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If you thought that the PS3 and 360 were only just hitting their stride and that it’s a good year or more at least until talk about developing for their successors began, then think again.
Kuju has revealed to develop that it is looking to get a jump on the ‘next next-gen’, with a serious investment in R&D behind new internal technology called Fabric.
Targeting the many-core CPUs that are expected to be housed in the next wave of console hardware – plus supporting Kuju as it works on games in the second half of the current generation’s cycle – the first title using the tech will go into production towards the end of 2009.
Speaking with Develop, Adrian Hawkins, technical director of the UK network of studios, described the move as "so much more than just building another renderer".
He explained: "We have been developing this engine in a fundamentally different way to previous generations of technology. Fabric enables straightforward scaling based on the number of processor cores available, and ensuring all game code is developed within a framework of granular task modeling. Our studios will make their first use of it in the second half of this year.”
Ian Baverstock, CEO of Kuju added: “Several of our studios have already started looking at the implications of the upcoming many-core technologies and it is great to be able to announce this investment into the central R&D team for the benefit of the whole group. Kuju has been around for long enough to know the importance of preparing well in advance for the major changes that new hardware can bring; we think it’s important to start preparing for the next wave now.”
Click here to read a full interview with Hawkins about the thinking behind Fabric
