GDC 2001: Metrowerks talks GameCube, PS2 development

At the Game Developers Conference in San Jose, Calif., today, we had a chance to catch up with some representatives from Metrowerks, the Austin-based game tools developer. Among other things, Metrowerks has developed the GameCube operating system and a number of products known collectively as the CodeWarrior tool suite.

One of the primary applications of Metrowerks' tools suite is the porting of games across different platforms. Since the company works closely with both Sony and Nintendo, it's logical that developers with access to the tools could port existing products to and from both companies' platforms with relative ease. When asked to comment on this, Metrowerks' game console product manager Phil Moffet had the following to say: "I've heard of lots of PC games that are currently being ported to the PS2. As far as the GameCube to the PS2, you can bet that things will be happening. Our developers realize that in order to maximize penetration with the customer base, they need to develop for multiple platforms. Code Warrior will make it possible to do that."

But when asked about specific ports of games in the works, Moffet was unsurprisingly silent. However, given the relative ease with which development teams can port their products using Metrowerks' toolset, it wouldn't be too surprising to see a good number of developers using it. Some of Metrowerks' clients include Nintendo, Sony, Electronic Arts, and Acclaim.