Finding new ideas is best way to overcome UK development 'cost crisis' says Microsoft Game Studios head
Microsoft Game Studios' newly appointed boss Phil Spencer today offered advice to UK studios - saying that Britsoft independents should focus on creating new IP if they want to find ways to get around the cost crisis facing the country's games industry.
New ideas and potential franchises, he said, meant that publishers were more likely to invest - and if the new IPs don't attract publishers, they can still make money through digital distribution.
Spencer was talking as part of a panel discussion at the Westminster Media Forum for games today.
Looking back on Microsoft Game Studio's previous activity, he said "there are a number of Xbox franchises that came out of our work with UK studios. We're very proud of these." Specifically, Project Gotham Racing (Bizarre), Fable (Lionhead) and the various Rare-developed games.
However, when it comes to commissioning new games in Europe - something the firm wants to do (Spencer was previously head of MGS Europe, spearheading the group's growing presence in the territory) - it has to weight up cost matters. And the UK sometimes prices itself out of the market.
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"Today's video games are very expensive. Consequently when we look at new franchises we think in terms of three or four sequels - which means possibly a decade of development."
"The cost factors of where you might build these franchises has a big impact," said Spencer.
"There's no doubt about the talent in the UK industry. But our concern is how do you support the development of games here through all the costs. That's what we are struggling with."
He added: "When you think about the UK, you should think about IP creation - that will spur growth in the UK."
Spencer said UK studios could do well to learn from Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed, which was a prime example of an IP that was made locally in its territory and will only be developed there. It's a game that in many respects could only have been made by the Montreal team, given the way it utilises the teams creative strength and the studio's commercial benefits - the Quebec tax breaks.
"When I put myself in the shoes of a developer making new IP I would also look at new distribution methods, not just the traditional retail route."
This shows how far away people in other countries are from really understanding the real developemnt situation and history in this country. In fact I cannot believe I am reading what he says.
We used to have one of the highest outputs of original IP of any country in the industry until production costs went up and most of our UK owned publishers disappeared. The ideas are still here for new IP, it is just that the concept of producing own IP software has been such bad business for so long here that most experienced independent studios are loathed to be stupid enough to try it again with any great commitment, particularly on the bigger formats.
Please explain to Mr Spencer the following:
a. we are expensive to work with because our country is expensive to live in
b. it is easier to raise $10million VC in the States than it is to raise $1million in the UK, that is why we struggle with developing our own IP because we have no tradition of VC to the level required in our country on sepeculative investments such as game creation. Because of increasing prodction costs we can't easily get the game to a decent first playable without VC... and we can't raise the VC.
c. unfortunately we have virtually no british owned publishers left. The result of this is that the kind of IP that we used to design is no longer favoured in the market, US and Japanese style games are much more en vogue currently and also US companies would normally much rather work with US development companies, unless foreign development companies are substaintially cheaper, which we unfortunately cannot be (please see point a)
d. when you own an independent studio it is you who has to pay the bills, not Bill Gates... the reason we do not make new IPs is because we are scared that it will destroy us financially, not because we have no original ideas or new IPs
