French studio White Birds teams with Qube Software

Paris based developer White Birds has become the first French studio to utilise middleware provider Qube Software's Q platform in its development process.

The studio has confirmed it's been working with the tools since December on its next Wii party game, Crazy Garage. The title, which is now at Beta stage, is due to be completed in the next few weeks.

"Among the features that led us to choose Q were the interface-driven philosophy (QCOM), the ease of use of QStudio for artists and the quality of the Maya exporter," said White Birds' lead developer, Damien Kochanek. "We appreciated the modularity it offered, which was perfect for a party game like ours.

"We are still learning, but once we got the basics of Q down, it proved to be a powerful engine and framework. Q is also a true multi-platform engine: we have been able to develop our game on one platform and make it work on a second without difficulties."

It has been a challenge for the team to master, Kochanek admitted. "But the time it takes is definitely worth it."

"The support from Qube has been great," added production director Jean-Brice de Cazenove. "Our questions have always been answered very quickly and most of the features we've asked for have been implemented. This is without a doubt another huge benefit of working with Q."

White Birds studio was founded in 2002 and employs a team of 30. It has released more than ten titles to date across assorted platforms.

Qube Software is London based and was founded by Servan Keondjian and Doug Rabson, the creators of Direct3D.