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World of Goo Dev Wants Big Publishers To Build Indie Teams
Ron Carmel, co-founder of game developer 2D Boy, which created the indie hit World of Goo, gave a speech at Montreal International Games Summit in which he encourages large game publishers to put more time and money into smaller, indie-like teams. Quoting GameSetWatch:
"'We need a medium-sized design studio. Something that is larger than a typical indie, but has the same propensity for of talent density, focus, and risk-taking,' said Carmel, formerly an employee of major publisher Electronic Arts prior to going independent. Notably, a focus on profit must be eliminated from the equation. 'Creating this within a major developer doesn't present a problem,' said Carmel. With a budget of $1-$2 million dollars, 10 staffers could be hired to work on 'creatively ambitious and forward-thinking projects.' He likened it to the automobile industry, which alongside its mainstream consumer products works on concept cars — few of which enter production as regular models. The concept car is, said Carmel, 'a marketing expense to build your brand, and say, "Look at all the amazing things we're creating."' It also helps with recruitment. Said Carmel, 'there's no reason the larger game companies can't do that.' He also said that developers must move away from the notion that a team comprised primarily of programmers and artists can create a great work. Why do Valve's games have such amazing environments? Because, said Carmel, 'Valve has architects on staff.'"
EA just reinvented the R&D department.
Extra Credits make a compelling case
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/extra-credits/1923-Innovation
The company doesn't invest in an existing indie game team. It creates a indie-like team with more of a focus on innovation than commercialization to serve as a foundation for new series, and gameplay paradigms.
Word of Goo was amazing, but the thing about small budget games is that you have to keep making them. You can't retire from your one hit wonder, although apparently you can segue into becoming an industry analyst.
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
Big publishers want devs to shut up and get back to work.
That said, many of the R&D departments at companies I've worked for are 0.56% R & 99.44% D.
Although I worked in the Advanced Development group for one company where all we did were prototypes and researchy projects. Some of them actually made it into product. I think that might be the exception though. Typically though that company bought its innovation and then we had to integrate it.
I think the lesson is: if you want to innovate, start your own company, starve for a while before you either go broke or get bought. That seems to be what World-o-Goo-guy seems to be saying too.
EA really didn't want Will Wright, Maxis and "The Sims" at first. He had to fight for it. Fortunately for teenage girls everywhere, it was a huge hit.
Spore would have been the next huge franchise, however EA got in the way and turned it into mush.
World of Goo could easily be a full franchise like The Sims, or Lemmings, but they're not going down that road, they want to innovate.
EA doesn't want to innovate, they just want "The Sims 4" now with extra add-on packs, so you can re-buy everything again.
if money is put to indie teams, those indie teams will get turned into just other manufactories for profit. and when they dont profit enough they will be shut down as divisions.
And then more money can be put into a new indie team - and the cycle repeats - Thats what he's saying.
The World of Goo dev isn't entirely against the big factory type churn out profits game development - he understands that it isn't going away.
All he's saying is that this small change in the structure will keep the gaming scene fresh - we won't get stagnated by Halo:umpteenmillion or Call of Duty over 9000. If they took a small amount of money that they spend on the bigger titles to help support the smaller shops, they essentially have an R&D Department that can give them a new product to manufacture when the big titles no longer sell.
What the industry has done for many years is buy a promising young studio and grind it into a fine paste. OP is proposing they create an environment in which innovation can flourish and design is paramount. Baby Apples and baby Valves. That environment is, by definition(?), a *rich* environment - that is to say free of the distraction of the bottom line. On the one hand they're killing the golden goose they just stumbled across. On the other they run a farm to raise geese and hope one of them starts laying golden eggs, too.