Sproing Selects Perforce to Manage Game Development

Wokingham, UK., 5 September, 2006 - Perforce Software today announced that Austrian game developer, Sproing Interactive Media GmbH, has selected Perforce, the Fast Software Configuration Management (SCM) System, to manage the development of its games. Perforce, the award-winning SCM system, tracks and manages the changes made to source code, documents, and digital assets in software and game development environments.

Sproing Interactive, based in Vienna, specializes in the development of games on all major entertainment platforms. Its customers include large publishers and games vendors. Sproing uses Perforce SCM to archive every item that goes into its PC and console game projects, allowing developers to recreate an entire game at any stage of its development. Game elements include the source code of the game itself as well as supporting tools and utilities, technical design documents, project

plans and all the source material for in-game assets such as 2D images, 3D models, audio files and proprietary files.

"The determining factor for selecting Perforce is its version control functionality, whilst maintaining an at-a-glance overview of all development activity within a project," said Gerhard Seiler, Sproing's co-founder and technical director. "The changelists are a good tool for our project managers to control the progress of asset creation as well as feature creation."

Within the Perforce SCM system, a 'changelist' is a collection of related changes that can be grouped together and submitted as a single transaction. This is an "all or nothing" operation that guarantees the underlying repository is in a consistent state and that all changes can be selectively retrieved or propagated to different codelines.

Choosing an SCM system

Sproing required an SCM system that could manage the large volumes of data used by their games' graphics and 3D models. Prior to selecting Perforce, Sproing evaluated several SCM products including open source systems. During the initial review phase, however, open source products such as CVS were eliminated because they were unable to cope with large files, did not adequately protect against data loss, nor did they offer personalized customer support. Other commercial SCM systems they considered were either disproportionately expensive or too complex to administer.

"Perforce Software's SCM system requires close to zero administration", said Seiler. "Perforce's version control also helps us to ensure all developers are working with the same data. This is crucial in game development as a typical project consists of tens of thousands of individual source files, code, graphics, sound, etc. and every developer in the team needs access to this. The same goes for different versions (branches) of the game, every developer has to be able to easily get the full consistent data."

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About Sproing

Founded in 2001, Sproing Interactive Media GmbH develops video and computer games on all major platforms. One of the leading developers in the German speaking territories, the company has shipped over 30 games since it's founding, including several top-selling titles which include Jacked, a motorbike action game for Playstation2, Xbox and PC; recent versions of Moorhuhn for phenomedia publishing; and (T)raumschiff Surprise, a game based on a German film. Sproing is currently working on the development of Panzer Tactics for Nintendo DS as well as the adventure game Undercover - Operation Wintersonne for the PC. Sproing is also a leading developer of lottery applications in Austria.

About the Perforce SCM System

Perforce, the Fast Software Configuration Management System, is an award-winning tool that tracks and manages software development for enterprises large and small. Perforce is easy to install, learn and administer; seamlessly handles distributed development, and supports developers across a wide variety of operating platforms. Perforce ensures development integrity by grouping multi-file updates into atomic changes, enables concurrent development, and intelligently manages multiple software releases using its Inter-File Branching system.

About Perforce Software

Founded in 1995, Perforce Software Inc. develops, markets, and supports Perforce, the Fast Software Configuration Management System. Perforce Software is headquartered in Alameda, Calif., and sells worldwide. The company has international operations in Europe, Japan, and India. In addition to application software companies, Perforce customers represent a broad range of industries including the game development, electronics, pharmaceutical, and financial services markets.

Media Contacts

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Georgina Barnes

Perforce Software Europe

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+44 (0) 845 345 0117 fax

gbarnes@perforce.com