THE BRIT LIST: INDUSTRY LEGENDS LEADER INTRODUCING THE MCV BRIT LIST
YOUmay recall that back in January I had a bit of a rant about Debrett’s and TheSunday Times’500 Most Influential Britons. Over 20 music execs featured along with a seemingly never-ending number of TV and film personalities… but the games industry featured just twice, Mind Candy’s Michael Acton Smith and Yogscast’s Lewis Brindley tucked away in the technology section. Overlooked were Ian Livingstone, the man changing the education system in the UK. There was no Sam and Dan Houser, the men behind the biggest entertainment product ever. Also absent was Andrew House, who is leading the resurgence of the PlayStation brand across the world.
I went as far as to say I bet there’s at least 100 people working in games that deserves to make such a list of influencers. And so MCV’s publisher Michael French simply said to me: “Shut up and just do it then.” The response to the Brit List eclipsed my biggest expectations. Over 300 people made the long list after a lobbying process that encouraged almost 600 people to get in touch. I had expected that 100 names would have been a challenge, but I was spectacularly wrong. So we assembled a judging panel, featuring some of the biggest names in games (listed below) from all walks of the industry, to make sure the 100 we picked deserved their place. There are some that missed out and there are almost certainly some people that fell through the gaps. That’s the only place Debrett’s is allowed any sympathy. That’s always going to happen with lists like this. But we are not scared of criticism, if you have anything constructive to say, drop me a line. We are all ears. But regardless, I hope you agree that these 100, featuring 17 women, 16 CEOs, and two people called Rupert (you can’t get much more British than that, can you?) deserve to be named as UK games’ top leaders.
HOW IT WORKED? MCVput together a long-list after an open lobbying period, and then invited the following industry experts to vote on who should make the final 100: Alice Taylor, Andy Payne, Ben Parfitt, Debbie Bestwick, Ed Vaizey, Ian Chambers, Ian Livingstone, James Batchelor, Jo Twist, Justin Thomas, Michael Acton Smith, Michael French, Miles Jacobson, Paul Sulyok, Peter Molyneux, Rhianna Pratchett, Richard Wilson, Rupert Loman, Shahid Ahmad, Simon Byron, Stuart Dinsey and Will Freeman
Chris.Dring@intentmedia.co.uk
04 March 28th 2014
LEADERS AND IAN LIVINGSTONE, CBE
WHENyou think of influential people in the games industry, the first person that comes to mind is Ian Livingstone. He boasts one of the most impressive CVs in games and has influenced new generations of industry types in every decade since the ‘70s. He launched Games Workshop, wrote the Fighting Fantasy series, helped launch Tomb Raiderand today he’s using his influence to make major changes to education. We speak to Mr. Livingstone about his glittering career so far.
So how did your career begin? My school friend Steve Jackson and I were sharing a flat in London in 1974. We had low-
paid, boring jobs and played a lot of board games. We talked about turning our hobby into a business and founded Games Workshop in February 1975. We started out by publishing a fanzine called Owl and Weasel to reach people who shared our passion. We sold obscure games by mail order from our flat before the big breakthrough in June 1975 when we managed to secure the exclusive European distribution rights for Dungeons and Dragons. The next challengewas to promote the fledgling RPG hobby: publishing White Dwarf, opening our own retail shops and founding Citadel Miniatures. A lot of it we made up as we went along. They were fantastic times.
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1 . INFAMOUS: SECOND SON Sony.......................................................................................... PS4
2. Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Limited Edition Square Enix........................................................................... PS3
3. Infamous: Second Son – Special Edition Sony.......................................................................................... PS4
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4. Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Square Enix........................................................................... Vita
5. Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Square Enix........................................................................... PS3
6. Child of Light Deluxe Edition Ubisoft..................................................................................... PS4
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7. Batman: Arkham Knight Warner Bros......................................................................... PS4
8. Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes Konami..................................................................................... PS3
9. Watch Dogs PS4 Exclusive Edition Ubisoft..................................................................................... PS4
10. Diablo III Reaper of Souls Activision .................................................................................. PC
www.shopto.net www.mcvuk.com
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