The UK Games Industry press has been reporting on the double-hit that the industry suffered in the coalition government’s emergency budget on 22nd June which not only saw a U-turn on the decision to introduce a Games Tax Relief but also the proposal to abolish the Regional Development Agency scheme which gamesindustry.biz described as being ‘instrumental in funding gaming innovation, advice and networking organisations in regions outside of London’.
So, at the UK’s first major Games Industry event since the emergency budget, I was expecting the news to have had a significant effect on the mood of GameHorizon Conference in Gateshead, but it gives me great pride to announce that this was not the case. The conference host and Life President of Eidos, Ian Livingstone introduced the event with cool positivity and resilience by saying that “we [the UK games industry] have lost the tax break, so…let’s try something else”. This comment is exemplary of the spirit of an industry with innovation, experimentation and a willingness to embrace new business models at it’s core…Or perhaps I was just blind to the elephant in the room.
The conference boasted an impressive and varied line-up of speakers including Peter Molyneux (Microsoft) whose presentation ‘Monetising Innovation’ covered Kinect and Fable III, Jesse Schell (Schell Games) whose presentation Roadmap to the Gamepocalypse guided the audience on an interesting and entertaining journey through current and future trends which will bring gaming elements into the rest of our lives, Michael Acton Smith (Mind Candy) who presented the successful virtual world/social game Moshi Monsters, Charles Cecil (Revolution) who compared the tribulations of the Games Industry to the works of William Hogarth, inspirational speaker/’motivational drummer’ (yes, you read that right) Mark Schulman, and of course many, many more.
As you’d expect from a conference such as GameHorizon the current trends in the industry were all covered in one presentation or another. The shift from console to social gaming, the growing breadth of gaming audiences accelerated by social networks and mobile devices, the adoption of new and multiple business models, the necessity of strong marketing, particularly for self-published IP, the proliferation of ‘free’, alternate input devices/mechanisms, quantitative design, cloud gaming, etc., etc., etc. However it was the exceptions to these trends that I found particularly interesting, three examples of which I would like to share with you:
Over the course of the conference many business models were discussed and critiqued with the microtransactions arm of the freemium model coming across as the most favourable amongst developers. Even Peter Molyneux explained that Fable III would be experimenting with new models including episodic gaming and microtransactions through in-game stores, which would also utilise AB testing and analytics to drive this in-game marketplace. However Jesse Schell warned developers that a microtransactions model is not the answer to all business needs: “After all, theme parks began on this model”. A great reminder that the microtransactions model is not a new solution, but an effective example of innovation.
The second example came from Michael Acton Smith, CEO of Mind Candy whose virtual world/social network aimed at the under-13s audience is seeing tremendous success at the moment. Moshi Monsters is currently reported to be gaining a new user every second. The exception that proves the rule in this example is the spike in new registrations that the business experienced promoting the site through television advertising. In a market in which marketeers have all but turned their back on television for being expensive, un-measurable and ineffective, Moshi Monsters have seen success. Michael Acton Smith attributes this to simply trying new (and old) things and seeing what works, a point that ties nicely into one of his tips to developers and marketeers alike – “Don’t be scared to fail, just make sure that you fail fast”.
The final example that I would like to close with is around CCP’s new title Dust 514. CCP have seen great success with Eve Online, a PC MMO title which by their reckoning is the second most popular MMO on the market behind World of Warcraft. The surprise with Dust 514 is that CCP plan on releasing this title on console, a decision seemingly against the grain of the majority of the industry as console developers (and publishers) migrate towards open platforms. Yohei Ishii, Senior Director of Business Development at CCP argues that whilst many developers are moving towards digital distribution platforms, towards the browser and towards mobile to access new audiences, CCP are doing the same the other way round. Social gaming, having well and truly proven itself in a business sense, even if through Zynga sales figures alone, is still to prove it’s longevity particularly given that many of the companies behind even the more successful social gaming titles have disappeared. Therefore I find reassurance in the fact that there are still companies catering for the hardcore console market. Then again, I am a console gamer.
