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The Game Industry

The Game Industry Robin Burke GAM 224

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The Game Industry

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  1. The Game Industry Robin Burke GAM 224

  2. 1. MADDEN NFL 06 PS22. POKEMON EMERALD GBA3. GRAN TURISMO 4 PS24. MADDEN NFL 06 XBX5. NCAA FOOTBALL 06 PS26. STAR WARS: BATTLEFRONT II PS27. MVP BASEBALL 2005 PS28. STAR WARS EPISODE III: REVENGE OF THE SITH PS29. NBA LIVE 06 PS210. LEGO STAR WARS PS2

  3. Outline • Admin • Play papers • The Game Industry • Structure • Process • Problems

  4. Admin • Play papers • Done grading • Distribution • AAAAAA------ • BBBBBB+++++++- • CCCC++++- • FF

  5. The Game Industry • Statistics (2004) • US Retail sales: 9.9 billion • Software sales: 7.3 billion • Add MMO subscriptions: 1 billion • 248 million units sold • Halo 2 • $125 million opening weekend • best film ever • $114 million (Spiderman 2)

  6. Growth

  7. Costs • Premium game title • 1992 • $200K • 2001 • $1-2M • 2004 • $5-7M • next generation • $10-15M

  8. Industry structure Hardware Suppliers Support Services Tool Vendors Developers Publishers Distributors Consumers Retail Outlets

  9. Publisher • Money • Fund game development • Fund marketing campaigns • Connections • Convince distributors / retails to carry and display the game • Manage licensing • Manage intellectual property

  10. Hardware suppliers • Hardware • Supply console hardware to consumers • Supply peripherals / add-ons such as video cards for PCs • Supply hardware and development tools to developers • Quality control • Approve games for release on console platforms

  11. Tool Vendors • Produce specialize software used in game production • 3-D modeling • Maya • 3DS max • Sound editing • Motion capture • Middleware • AI engine • Physics engine • Graphics engine • etc.

  12. Support services • Motion capture labs • Motion capture actors • Sound studios • Voice actors • Contract art / animation • Musicians • Composers • Technical writing • PC configuration testing • Localization / translation • etc.

  13. Developers • Create art assets • 3-D models • textures • animations • Create audio / video assets • cut-scenes • sound effects • speech • Develop game code • graphics engine • game AI • user interface

  14. Distributors / Retailers • Distributors • Maintain inventory • Market games to retailers • Deliver games to retailers • Monitor sales and market activity • Retailers • Sell to consumers

  15. Process • Pre-production • Concept development • Game Design • Art Production Plan • Technical Design • Prototype • Development • Planning • Asset development • Code development • Play testing • Quality assurance • Post-production • Manufacturing • Packaging • Marketing • Advertising

  16. Concept Development • Players • Designer • Tech lead • Concept artist • Producer • Brainstorming activity to generate new game design • often based on existing IP or licenses • movie characters and situations • sequel to existing game • more rarely, original IP and designs • almost always from someone with a proven record • Tasks • Concept art • Game concept • Budget • Competitive analysis • Get a publisher interested • Or publisher may contact developer for this

  17. Game Design • Players • Designer • Tech lead • Concept artist • Art director • Nitty-gritty details of every bit of the game • every level • every character • every gameplay element • Task • convince the publisher that you can actually produce the game • provide framework for art production plan and technical design

  18. Technical Design • Players • Tech team • Software development plan • Middleware licensing • Staffing • Tasks, milestones and deliverables • Budget • Task • Understand the technical challenges of production • Plan and budget for the effort

  19. Art Production Plan • Similar to technical design but on the art side • what are all the art assets? • how will they be produced? • Budget / staffing / etc.

  20. Prototype • Establish the "look and feel" of the game • especially its core mechanic • Task • Convince publisher to fund development • Will it be fun and distinctive? • Are the technical aims feasible?

