D.I.C.E. has speakers, E3 wants 'em

Conventions without guest speakers are like Corn Flakes without the milk. Whether they're talking about how to properly design a level in a first-person shooter or predicting the wave of the future for gaming, a top-notch roster of orators adds the flavor that a simple game kiosk can't deliver.

With its conference coming up in early February, The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences (AIAS) has cemented its initial list of speakers for the D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit that will take place in Las Vegas. The annual event brings together people from both the development and business branches of the industry.

Headlining the event and speaking in a friendly arena on game design will be Will Wright and Peter Molyneux. Wright is the head of Maxis, and he created the most successful PC franchise: The Sims. Molyneux is considered the father of the god game genre, having created games such as Black & White and Populous, as well as the recent Fable and upcoming sim The Movies.

Sony creative director David Jaffe will host "Chasing Perfection: The Making of God of War," a seminar about his struggles while making the hit PlayStation 2 game. Richard and Robert Garriott, the cofounders of Origin Systems and current executives at NCsoft, will talk about the evolution of online games, Alec Bernstein of BMW Group DesignWorks/USA will discuss how racing games have affected real-world car designs, and interface guru Dale Herigstad will talk about his work on the Gametap service.

The Electronic Entertainment Expo may not be hitting Los Angeles until May 10, 2006, but the call for speakers has already commenced. The E3Expo Media Relations department is asking for "all game industry professionals to submit speaking proposals to be considered for the 2005 E3Expo Conference Program."

Speakers chosen by the conference's producers will get free access to E3 and will speak before thousands of attendees. To submit a proposal, visit the event's official Web site.

Last year's panels included game luminaries such as Crystal Dynamics' Toby Gard, Double Fine Productions' Tim Schafer, Ubisoft's Michel Ancel, Vivarium's Yoot Saito, and Molyneux.