VARCO AI Expansion Accelerates... Develop Rocket-NC AI Successfully Conclude "VARCO Voice Contest"

Four Final Teams Selected...
Total Prize of 5 Million Won and Additional Internship Points
AI Voice Synthesis Technology
Capturing Even Game Character Speech Patterns and Emotions

Develop Rocket announced on January 14 that the 'VARCO Voice Utilization Contest', conducted in collaboration with NC AI, was successfully concluded amid high interest.

Develop Rocket is the new brand name of Kyungil Game IT Academy. This contest was designed to discover creative content utilizing the AI voice technology VARCO Voice, and attracted a diverse range of participants including university students, the general public, and indie game developers.

A total of over 260 individuals, comprising more than 80 teams and individuals, applied for the VARCO Voice Utilization Contest, demonstrating significant interest in the event.

After fierce competition, a total of 12 teams passed the first round of judging. The final winners were selected through a presentation held on the third floor of NC's headquarters. The final evaluation began at 1:00 p.m. and was based on game demonstration videos longer than five minutes, documentation explaining the results, evidence of voice synthesis utilization, and generated audio files submitted by the teams.

The main judging criteria were the degree of VARCO Voice utilization, the originality of the game, and the completeness of the content. After the evaluation, a total of four teams were honored with final awards. Among them, five teams were recognized as winners.

The grand prize went to the team 'Gaebalbadak' for their project 'ISR Operator'. This work was highly praised for using VARCO Voice to deliver battlefield situations via voice and allowing players to command surveillance assets and allied forces through voice commands in an intelligence surveillance asset management simulation game. The game was recognized for providing a play experience where players could change the course of the battlefield solely through information analysis and voice command.

The Excellence Award was given to the team 'Viska' for their project 'It Is Clearly Wrong to Carry My Girlfriend on My Back Across Buildings', which was praised for organically connecting AI voice as a core game system gimmick, delivering an innovative play experience.

The Merit Awards went to the team 'Gogeupjin Team' for 'MEOWMENT' and the team 'Lucky Rabbit's Foot' for 'Last Requiem'. MEOWMENT was recognized for its use of AI technology to add depth to the narrative, while Last Requiem was praised for its creative game design and outstanding application of voice technology.

The winning teams will receive a total prize of 5 million won, as well as practical growth opportunities such as additional points for NC AI internships and support for game launches and content commercialization.

Building on the success of this contest, the third contest utilizing VARCO Game AI is also planned to be held. Develop Rocket, which operated the contest, intends to continue supporting the expansion of the AI technology-based creative ecosystem through collaboration with NC AI. In addition, the company plans to focus on broadening the application of VARCO technology by providing various benefits and practical, hands-on operations in the future.