Autodesk Acquires Illuminate Labs – Maker of Lighting Technology for Games

July 22, 2010

Source: Autodesk

Autodesk has acquired Illuminate Labs, a privately held maker of lighting technology for game development.

Illuminate Labs’ Beast middleware solution and Turtle plug-in for Autodesk Maya software enable faster iteration on a game’s creative intent, and more realistic in-game lighting. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

“We welcome Illuminate Labs customers and employees to Autodesk,” said Marc Stevens, VP Games, Autodesk Media & Entertainment. “Technological progress is a mainstay of the games industry. Autodesk is committed to helping game developers be more competitive with modern pipelines. We want our customers to spend less time building workflows and solving redundant problems, and more time realizing their creative vision for the game.”

Stevens added: “Advanced lighting solutions help game developers achieve their aesthetic goals, enhancing the game’s design and story. Lighting brings games to life by defining environments, establishing mood, creating atmosphere and guiding players. Illuminate Labs’ lighting technology and workflow tailored to game development are some of the most advanced in the industry. They complement Autodesk’s games middleware offering.”

Autodesk also offers Autodesk HumanIK character animation middleware and Autodesk Kynapse artificial intelligence middleware.

Magnus Wennerholm, previously Illuminate Labs CEO, said, “In just a few years, Beast and Turtle have become production-proven technologies for in-game lighting. Leading game developers like Sony Computer Entertainment, Nintendo America and THQ/Heavy Iron rely on these tools to help deliver higher visual quality in their games. My team and I are excited about the technology development opportunities that Autodesk has to offer. I believe that this acquisition will benefit both Autodesk and Illuminate Labs customers.”

Wennerholm and the Illuminate Labs team are joining Autodesk Media & Entertainment.

Autodesk plans to develop and sell Illuminate Labs’ technology and support Illuminate Labs customers. Autodesk anticipates that Beast middleware will continue to be licensed as a standalone product.

Autodesk plans to incorporate Turtle into future offerings, and discontinue licensing it as a standalone product. Illuminate Labs customers needing product support are requested to contact support@illuminatelabs.com.


Submit a Company

Submit News

Submit a Job

Submit an Event