. From climate change to smarter bots in games, find out more about what each episode has to offer:
Episode 1 – Forging the Future: The Forge
Dive into the world of Ubisoft La Forge with founders Yves Jacquier, Olivier Pomarez, and Cedric Decelle, to discover the impact the team has had on the way Ubisoft makes games, the triumphs, and of course, the failures.
Episode 2 – Forging the Future: Characters
Explore how scientists at La Forge are revolutionizing video game characters and how text-to-speech technology is helping artists improve and refine the gaming experience by making character voices more realistic. Learn about Choreograph, a prototype that anticipates the movements of playable characters and gives them a fluidity like those recorded in motion capture.
Episode 3 – Forging the Future: Environments
Tune-in for a discussion on Torch, a prototype which combines physics and programming to improve on traditional methods of animating fluids such as water, air, and fire. Dig into the differences between academic and corporate environments, and how Ubisoft La Forge manages to bring these two worlds together through research and development.
Episode 4 – Forging the Future: Action
In this third episode, we discuss the Torch prototype, which combines physics and programming to improve on traditional methods of animating fluids such as water, air, and fire. We also dig into the differences between academic and corporate environments, and how La Forge manages to bring these two worlds together through research and development.
Episode 5 – Forging the Future: Beyond Tech
In the final episode, Ubisoft La Forge experts discuss innovations beyond gaming, such as how the self-driving cars in Watch Dogs can teach kids the basics of machine learning, how AI can raise climate-change awareness by simulating its possible consequences, and how research is helping counter dangerous online behaviours thanks to some unexpected allies.
Catch all five episodes of the show and listen at your leisure, or learn more about how Ubisoft La Forge is pushing state-of-the-art AI in games to create the next generation of NPCs.
