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Opinion: Recession, The Beginning Of An Era
by Brandon Sheffield [PC, Console/PC, Exclusive]
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March 4, 2009
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[Despite the obvious worries of the economic climate, might it not also provide opportunities for innovation? In this opinion piece, originally published in the February 2009 issue of Game Developer magazine, EIC Brandon Sheffield proposes striking out upon the road less traveled.]
On the surface, things don't look too hot for our industry right now. I was speaking with a friend recently about the current economic climate, saying that developers are losing their jobs across the globe, more studios are closing, and fewer seem to want to hire.
I was being a bit of a doomsday prophet, but my friend suggested that this is actually a time of great opportunity, and thinking about it carefully, I may agree with him.
Hopeful Possibilities For Indies?
There are a lot of talented people out of work in a lot of major metropolitan areas. If you're the type of person who can motivate them to get together, this seems like a prime opportunity for new studios, new indies, and new ideas about the shape of the industry.
If you've always dreamed of implementing the Hollywood model, bringing the right person to the right project and then moving on, this is a good time for it.
If you want to invoke the spirit of the bedroom programmer now that tools are getting to where that's actually viable without being a hardcore programmer/artist/designer hybrid, this is a good time for it. If you want to venture out and create your own IP, or revisit a lost genre, this is a good time for it.
It might not be the best time to create a multi-million dollar epic, unless you're one of the big publishers -- but even then it's a bit riskier than usual.
Games In A Recession
Games aren't going to go away during this recession. During the Great Depression, the legend goes that entertainment was the major industry that flourished. Books, movies, and condoms were among the best selling “non-essential” products.
These all facilitated escapism from the poverty around them, without weighty consequences. While we're not quite at the depression level, games are an effective and appealing method of escapism in the best of times, and in times of trouble are even more enticing.
Of course it's rather difficult to do any of this if you haven't got a little bit of a nest egg to tide you over until you can release a game, or at least get funding.
Some have said that the venture capital money has all dried up, but I don't think it's necessarily gone. Rather I think it's being hidden, Great Depression-style, under the proverbial mattresses.
Games are still a good industry. People don't want to stop playing video games -- but they might want to start paying less for them. If you can convince people with money that a smaller investment in a fledgling company making smaller games is a wise one, then you may be in business.
The Beginning Of An Era?
It's very possible that this recession could usher in the next age of the indie. Smaller, less expensive games made by smaller, more agile teams seem like a very logical step, now that the industry structure is better able to support it, with no less than three venues on which to distribute content as a small team.
These are downloadable console, direct to consumer PC downloads via Steam-like services, portals, or direct sale, and iPhone and potentially DSi downloads. Consumers have shown that they're willing to buy games like Castle Crashers in droves.
Indie developers have asked me on more than one occasion how to promote their products to the press without a big budget, or without a budget at all. It can seem daunting, but actually it's quite simple.
Promoting Your Productions
What works for me, and for many other members of the press I've spoken to about the issue, is targeted personal emails. It doesn't cost anything more than time.
Target the bigger blogs first, reading to see who writes about indies and in what context. See what they like and don't like, and choose a writer to contact.
Send them an email explaining who you are, where you're coming from, what your game is about, and what you're trying to achieve. If you've got some nice production art to show, a snappy title, a YouTube video, or a playable demo, so much the better.
Don't treat your game like it's the next big thing, or the most awesome Tower Defense clone ever, even if it may be. Be straightforward, humble, and realistic, and people will pay attention if your game seems interesting.
I'm hopeful that this recession will bring about a bit of an industry shakeup. It's up to the folks networking at this coming GDC and similar events. I would urge you to not think along the same old lines as before and simply join an existing studio, or create a new traditionally structured team.
This is a great time to experiment and try out new ideas, if you're the type who has them. If it doesn't work out, at least you won't have been idle by the time you have to take your next job in the trenches!
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I hope this recession will mark the re-emergence of individuality and innovation in games. After all, those elements were the spark that created what is today, a multi-billion dollar industry. But I think due to the exponential growth and profit potential, the innovation and individuality has taken a back seat. I want to see those elements back in the drivers seat and I think it will happen. I'm counting on it!
I hadn't seriously thought about the DSi downloadables being on similar ground to the iPhone in terms of game creation and potential. That should certainly be something to keep an eye on.
It's like ordering a a meal for a party, but you're just one guy with a small appetite. You like the idea of all the fancy foods to choose from with a large array of drinks to sample, but your stomach just can't fit it all, and it eventually rots and goes bad.
With respect to indie opportunities, this has already started to happen in Japan, and possibly elsewhere. I know at least one digital distribution site that just announced a new section for mobile gaming of all types. Of course, Japan and certain other countries have a very active market for portable games and other types of portable entertainment, so such markets have an advantage over markets that do not have a prevalance of and preference for mass transportation systems (America, for example). On the other hand, gaming is a truly global entertainment media, more so than certain others such as print media, for example, so it's easier to reach people who can understand the language even if they are not in the native market for the language.
With respect to game pricing, I'm still not sure why people think that the current price structure is worse than what existed in the past. Phantasy Star for the Sega Master System retailed for $70, and most Genesis cartridges retailed for $50-$70. Same for TurboGrafx-16 (PC-Engine) CDROM games. Right now, I see new releases varying from $30-$60 (not including collector's editions). I also see high profile, top reviewed and received games retailing for $20 or so brand new only a year or two after their initial release (Half Life 2: Orange Box for $20, Bioshock for $20, Mass Effect for $20 including the extra DVD and DLC, etc). Personally, I seldom buy brand new games because (a) I simply don't have any income right now since I am looking for employment, and (b) the rapid price changes of anywhere from 10%-33% within a few weeks or months of release are simply too much to bear. If it wasn't for the work I'm doing for my capstone project and an independent study prior to graduating with my MA this semester, I wouldn't be buying anything new, really. I'd like to buy stuff, of course, but the price changes are just too rapid (and I have a stack of games I still need to play/finish too... ^_^)
A bunch of doors have been locked and a bunch of doors have been unlocked by the recession and its chain reactions.
Getting upset about the locked ones doesn't help, and trying the knobs to see what suddenly opens up is a lot of fun.
Don Daglow
How are we gonna make more things more valuable and make more money? There ain't no free market anymore. And there ain't no money.
Did you know that there are carbureters for cars that'll get 200 miles per gallon? Yep... But they don't want you to know that.
They tax the living crap outta us
We pay for our water coming in full of chemicals and pay for our water going out that is suppose to get treated, that doesn't and it gets dumped into our oceans by the millions of gallons per pipe per day.
They put sodium flouride in our water claiming that it's flouride and say they're doing it because it's good for us... How in the world is nuclear waste good for us in any form other than energy? And even that's questionable nowadays.
They got us by the balls, where they need to loosen the cinch on us. They control every aspect of everything we do... And that's why things are messed up. All of us are pretty much slaves.
I dunno, All I can really say is "Hey, if you can get yer video game sold, you're a lucky s.o.b".
Because developrs are gonna be looking after their own people.
Things are gonna start getting real ugly.
I believe the hardware has to stick around for longer than a decade before IP's can have any real effect on the market like the early consoles(Nintendo, Sega Genesis etc.) I'm definitely less optimistic about IP's sprouting up with the state of the economy. I hope something positive does happen despite the condition the the economy is in.