The Past, Present & Future of Computer Games Development Nick Burton, Rare / MGS

1. The Past, Present & Future of Computer Games Development Nick Burton, Rare / MGS University of Nottingham 8th of March 2007

2. So what's this all about? • An overview of the computer games industry, where it came from and where it’s heading • Plenty of time for questions at the end • Your chance to find out more!

3. Who are we? • Personally worked in the game industry for 9 years as a software engineer for Rare • 98+ million games sold • 22 years’ games industry experience • Developed for 12 different platforms • Acquired by Microsoft Game Studios in 2002 • Over 200 employees

4. A Brief History Lesson • Space War - First computer game, 1962, First coin operated version 1970 • Pong – First commercial success, 1973 • Rise and Fall of arcades • Rise of Home gaming • Rise of Mobile gaming • Web 2.0 and gaming • Gaming has grown up into a real entertainment business • 110 Million PS2s in the world • 12 Million Xbox 360’s • Games now an accepted art form

5. Growth over the last 30+ years • Pong generated an estimated $3.2 million income in 1973 for $500 initial investment • In 1997 US games industry was worth $4.7 billion • In 2005 US games industry was worth $20+ billion • Average year on year growth is 19% • Shift from arcades to home gaming over that last 15+ years • In 2004 Halo 2 generated more than $125 million in its first day on sale • To date Halo 2 has sold more than 7 million units • Biggest names in the business Microsoft, Sony, EA, Nintendo

6. Industry Model • The Customer • The Retailer • The Distributor • The Publisher • The Platform Holder • The Developer • Investment (venture capital etc.) banks don’t like developers • Current Trends (consolidation etc.) • Nothing like the movie, music or TV industries

7. It’s a roundabout • The industry is cyclical • Every 5 to 7 years a new generation of consoles arrives • A particular console’s popularity follows a curve during its life hitting a high point around 2/3 though its life cycle • As popularity of a specific console format is dwindling a successor is waiting in the wings • Computing power is ever increasing

8. Getting a product to market • 20 to 100 people 2+ years work, that’s at least 40 man years • $4 to $10 million in production costs on average across the industry, but can be more • Product Testing • Focus Group Testing • Marketing • External Market forces • Censorship and TCR issues • Hitting a moving target – the bar is continually rising

9. Misconceptions • Not all games are a financial success, for every hit 20 titles fail • Game developers don’t all drive Ferraris • It’s not the boom or bust industry of 20 years ago • Game developers are not out to corrupt your children • Game developers are responsible, well organised software developers • Games are not written by one person in a bedroom anymore • The most popular console is not always the most profitable for a developer to work on

10. The Future… • The Challenges; • Richer experience • Lower Development Costs • Longer Product Shelf Life • Growing Talent • Empowering the Player/User • YouTube, Flickr, Wikipedia et al, can Web 2.0 be applied to games? • Make better Developers and expand the industry • MS-XNA, the start of a vision • Next Generation of Consoles, 2011? • Will consoles converge with PCs or other devices

11. Questions? www.rareware.com