A Filipino company led by a lady executive has created three-dimensional art assets for big-budget video game ‘Gears of War 4,’ which was launched globally on Oct. 11.
“We are proud of our artists who were part of that development,” says Jackeline Chua, the managing director and co-founder of Synergy 88, an IT conglomerate that employs 200 Filipino professionals.
Gears of War 4, which was reportedly produced at a cost of over $100 million, is the fourth main installment in the Gears of War series, developed by The Coalition and published by Microsoft Studios for Microsoft Windows and Xbox One.
Synergy 88 managing director and co-founder Jackeline Chua
The Coalition, a Canadian video game developer and a subsidiary of Microsoft Studios, selected Synergy 88 Digital Inc., one of the companies under Synergy 88, as a development partner to create 3D art assets. Synergy 88 Digital thus became the first Microsoft-certified studio in the Philippines for game art outsourcing.
By being part of an elite game development team, Synergy 88 Digital joins the ranks of premiere 3D game art providers in the world.
Initial reviews are positive about the new weapons, the active game play and smooth movement of the characters. Early beta testers describe Gears of War 4 to be a natural evolution of the popular series.
“The budget for this one is more than a Hollywood production,” Chua says of Gears of War 4.
Synergy 88 Digital is one of the companies under Synergy 88 Group headed by Chua, who hones and taps Filipino talent to render 3D animation, cutting-edge visuals and virtual reality designs for foreign and local companies.
“We are a technology and creative company. We produce cutting-edge gaming visual effects and animation. We try to come up with a lot of new ideas,” Chua says in a news briefing in Makati City.
Chua says a team of six Filipinos worked for about 20 months for the art assets of Gears of War 4. “It is a milestone [for the Philippine game development industry] because it [Gears of War] is one of the biggest titles in the world,” she says.
“We have heard about Pinoys being involved in Pixar and Disney. This is the equivalent of that. The game industry, as far as I know, is greater than the animation,” says Chua, a corporate manager, entrepreneur and visionary.
Synergy 88 Digital is the same company behind Filipino-made mobile game apps ‘Catch the Guava’ and ‘Barangay Basketball.’
Catch the Guava, a game developed for GMA Network, had more than a million installs and was featured seven times on Google Play.
Synergy 88 Digital also did outsourced services for ‘The Witcher Wild Hunt,’ which won the Best Video Game of the Year twice in a row. “All its arts assets were made here and were integrated in the game,” says Chua, who obtained degrees in political science and marketing management from the De La Salle University.
Board of Investments director for international investments promotion service Angelica Cayas says game design and development is the next evolution of the country’s blooming BPO industry.
“With the steady growth of the economy, and the continued public and private support, we are confident that the industry will remain on its positive growth path in the years ahead,” Cayas says.
The Coalition, the Vancouver-based game studio, says it is pleased with the quality of work produced by Synergy 88 Digital.
“I would like to thank Synergy88 Digital for their contribution in making the environments of Gears of War 4 come to life. Their quality was world class and they delivered when we needed them to. We look forward to collaborating with them on future projects,” says The Coalition director of production Walter de Torres.
Alvin Juban, president of Game Developers Association of the Philippines, says: “There has been no greater honor and pleasure than serving with the Coalition. The mentorship, work style and communication practice, the entire experience from qualification to execution was beyond all our expectations.”
Chua says Synergy 88 Digital invested in hardware and software, particularly in human resources to make this possible. “Two years ago, this partnership was just a gleam in the horizon. Since then we’ve consistently and continuously grew our capabilities, our facilities, and our people because we foresee bigger, more resource-driven engagements with our partners.”
“When The Coalition with the Gears of War 4 project came along, we knew for sure that we were on the right track all along. The impending success of the game is icing on the cake. Our partnership with The Coalition gives us the confidence that we can compete with the world’s best in our area of expertise,” she says.
Chua says being involved in Gears of War 4 is expected to draw the attention of global foreign studios to the rich talent available in the Philippines.
“If they can see in the credit that it is a Pinoy studio, then the other producers of video games will also tap our talents, so they will be able to create more jobs. People will discover that Filipinos are very good in creative products,” says Chua.