games industry insights - devcom podcast

Working in the games industry is a dream for many. But such a dream can quickly become a burden. If the pressure at work isn't already hard enough, living in a pandemic is an additional burden. It is therefore particularly important to recognize the first signs of mental illness. Our host Lars Jansen talks about this with Andy Barker and Brian Cooley from Mind Fitness.

Today it is really easy to release a game. But the number of competitors is immense and you need attention to sell your game. So good PR is important. In this episode Liana Murphy, Chief Operating Officer at Vicarious PR, joins us and we talk about PR for video games and about the changes that take place.

Most of you will probably remember your first VR moment – but the challenge often lies in getting people back after the initial “wow factor”. Alex Silkin, Co-Founder and CTO at Survios, has been working in the field of virtual reality for about a decade and has certainly helped to push the boundaries of what’s possible, thereby defining the VR experiences of today. Alex and our host Lars Janssen will take a look at the evolution of VR hardware and what game designers have learned in recent years, so you can take away some valuable insights for your own VR project or simply feed your curiosity.

There’s a controversial set of topics everyone – not only in the games industry – seems to be talking about at the moment: blockchain, crypto, and NFTs. Oftentimes using all these terms synonymously, some think it’s going to revolutionize our industry, others condemn it as the biggest plague since the beginning of time. As always, reality is more complex than black or white, so we thought it makes senses to lift the curtain a little and take a look behind the scenes. I’ll be talking to two guests from the German online games company CipSoft today – Stephan Vogler and Ben Zuckerer, both Managing Directors at the company. They have recently done some substantial work with blockchain technology and can shed some light on the topic to help us understand the value for gaming as well as the boundaries

In this episode of "devcom podcast" our host Lars (he/him) welcomes Pauliina Törnqvist (she/her). Pauliina is producer for one of the biggest franchise in the gaming industry, "Call of Duty". She talks about her journey through the industry starting from her home country Finland over Germany to USA and give us some insights about her colourful history in the industry.

Code Coven is the first global games industry accelerator for underrepresented talent. Equality, diversity, and inclusion is embedded into their DNA. With Tara Mustapha (She/Her) and Karla Reyes (She/Her), Lars (He/Him) talks about what Code Coven offers to help marginalized developers succeed through the structured programs and further initiatives they offer. We also take a look at some exemplary stories of people they supported over the years.

Jess Mulligan and Don Daglow are online games pioneers with a combined total experience of over 80 years in making games. They both helped shape our industry as we know it today and in this special episode in advance of our devcom Developer Conference 2021, we talk about why they can call themselves "true citizens of online gaming". We take a look at their personal journeys and how online games in general and player expectations in particular have evolved over the past decades.

Mimimi Games at its core has been around for more than 10 years and is well-known for titles like Shadow Tactics or Desperados III. They recently won the German Computer Games Award for Best Studio 2021. In this episode, Founder & Managing Director Johannes Roth gives us some insights into the studio's journey and what they learned over the years to now be in a position to self-publish their latest project codenamed "Sweet Potato".

In this episode, we welcome Thomas Bidaux, CEO at ICO Partners. In a conversation with our host Lars Janssen, he shares his thoughts about the current state of crowdfunding and self-publishing. What has changed over the past few years? What do you need to know if you want to get your game funded? How do you self-publish within the current ecosystem? 00:00:00 Welcome 00:00:33 Introducing Thomas Bidaux 00:06:26 Moving from developing to coaching/consulting 00:09:52 What changed in crowdfunding 00:18:39 The importance of presentation in a crowdfunding campaign 00:28:02 Self-publishing is not scary (when is it the right thing?) 00:36:07 The new role of a publisher 00:40:35 Increase your chances to get a publisher 00:47:04 The perfect platform for your game 00:50:00 It's all about influencers?! 00:53:10 Create a perfect company culture 01:03:46 Changes in hiring after the pandemic 01:11:09 Working as a board member for Women in Games 01:14:34 Goodbye

Shaun Rutland is the CEO and Co-Founder of Hutch Games Ltd. After more than five years working for PlayStation at Sony, he left the company to found his own. In this episode, our host Lars Janssen talks with Shaun about the risks and the challenges of setting up a new company and making the switch from being a developer to becoming a CEO.

In this episode, our host Lars Janssen talks to Gerard Whelan, David O´Connor and Christian Fonnesbech from Leverage about building brands and IPs for games – an important aspect of game development that sometimes gets ignored. Our guests will share some insights into the differences between a brand and an IP and why they are especially important for a indie studios. 00:00:00 Welcome 00:00:40 Introduction of the Leverage team 00:06:16 Why is building an IP so important? 00:13:53 The difference between a brand and an IP 00:18:12 Bringing the process to developers and the associated challenges 00:22:50 Creativity that helps build a brand 00:27:08 Experience with hiring a brand agency 00:33:29 Definition of a brand 00:39:41 The luck trap 00:41:49 An IP needs a character 00:45:26 How can a small indie developer build a brand? 00:52:17 Moving from brand to IP 00:59:36 Goodbye

This special episode is part of the "devcom Tech & tools Summit" and we have a full house. Lars welcomes Tanya X. Short (Captain of Kitfox Games), Andrzej Wójcicki (Adavio.it), Christoffer Holmgård (CEO of modl.ai) and Niels Justesen (AI Researcher at modl.ai). The perfect round to talk about AI and how it can be used in video games. They also dive into the research process and tell us a bit about the "Bot Bowl", a competition where you can submit bots that compete in the board game "Blood Bowl".