  21. Development • Hard work • Programming • Creation of art assets • Integration • Tuning • Testing • Organized by milestones • part of production plan • developer only gets paid when milestones are achieved • E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) often an important milestone • major marketing opportunity • aiming for Christmas sales

  22. Post-Production • Master disks shipped to hardware supplier • Acceptance testing for quality control • Manufacturing, printing, packaging • Marketing • Distribution • Retail

  23. Realities • Game development is • complex • different skills • different technologies • dynamic • changing technical environment • changing competitive landscape • uncertain • design is iterative • hard to predict successful game mechanics

  24. Problems • The last mile: retail issues • Risk vs reward • Lost innovation

  25. Retail Issues • Game stores are small • 200-300 titles in stock • compare to record stores! • space is a premium • Retail wants to shelve profitable items • games have a limited period to prove themselves • a couple of weeks

  26. Risk • Sales are increasing • larger population of gamers • But it is harder and harder to make money on a game

  27. Risk II • To balance risk • publishers need to place lots of bets • so that big wins balance the losers • Publishers need to be big • really big • Nintendo • EA • Sony • Microsoft • it isn't clear that Midway is going to make it • As the bar is raised • higher definition art • more technically complex development • the stakes at the table are raised

  28. Risk III • Publishers cannot gamble • they are in business to make money • Their $10 million must go where the return is acceptable and predictable • sequel-itis • licensed IP • well-known genres • Because • there are existing fans • there are channels to market to those audiences

  29. Risk IV • Control of IP • Control of IP is a hedge against risk • IP can turn into a franchise • with lucrative spin-offs • Publisher owns the game concept, characters, and (usually) code base • Bioware made KOTOR but • LucasArts owned the IP, so • Obsidian made KOTOR II • Result • Developers lose control of their creations

  30. Genres • A game genre • a set of formal rule characteristics that give rise to • a core mechanic (or collection thereof) with durable appeal • Examples • social card game • real-time strategy • first-person shooter • action adventure

  31. Genre life-cycle • A genre has a life-cycle • Coinage • A designer creates a game that exemplifies the mechanic • Popularization • The mechanic is refined and a really popular game breaks out • Maturity • A group of the gaming population focuses on this mechanic and becomes a market force • Product differentiation occurs above the mechanic: narrative elements, licenses. • Decline • Market consolidates around the winners of the "Maturity" phase. • Less devoted fans move on to other genres. • Well-defined market attracts marketing attention but little innovation. • Niche • Genre addicts form the sole audience. • Technical innovations in the mechanic are of primary interest. • Innovation decreases.

  32. Examples • 2-D arcade shooter • Spacewar • Space Invaders • Defender, Centipede, Galaga • Defender II, Galaxian • Text-based adventure • Adventure • Zork • Planetfall, A Mind Forever Voyaging • King's Quest

  33. Death to the games industry? • Costikiyan's claim • Loss of innovation in the mainstream game industry • Budget pressures and risks • Genre maturation • Problem • where will innovation come from? • no avenue for independent developers to reach a mass audience • nothing like • independent film industry • independent record labels

  34. Wideload Games • Stubbs the Zombie • Alex Seropian & Co. • founders of Bungie • developers of Halo • Problem • how to develop a modern console game with a limited budget

  35. Staffing • Few people for concept and design (~5) • More for prototype development (~10) • A lot for full-scale production (~20-70) • Problem • How to keep 70 people busy during next design phase? • Typical answer • Try to have a portfolio of projects coming and going • some small-scale

  36. Burn-rate risk • Very risky for the developer • A project that doesn't materialize • means 50 people with nothing to do • A project that runs late for technical reasons • means 30 artists with nothing to do • while programmer work day and night • while nobody gets paid

  37. Wideload II • Insight • people x time = money • fewer people means more time for the same money • Solution • license existing engine (Halo) • small core team (11) • augmented by contract work (65 peak) • concept and game art • animation • motion capture • sound

  38. Wideload III • Result • Schedule slip could be absorbed • contractors weren't paid while technical fixes made • Focus could be on game play • not on meeting targets • Some difficulties in managing distributed team • but they did it • If technical innovation was required • new game engine • much more difficult

  39. The Future • Next-gen games • higher budgets • more complex technology • increased customer expectations • All mean greater risk • which means less innovation?

  40. Monday • Culture paper • Grand Theft Auto III • There is no quiz 3

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