Whats a AAA title? And how do I produce it differently?

The short answer to the second question is, you don't. I would be more concerned with team size, then the visibility of the product. Of course with a larger team here will be communication issues and multiple status reports. A friend of mine was the Producer on a title that had 150 people. He came to the product late so its hard to turn a ship away from the brink but I doubt he did anything significantly different then he would with a small team.

He did tell me that every morning was filled with status meetings and so he felt he only did he job after lunch and, yes, on weekends.

When I was at SEGA we were never told our sales figures. We knew we had a hit from all of the talk about sequels and the number of press requests, but no one at the producer level knew the exact figures. It wasn't until I left SEGA that the developer thanked me for working on Taz because it had sold over 500,000 copies, for a system, the GameGear, that only had 1.1 million units in the market. But had I known I was working on a hit, would I have done anything differently? No.

The process is the same if its a hit or something you HOPE is a hit. The process changes only slightly when the team sizes grows beyond what a weekly full team meeting can handle. the pipelines are the same, the marketing demands are the same, (until it hits the market and everyone goes nut for it and you), the deadlines are the same.

That last point is the big one, the deadlines don't change if you're working on A or AAA title. And if you work for a small developer I think you would agree that from a cash flow perspective, you HAVE to hit your dates all along, not just the final ship date.

So my premise is simple, I don't think you do anything procedurally different, but there will be changes due to the scale of the project.

What do you think?

Mac

READ MORE - Whats a AAA title? And how do I produce it differently?

GDC sure has changed

I kinda remember my first GDC, 1990 or 1991. It was in San Jose and at a little hotel next to the freeway. There wasn't an Expo and there weren't nearly as many people attending. I went to a few sessions, and then I went home to plan the next days schedule and go over what I had learned. I thought I was getting the full experience. I went there to learn and I did!

I was reading some random GDC blogs from this year, I didn't attend and I'll detail why later in this post, and I came across this quote in one long posting:

In my 10 years of going to GDC, I've had these objectives, and I'm sure others have as well. They include:

* Go to as many parties as possible
* Get as much swag as possible
* Have as many meetings as possible
* Get photographed with as many game luminaries as possible

And as I've ticked off these accomplishments, I don't feel the need to repeat or surpass them. It was really great to go to 11 parties in one night...

So really, this persons goal for 10 years was to go to parties? To get swag? Meetings OK there's a reason to go... and then to get her picture taken?

While it can be said that I am not a big party goer, I tend to talk to people I know and work the room as little as possible. But I thought GDC was about the sessions and making new contacts as well as reviving old ones.

Have I missed the boat? Has the E3 party vibe taken over GDC? For E3, I think this persons goals fit in perfectly, but at GDC? No.

I did not attend this year because I refuse to spend my own money on a ticket. If a company wants to pay, or if GDC hands me a Press Pass, great... but I can't see spending that much of my own money. I'm sure I'm missing out on some great sessions, but... how many of the "Go to as many parties as possible" crowd can one developer take?

Your comments?

Mac

READ MORE - GDC sure has changed

French and then what?

I found this story interesting. I wonder if this also applies to board games, since its actually much more likely that there would be a French version of a board game then a French version of a video game.

I have played a few board games that include instructions in several languages. Its fun to try to do some side-by-side translation. When Settlers of Catan first came out, it was published only in German. I was lucky to have been taught the game by some fluent German speakers.

What do you think, will this extend to board games? Does it really have an afect since it reads: "IF there is a French version available...", the "if" is the big part.

Your thoughts?

Mac

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"Too close to it"

A phrase I have heard a couple of times, I always smile when I do. My usual response is: "Of course I am, that's why you hired me... to get close to things and to evaluate them".

So how do you get "too close"?

I think that its used as an excuse to attempt to dismiss an opinion when there isn't a good counter to the argument. As a Producer, and usually put into the position to evaluate products, I am required to know it inside and out. As a matter of fact, I have been chastised a few times for NOT being close enough to a product.

When I was at SEGA even as an Associate Producer I was given the veto power on products. I was expected to play the game and give my intelligent feedback. If I had not gotten "to close" to GunStar Heroes, the product would not have been picked up by SEGA and it wouldn't have won Game of the Year and who knows what would have happened to the developer Treasure.

But how do you get close to it? Obviously the simple answer is to just play it. But I think you also have to play games LIKE the one you're evaling. What does this game bring to the table that changes the course of the genre, even if only slightly.

Someone once said, that you have to give the consumer something that is vastly superior to what they are already using to get them to switch. Maybe one of my readers can suggest who said that so I can give him credit where its due. The comment is very true in games.

Products to me must "move the circle". Let me explain what Imean by that. Lets say that Tomb Raider is the best third person title selling. Make that a point on a piece of paper, and then make a circle around that point with it being in the center. All games in that genre fit within that circle. If your game is to close to the center, its a clone, if its FAR outside of the circle then you're asking the consumer to learn to much.

What you want to hit is the line of that circle. So that some parts of your game are known, but some parts are new and innovative.

So get close to your games and lets see where they hit in the circle. Don't go for a clone, hit the LINE!

Your comments?

Mac

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Request for questions!

In 3 weeks I am planning a post to answer your questions about game development. Of course the first step is to poll for questions. Maybe these are questions you have, your company has, or a tough question you've already answered and you want to get the word out. I'll do my best to answer them as well as get some input from other industry professionals.

I'll also be posting some questions from my Producer 101 class.

Please email your questions to: Mac Senour at Faultline Studios

Ask away!

Mac

READ MORE - Request for questions!