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The Game Plan

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The Game Plan INSIDER VIEWS ON VIDEO GAME DEVELOPMENT Menu 03 Foreword By Jonathan Kestenbaum, CEO, NESTA 04 Introduction 07 Level 01 Two Can Play this Game 26 Level 02 The Game Plan 55 Level 03 Staying Ahead of the Game NESTA has long championed the importance of the UK video games Foreword by sector as a driver of growth and innovation. Through a blend of Jonathan robust evidence and a portfolio of practical pilots called ‘Raise the Game’, we’ve worked with the sector to devise strategies that Kestenbaum ensure the UK remains at the forefront of global video games CEO, NESTA development. Gaming Mentoring has been one of these pilots. Over the course of _ a year we’ve paired industry luminaries with emerging developers. This has enabled early-stage UK video games companies to benefit from the experience of business leaders who ‘have been through Through a blend of it’, and provided them with invaluable advice on business growth robust evidence and a during a tumultuous economic climate. portfolio of practical It’s now a good time to present our lessons to the industry at pilots called ‘Raise the large. The essays in this book give mentors and mentees the Game’, we’ve worked chance to express in their own voices their experience of this with the sector to programme. devise strategies that The essays also provide practical advice on how to best overcome ensure the UK remains common development challenges, as well as diverse views of the future of the video games sector. We are sure this knowledge will at the forefront of be valuable for both experienced developers and new generations global video games of UK video games talent – and also provide a really interesting development. read. We welcome your comments and views on this publication. Jonathan Kestenbaum Chief Executive Officer NESTA Playing the game www.nesta.org.uk 3 This book is the collective gathering of informed views from Introduction seasoned video games developers. _ It is the result of our year-long pilot in mentoring where we paired up seven ‘young’ UK video games developers, (representing all platforms – mobile, handheld, console, on-line and adver-games) with a video games expert who had the skillset, experience and independence to support a younger business in their commercial growth. This book has been compiled by the mentors and participants on this programme. ELSPA and TIGA have also contributed pieces. The book is split into three sections: Level 01 Two Can Play this Game Insights by the mentors (and some mentees) in their own words on the key success factors for a successful mentor relationship to work. Level 02 The Game Plan In the course of the mentoring relationship common games development and business issues arose – the list was endless- from working with publishers, raising finance, managing development times and budgeting, planning and strategy, to how to set up a company. The mentors have created a practical guide to these issues, which can be found in this section. Whether you are a student, start-up or seasoned developer, we hope you will find it useful. Level 03 Staying Ahead of the Game What will the future hold for video games? We asked the mentors, mentees and some industry figures for their predictions. Thanks to everyone who helped pull this together, especially Credits Charles Cecil who has been a stalwart supporter and mentor to the programme to ensure it has been relevant for developers. _ Editors Ian Livingstone Cartoons Charles Cecil James Brooksby Tanguy Dewavrin Chris Wright John Chasey Design Julie Ramage The Big Picture Contributors Julian Hicks Andy Payne Lol Scragg Programme Manager Brian McNicoll Richard Wilson Jackie McKenzie Charles Cecil Steve Taylor Chris Wright Thomas Bidaux Cordelia Grant Tim Gatland David Wightman Playing the game www.nesta.org.uk 4 Introducing With, between them, well over 100 years in the games industry, the mentors the seven mentors who took part in Playing the Game brought a fascinating range of skills, experiences and ideas to the table. Not _ to mention some invaluable warnings and priceless tips. Here, we introduce each with their brief career summary… Chris Wright (page 08) –– Involved in the industry since the early 1990s, making PC and console games. –– 1999: joined small start-up I-play, making primitive mobile phone games. Became the world’s third biggest mobile publisher, then acquired by Oberon Media in 2007. –– Now helps small companies and start-ups. Tim Gatland (page 10) –– 10+ years in the sector, mostly providing project finance for game development. –– COO of games development and publishing company, RailSimulator.com –– As a mentor, aims to help align the technical ambitions of video game pioneers with business practicalities. Charles Cecil (page 12) –– In