The popular Mortal Kombat series, which has been playing a pivotal role in the game scene for twenty years now, is another point of interest in 2012. Dominic Cianciolo, Cinematic Director at NetherRealm Studios, devotes his talk to creative aspects of different production processes and essential components that are needed in order to create a long-term, emotional bond between the gamer and the franchise: an elaborate character performance, realistic fights and a complex storyline. Working together, these components can achieve success even in the face of massive competition as exists in the fighting game genre.

 Outside the box: Games and Transmedia

As is an international meeting point for the merging film and games industries, FMX broadens its perspective beyond singular case studies: It thinks outside the box. Rick Stringfellow, Executive Art Director at EA Sports, speaks about the quickly transforming game industry. In a further talk, Stringfellow observes the difficulties of adjusting both quantity and quality to the ever-expanding games sector and its spread onto mobile devices and web browsers.

On the other hand, Microsoft Studios' Director of Central Media, Ben Cammarano, reveals why his company dropped the word "Games" from its title. He traces how the game industry aspires to increase interconnectivity to the adjoining interactive media branch and elaborates on the challenges this development presents with regard to budget and content.