Havok inks major Bethesda deal

Middleware firm Havok will soon see its Behaviour Tool hit new levels of prominence – having signed a key tech deal with Bethesda.

The Behaviour Tool is being used in Bethesda’s next landmark title, The Elder Scrolls Skyrim.

The game’s executive producer Todd Howard said the studio “looked at a bunch of [animation solutions], and this is about the tippy-top state-of-the-art stuff out there.”

“I think we’re the first real big game to use it,” he added in an interview with Game Informer.

The Behaviour Tool allows users to build and simulate game-ready characters in a 3D level, placing the creation process in the hands of artists and designers.

The authored content can then be used in games that use Havok’s Physics, Animation or Behaviour middleware.

It joins the Havok Content Tools, also available from Havok’s website, in helping prepare content from applications such as 3D Studio Max, Maya and XSI and see it in a real dynamic environment where character mechanics can be prototyped.

The Elder Scrolls Skyrim is being built using an entirely new game engine from Bethesda.

The studio previously worked with engine firm Emergent.