Torque Exporter For Houdini Apprentice HD

Thursday, February 14, 2007 -TORONTO, ON - Side Effects Software, an industry leader in 3D Animation software is pleased to announce the Torque exporter for Houdini. Developed by programmers at GarageGames, this exporter will put Houdini's renowned node-based approach to 3D modeling and animation into the hands of both professional and independent game artists.

"Houdini Apprentice HD and the Torque Game Engine make a perfect match." says Kim Davidson, President, Side Effects Software. "GarageGames recognizes the value in providing low-cost solutions to indie game developers, in the same way Side Effects supports artists and animators with Houdini Apprentice HD."

Houdini offers game developers a wide range of artist-friendly modeling, animation, lighting, rendering, character and effects tools. But it is Houdini's procedural node-based solutions that will make it easier to populate games with next-gen quality content. The exporter supports the output of meshes, nodes, animation, bone animation, level of detail, textures, UV coordinates and more, to the Torque Game Engine.

"Improving workflow for artists using Torque is a big priority for GarageGames and we couldn't imagine supporting a better suite of tools than Houdini," said Brett Seyler, VP of Business Development for GarageGames. "For everything from character modeling to procedural object generation, animation and physics, Houdini is a powerful product and their indie-friendly Houdini Apprentice HD, also known as the Starving Artist Edition, should make it very appealing to Torque users."

As of March 18th, 2008, the new exporter will be available as part of Houdini Apprentice HD, Houdini Escape and Houdini Master. Existing Houdini customers working with Houdini 9.1 will be able to install the latest build to gain access to the new exporter.

To learn what Houdini can do for your next game project, visit GarageGames and Side Effects at the Games Developers Conference in booth #5438 Moscone North from Wednesday, Feb 20th to Friday, Feb 22nd.

About Houdini

The Houdini family of animation software offers digital artists an unprecedented level of power, flexibility and control based on award-winning technology. The comprehensive feature set includes: modeling, rigging, animation, particle effects, dynamics, compositing, integrated rendering, and more. All Houdini applications work together seamlessly and are available for the Windows and Linux operating systems. Houdini has been used to create stunning digital animation in blockbuster films, including: Golden Compass, Transformers, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Beowulf, Superman Returns, The Wild, The Ant Bully, Poseidon, X-Men: The Last Stand, Spider-Man (1 & 2), The Polar Express, I, Robot, Chronicles of Riddick, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Stealth, Sin City, X-Men, X2: X-Men United, the Harry Potter series, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and the Matrix trilogy.

About Side Effects Software

Established in 1987, Side Effects Software [www.sidefx.com] is a world leader in the development of advanced 3D animation and special effects software for use in film and video games. Side Effects Software leads the field of procedural animation with its unique, award-winning, Houdini technology. Houdini is used by numerous digital content creation leaders including: EA, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, Gorrilla Games, C.O.R.E., Digital Domain, Disney Feature Animation, Framestore-CFC, The Orphanage, Rhythm and Hues, and Sony Pictures Imageworks among others.

About GarageGames

GarageGames is located in Eugene, Oregon and on the web at www.garagegames.com. As the makers of Torque Game Builder, Torque Game Engine, Torque Game Engine Advanced, and Torque X, they have been providing game development tools and technology at an affordable price since 2000. The Torque Technologies line of game engines have been used since to develop hits such as Marble Blast Ultra, Fallen Empire: Legions, Penny Arcade Adventures, Screwjumper, and countless other titles on Windows, Mac, Linux, Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360, and GarageGames' own InstantAction web-based gaming service.

Press Contact:

Lars Hansen / Wendy Vincent

C2E Consulting

lars@c2e.ca / wendy@c2e.ca

416-406-9966