This week, we’re looking at external development on GamesIndustry.biz, spotlighting the hardworking studios that often have a major hand in designing some of the world’s biggest games, but that rarely get to take a bow in the limelight.
External development is a big topic, encompassing everything from co-development to asset creation to engine support, along with much more besides, and it’s beyond the scope of a single week to cover every single aspect. Nevertheless, we have aimed to highlight a range of broad themes that apply to many companies and individuals in the space, including balancing work-for-hire projects against creating original IP, as well as the importance of building trust with clients.
The games industry has been undergoing an unprecedented transformation over the past few years, with thousands of job losses at the biggest companies in the wake of spiralling budgets and tumbling profit margins. External development has often been cited as the future – a more sustainable alternative to hiring huge internal development teams who later find themselves at risk of redundancy once a big game has shipped and there’s little left for them to do. But how does this ideal measure up to reality? And what does the future hold?
That’s the first question we’re asking in our week of content, where senior figures from various external development companies suggest how the future might play out – including what a movie-style production process would look like.
ExDev Week features will be appearing every day this week (and our regular reporting will continue to appear on the GamesIndustry.biz homepage). We welcome feedback: you can contact the editorial team at [email protected].
