An introduction to the Game Industry
From Generalist to Specialist
For the purpose of this blog I will be looking into the Game Industry as a whole and further more looking into the specialised areas that are within it.
Game Industry Definition
The video game industry (often referred to as interactive entertainment) is the economic sector involved with the development, marketing and sale of video games. It encompasses dozens of job disciplines and employs thousands of people worldwide.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_industry
Some of the Game Industry Specialism’s
The game industry employs those experienced in other traditional businesses, but some have experience tailored to the game industry. For example, many recruiters target just game industry professionals. [Citation needed] Some of the disciplines specific to the game industry include: game programmer, game designer, level designer, game producer, game artist and game tester. Most of these professionals are employed by video game developers or video game publishers. However, many hobbyists also produce computer games and sell them commercially.[citation needed] Recently[when?] game developers have begun to employ those with extensive or long-term experience within the modding communities.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_industry
How are Video Games made?
Here is the sequence in which Video Games are generally made within the industry today.
1. Core Team
A group of people whom come up with the general concept of the game. Numerous meetings will occur in which the group brainstorms about the game; figuring out not only how it will look, but also how it will work. The core team is in charge of the production schedule as well, which describes the tasks each person is assigned and when they most do them.
2. Game Breakdown
Every detail, task, job, and deadline about the video game is broken down into components and then added to a bulletin board. This board acts as the nerve centre throughout the games production.
3. Artistic Concept
Artist’s sketch out the games characters & backgrounds with a very basic level of detail. These sketches are what the graphics artists use to create the characters and backgrounds in 3D on the computer.
4. Development Team
This team uses the latest in computer animation technology to bring life to all of the game's elements; adding colours, textures, shading, and even movement. This team uses the 3d characters and backgrounds created by the graphics team.
5. Programming & Engineering
This is the bread & butter of the game development stage; because without this part, there would be no game. Suffice it to say, the programmers & engineers make the game work. Their coding is what holds the game together and allows the player to actually play the game.
6. Testing
This is the final and most crucial part of the development process. This phase is to see if everything is working properly and as it should be. Testers will check for bugs and glitches and try to find potential problems.
The game testers won't merely be playing the game and seeing if problems will find them -- it's the other way around, as THEY will be the ones searching for the problems. The testers will do everything and anything possible in the game to ensure there is no abnormal situations or circumstances; walking through walls, disappearing, enemy AI problems, cinematic errors, you name it. If the testers miss ANYTHING, it could mean disastrous consequences -- in the form of profit loss -- for the company releasing the game.
http://ezinearticles.com/?How-Are-Video-Games-Made---The-Process-From-Start-to-Finish&id=1490898
Games companies are all trying to increase their sales via the online market nowadays and it’s becoming the norm to design games to be one player only, as in order to then play with friends you must tap into the online community. There are also a lot of game expansions that are primarily only available to buy and download online. Not only this but there is a convergence of media available now on the ‘big three’s’ consoles as the industry looks to expand into all areas of the media market. Films and TV shows are available to download online not to mention the ability to hire them and watch TV through your own system. As the industry grows it seems to want to take a percentage of the profits from the music and film industries respectively. This must mean that the industry will continue to grow and go from strength to strength.
Statistics
According to consulting firm Hudson Square Research (HSR), the video game industry’s recent surge has finally allowed it to catch up to the movie business on a global basis. Whereas the games industry surpassed this movie industry back in 2005 in America alone, as well as gaming surpassing the music industry in 2007
Analyst Daniel Ernst reports that in the past year, from March 2007 to March 2008, global video game (software) revenues grew 38%. Global software sales reached $26.5 billion, only slightly behind the film industry’s $26.7 billion. The rest of the year he anticipates global software revenues to climb another 31% to $34.6 billion. Hardware revenue, on the other hand, will see a 5% decline to $18.9 billion.
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