In this episode, our host Lars Janssen welcomes two guests: Siggi Árnason, the founder of VIBE Mobile, a new music platform that allows you to create your musical identity through sound and visuals without the requirement of a musical background whatsoever, and Dr. Lyubomyr Matsekh, Business Development Manager for ELEKS and Project Manager for various projects like the Center of Entrepreneurship at the University of Reutlingen. With both guests, Lars talks about gamification, leadership, Serious Games, and entrepreneurship.

Today, our host Lars Janssen welcomes Robin Gray. Robin is the Co-Founder of Gray Jones Media, a fast growing LGBTQ media company that produces high-quality LGBTQ content via TV, online magazines, podcasts, and live events. They talk about the idea behind this company and about Robin's other important projects like the work as an ambassador for "Safe In Our World".

In this episode of the devcom podcast, our host Lars Janssen welcomes Gundolf S. Freyermuth and Björn Bartholdy, two key people behind the success of the Cologne Game Lab. The institute has just celebrated its 10th anniversary and we take a look at the history and how the team managed to build the Cologne Game Lab into one of the most renowned places of teaching and research in the games industry. They won the "Best Serious Game"-Award with their game "Welten der Werkstoffe" at the "Der deutsche Computerspielpreis" in 2021. 00:00:15 Welcome 00:00:58 Introduction of Gundolf Freyermuth and Bjoern Bartholdy 00:02:48 Founding the Cologne Game Lab 00:07:01 Convincing the investors 00:08:57 Getting students for a new program 00:10:54 Moving forward with the bachelor program 00:14:29 The accessment process 00:17:01 The different programs 00:18:22 The diversity at the Cologne Game Lab 00:24:25 Entrepeneurship 00:30:19 Research projects 00:41:36 Eliminating the boundaries 00:45:20 The "Clash of Realities" Conference 00:51:30 A look into the future 00:54:59 Goodbye

In our latest episode of the devcom podcast, our host Lars Janssen welcomes Uri Marchand, CEO and Co-Founder of Overwolf. Overwolf is the leading platform for in-game apps and mods. Uri and Lars are talking about how it all started in 2010, the main idea behind the platform, how it has evolved in recent years, and the role of user-generated content in general.

In this episode of the devcom podcast, our host Lars speaks with Chris Cataldi, Co-Founder and COO at Genvid Technologies. Chris offers us a view into the techniques and development of interactive streaming. He also shares some insights into their massive interactive live event "Rival Peak" that just finished its first season on Facebook. So, let's dive into an interesting conversation about viewer participation and AI-driven games. 00:00:15 Welcome 00:00:50 Introduction Chris Cataldi 00:03:13 Talking about Genvid the importance of interactive streaming 00:06:55 The Level of interaction for players 00:12:29 The possibilties and challenges of the live play experience 00:17:55 Influence into the game 00:26:10 Talking about the technology 00:38:40 Rival Peak and the next steps 01:02:02 The connection between AI driven games and classic games 01:14:25 Goodbye

In this episode of "devcom podcast", Lars talks to Matias Myllyrinne, CEO at Redhill Games. Matias originally started in the games industry with little experience at Remedy in 1999, moving on to Wargaming and then, in 2018, founded his own studio. He talks about his journey, why you would risk a safe job and move to video games, and how to lead through difficult situations like, for instance, a global pandemic.

Safe in our World is an organisation that creates and foster worldwide mental health awareness within the video game industry. About this important topic our host Lars Janssen speaks with Ellie Osili-Wood, a video games presenter and journalist, and has been named as one of the most influential women in gaming. She is one of the patrons. Patrons are vital to the charity, and help define our output and leverage support from within the industry. And Samantha Ebelthite, country manager for UK&I at Electronic Arts. Also part of this cast is Matt Murphy, CEO of Genba Digital and one of the nine trustees of Safe in our World. The Trustees of Safe in Our World are a responsible group of leaders dedicated to management and administration.

Devcom podcast presents you a special episode with our host Lars Janssen. Today we welcome Felicia Prehn to talk about "decades of managing divers communities". With over 17 years of experience Felicia gives as a lot of insights into community management. Felicia is also the keynote speaker of the "call for change conferece". 00:00:15 - Welcome 00:01:11 - Introduction Felica Prehn 00:02:49 - Becoming as a non-estonian a estonian radio host 00:07:53 - What did you learned as beeing a community manager 00:10:05 - Managing different communities 00:14:20 - How to: don´t loose your sanity - Part 1 00:16:51 - Several ways of handling toxic community members 00:21:41 - How to: don´t loose your sanity - Part 2 00:24:47 - Recognizing warning signs 00:30:10 - The right time to intervine 00:40:02 - The difference of games communities 00:46:05 - Mixing the parts of a producer and a community manager in a project 00:47:42 - The imporatance of community management as a part of the game developing 00:53:45 - Building up a international community management team 01:01:47 - The pace of change 01:05:08 - Good bye