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Tim Gerritsen and the other execs at new studio Big Rooster have been discussing the strategy behind their new operation with the Wisconsin State Journal, revealing that the team plans to focus on outsourcing and contract work to survive as an independent studio.
The founding of Big Rooster was announced two weeks ago, lead by Tim Gerritsen, the former president and CEO of Human Head, which made Take 2’s game Prey. He’s teamed up with other former Human Head staff Rowan Atalla and Jeff Dewitt (art and animation gurus) and former id man Jason Blochawiak, to open the new outfit in Madison, Wisconsin, USA.
The studio already has a deal for one title, Talisman for PS3, PC and 360 which is based on the Games Workshop board game. Talisman is due by the end of the year.
To make sure the game hits its deadline – and to make sure Big Rooster can cut it as an independent – the team explained that it will be employing other studios and outsourcing firms to aid production.
"It’s not just that we’ve been doing this for a long time, but that we’ve actively thought about how we want to go about the whole process of designing games," says Blochowiak.
Big Rooster has signed up Oregon-based Liquid Entertainment and Streamline Studios in Amsterdam to help with Talisman, choosing to use the contract/freelance model over traditional games development. This will give the studio an edge when it comes to helping games compete with other media, added Gerritsen:
"We’re an entertainment company. We’re competing with people who are going to see movies, buying DVDs, going to baseball games. We’re competing for that entertainment dollar. We’re trying to find ways to get people excited with something fresh."
