Victorian Games Guru Grows by 150 Jobs

Victorian Games Guru Grows by 150 Jobs


Media release - 26 October 2006

Victoria was cementing its spot as Australia's computer game development capital with leading Victorian game developer, IR Gurus, set to employ an additional 150 games specialists, to work on the new AFL Premiership 2007 game and other titles, Information and Communication Technology Minister, Marsha Thomson, announced today.

"This growth catapults IR Gurus to the top, making it the largest games developer in Australia, and the Bracks Government is pleased to have supported them to become a global player in this highly competitive international market," Ms Thomson said.

AFL Premiership 2007 will be the first game to be developed using the cutting-edge technology at Victoria's brand new motion capture studio, unveiled last month.

"IR Gurus has secured the leading-edge facility for three months to bring the highest quality, life-like movement to its new AFL game and Gaelic Football & Hurling games, due for release in June 2007," Ms Thomson said.

IR Gurus received international acclaim for its popular game titles that include Heroes of the Pacific, Saddle Club and Gaelic Games Football, and won contracts with international studios, with support from the Victorian Government's ICT Trade Events and Exports Assistance Program.

"The games industry is worth $US30 billion a year globally and through the Bracks Government's policy, Game Plan: Game On, we've worked hard to assist Victorian companies in carving a place for themselves in this lucrative niche field.

"Victoria excels in the electronic games sector, with over half of Australia's $A825 million game development industry based here," she said.

IR Gurus is already working on new titles for next generation consoles, including PC, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Sony PSP and PS3. Upcoming games for release will include Heatseeker, Lucinda Green’s Equestrian Challenge, Gaelic Games Football 2, Gaelic Games Hurling and AFL Premiership 2007 as well as a major game sequel to IR Gurus's successful "Heroes" franchise.

"It is particularly exciting to see IR Gurus making good use of Victoria's new motion capture studio – Motion.Lab – the largest studio of its kind in the country," Ms Thomson said.

With 24 high-definition, 4.0 megapixel cameras, Motion.Lab at Deakin University, uses the latest specialised software to track motion from live movement and bring cutting-edge realism to local digital animations.

"This studio is invaluable for our dynamic creative sector; it means local animators can take their projects from conception to completion in Victoria," said Ms Thomson.

"As local companies like IR Gurus continue grow, they in turn create business for local service companies, such as our digital animation studios.

"IR Gurus is to be congratulated on their ongoing commitment to our local animation companies, which is also testament to the superb quality and creativity in the animations they consistently produce," she said.