interactive entertainment for over 25 years, having written adventure games for Artic Computing while still at college. –– Ran production at US Gold & Activision, then founded Revolution Software (1990). –– 2006: named ’industry legend’ by Develop, Europe’s leading development magazine. Thomas Bidaux (page 14) –– A decade’s experience in online gaming. –– Began with Multiplayer games for France Telecom, before setting up the European subsidiary of NCsoft in the UK (2004). –– Launched his own business ICO Partners in 2008, providing consultancy on online games. Playing the game www.nesta.org.uk 5 Introducing David Wightman (page 16) the mentors –– In 1989, David founded and ran Creative Edge/Edgies. _ –– Responsible for 100+ titles in 25 years. –– Currently working with a handful of companies to try and bridge technology opportunities, and grow beyond the business models of today. Steve Taylor (page 17) –– Drawn to innovation throughout a career in publishing, TV, branding, design, content creation and consulting. –– Current roles range from building joint technology initiatives with one of the world’s largest media owners, to mentoring the CEO of an 8-person agency. John Chasey (page 19) –– In the games industry since the 1980s. –– Founded and ran the hugely successful mobile game studio, IOMO, which was acquired by InfoSpace in 2004 for $15m. –– Now CEO of mobile technology middleware company Metismo; and chairman of mobile game developer FinBlade. Playing the game www.nesta.org.uk 6 TWO CAN PLAY THIS GAME Level 01 Two can play this game are the candid thoughts 08 – Chris Wright on Gameworld 7 from each of the mentors on how they found the 10 – Tim Gatland on Cohort Games mentoring process. Each mentor was given an introduction to the process, and some theory, 12 – Charles Cecil on Tag Games beforehand. Some mentors were experienced; 14 – Thomas Bidaux on doublesix for others it was the first time. 16 – David Wightman on Dynamo Games and During the year, one company wound up their Revolution Software business. Others thrived – at least in part, hopefully, due to the mentoring that they 17 – Steve Taylor on Kempt received. Certainly mentors and mentees 19 – John Chasey on Kempt learned a lot from each other. 20 – Insights on the learning from the mentoring pilot 23 – Mentoring Techniques – See/Hear/Speak 25 – Making it Happen – The GROW model (Goal/Reality/Options/Will) Two can play this game www.nesta.org.uk 7 Chris Wright on From the outside in: It was a cold and dreary Wednesday morning in January when I Gameworld 7 found myself at Cardiff airport trying to find where they had hidden the car hire check-in (it’s a mobile cabin in the car park for those _ who don’t know). Finally getting a car and heading east into the driving drizzle, it felt just like a home from home. Any games developer Scotland, where I have the pleasure of living, has a good faces challenges, reputation for games (and rain), with some big developers, ranging from the but Wales is very different. There is only a smattering of small developers trying to eke out a life in the Welsh hills. There is no simple decision on digital hub, no central driving force. It is much more cottage which platforms to than industry. hit and what types It’s also probably the friendliest games development community of games it wants I’ve ever encountered, with all the companies working together to make, to where it and sharing in the joint aim of survival. ultimately wants to Gameworld 7 is a small developer based in Haverford West, on go. The first thing was the south-western edge of Wales. The firm’s background is art to understand what outsourcing, something it pioneered ten years ago. Initially, this worked well, with a growing team of talented artists and an motivated the company, increasing focus on creating 3D car models for major games. what makes them get But over the years the market has changed; developers need an up in the morning. ever-increasing number of art assets, and outsourcing moved from the novel to an industry-standard practice. As more companies moved into this space, price became increasingly important, and offshore companies drove the price below economic rates in the UK. Throughout the period of Gameworld 7’s success as an art outsourcing company, it had always intended to move into game development. With little option, this was the route it was now forced to take. Like so many UK developers, Gameworld 7 is run by two brothers and the dynamics of the two founders drive the business and shape its approach to problems. The brothers are very different but complementary, with Jon’s strong project management background driving the schedule while Julian drives the creative side, originally on art and ultimately on concept and game design. Julian has been in the games industry longer than he cares to remember.
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