You’ll be addressing - indirectly, it seems - the cost-cutting that’s going on in the industry, as well as the challenges of AI, which some would say are very closely linked. Are you expecting things to get quite spicy? It could get spicy... I hope so. I do love a spicy panel! AI is interesting right now, because for some game devs it is taking the boring bits of development out so they can get on with the creative work, for others it is taking away the creative work. But the cost cutting for me is not just about current conditions but the fact that many indie devs in particular are small with limited funds and so hearing about techniques that can tell big stories without big budgets is always going to be useful. But that’s not just about AI - It’s about original thinking.
“It could get spicy... I hope so. I do love a spicy panel!”
As the host you’ll be remaining neutral, of course, but since no one will read this, what’s your take? My focus will be getting their take on all of this. But in my own life, I am a big fan of humans.
Obviously you’ll want people in attendance who are involved on the narrative side of game development, but would other disciplines benefit from being in the room? I think anyone interested in the process of creativity, anyone who has a secret desire to write, fans of games with great stories and anyone who loves good anecdotes from panelists they can share at the pub. We got a fair few good stories in January that I could not possibly share here ;-) and any fans of the works of these writers and developers of course should come. I am sure they might bring some signed books and bits of merch if we ask nicely.
How are the preparations going? It’s in July... Come on now! We prefer a more spontaneous feel....And we did it off the cuff in January and it was fab. I don’t like
panels that are too rehearsed - the ad-hoc and unexpected comments are usually the best bits! I also hope we get some good questions from attendees too.
What do you hope will be the takeaway from the discussion? Great stories and characters that engage players don’t always require great big budgets, but they do require intention, motivation and people to learn how to or have the environment around them that can channel their own greatness. The panel will help people understand how to channel that within themselves, their game studios and their games. And officially according to the Develop website the key takeaways will be: Ways to create story-based games on a budget; Techniques to develop characters in games; Opportunities and challenges of taking stories into different media.
You’ll be at Develop for the duration, one hopes. Are there any other presentations you’ll be hoping to see while you’re there? Looking forward to the Develop Star Awards because Game Republic has been nominated and shortlisted which is just fantastic news! And I am looking forward to learning lots at ‘Supporting Indies and Creativity in Game Development’ with Sony on Tuesday morning and BAFTA Games: How We Can All Level the Playing Field on Wednesday and No More Boom and Bust: How to Empower Inclusive, sustainable businesses with the brilliant Gina Jackson OBE amongst others on it - to be honest there is a lot of good content this year!
Finally, what are your hopes and expectations for this year’s Develop - what would make it a successful conference for you? Last year was a great event, lovely seeing everyone, seeing some great panels, roundtables and inspiring talks, seeing the expo, the fundraising event for SpecialEffect by Simon Barratt was awesome and the Games
Industry.biz party on the pier was fab. The sun shone, the bar was busy and there was ice cream. What more is there? I am hoping for the same again.
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