SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- The editors of Think Services' Game Developer Magazine have named the finalists for the 2008 Front Line Awards, the magazine's eleventh annual evaluation of the year's best game-making tools in the categories of programming, art, audio, game engines, middleware, and books.

Each year, Game Developer looks at the powerful lineup of new products and new releases of favorite tools for professional game developers, and uses a combination of reader nominations and editor input to select the top five contenders in six different categories.

As always, the Front Line Award finalists represent the most innovative, user-friendly, and useful products from behind the scenes of the world's best video games. The finalists for the 2008 Game Developer Front Line Awards are:

    ART TOOLS
    Photoshop CS3                      Adobe
    SOFTIMAGE|XSI 7                    Softimage
    Autodesk 3ds Max 2009              Autodesk
    Modo 302                           Luxology
    Autodesk Maya 2008                 Autodesk


    AUDIO TOOLS
    Vivox Precision Studio v. 2        Vivox
    Wwise 2008.3                       Audiokinetic
    Fmod Designer 4.17                 Firelight Technologies
    Miles Sound System 7.2c            Rad Game Tools
    Voice-O-Matic 2.6                  Di-O-Matic


    ENGINES
    Unity 2.1                          Unity Technologies
    CryEngine 2                        Crytek
    Gamebryo 2.5                       Emergent Game Technologies
    Torque Game Engine 1.5.2           GarageGames
    Source Protocol 14, Build 3531     Valve


    MIDDLEWARE
    Autodesk Kynapse 5                 Autodesk
    PathEngine 5.16                    PathEngine
    Havok Physics                      Havok
    Euphoria                           NaturalMotion
    GameSpy SDK                        GameSpy


    PROGRAMMING/PRODUCTION  TOOLS
    TestTrack Pro 2008.2              Seapine Software
    Perforce 2008.1                   Perforce Software
    XNA Game Studio 2.0               Microsoft
    Subversion 1.5                    CollabNet
    Visual Studio 2008 SP1            Microsoft


    BOOKS
    Dungeons and Desktops: The History of Computer Role-playing Games by Matt
     Barton
    AK Peters
    Game Production Handbook, 2nd Edition by Heather Maxwell Chandler
    Infinity Science Press
    Real-Time Rendering, Third Edition by Tomas Akenine-Moller, Eric Haines,
     Naty Hoffman
    AK Peters
    The Art of Game Design: A Book Of Lenses by Jesse Schell
    Morgan Kaufmann
    Game Programming Gems 7, edited by Scott Jacobs
    Charles River Media

For this year's Front Line Awards, both Game Developer magazine subscribers and Gamasutra.com community members were surveyed to nominate the best game development-related products. Following consultation with the magazine's editors, finalists were selected based on criteria such as utility, innovation, value, and ease of use, and professional developers are now voting to decide this year's ultimate winners.

"This was a year in which tools became even more key to the game industry, with both high-end console game complexity and small-team indie innovation needing high quality products to help get things done swiftly and efficiently," said Brandon Sheffield, editor-in-chief of Game Developer. "The editors of Game Developer extend our congratulations to all of this year's Front Line Awards finalists!"

The final winners for the prestigious awards, plus one inductee to the Front Line Awards Hall of Fame chosen for its outstanding contribution to the game development industry for five years or more, will be announced in the January 2009 issue of Game Developer magazine, available to subscribers in early January. (The Front Line Awards Hall of Fame inductee is not eligible for consideration for regular awards in its winning year.)

For more information, please visit Game Developer online at www.gdmag.com.

About Game Developer (http://www.gdmag.com)

Game Developer, the print publication written specifically for creators of entertainment software, provides technical and industry information to over 35,000 professional game developers. Each month, industry leaders and game development experts share technical solutions, review new products, and discuss strategies for creating innovative, successful games. Game Developer features articles written by professional game developers on cutting-edge game development techniques in the areas of graphics and AI programming, audio design and engineering, art and animation, QA/testing, game design, and project management.

About Think Services and the Think Services Game Group

A core provider of essential information to the professional game industry, the Think Services Game Group offers market-defining content, and drives community through its award winning lineup of print, online, event and research products and services. These include Game Developer Magazine, Game Developer Research, the Webby Award-winning Gamasutra.com, GameCareerGuide.com, WorldsInMotion.biz, GameSetWatch.com, the Game Developers Conference, the Austin Game Developers Conference, GDC Canada, the Game Career Seminars, the Independent Games Festival and Summit, and the Game Developers Choice Awards. For more information, please visit http://www.tsgamegroup.com.

Think Services connects specialized communities worldwide using innovative media, educational events, consulting, training and certification. Providing comprehensive opportunities for people to learn from, network with, and inspire each other, Think Services builds strong brands and works within communities to foster a unique affinity with its products and services. The division's flagship products include the Game Developers Conference, the Webby Award-winning Gamasutra.com, Game Developer magazine, the International Customer Management Institute, and HDI. Think Services is a subsidiary of United Business Media, a global media and marketing services company with a market capitalization of more than $1.6 billion. To learn more, visit http://www.think-services.com.

SOURCE Think Services Game Group