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Harnessing Global Talent to Create Winning Games
To order this title, and for more information, click here
By
Tim Fields, Tim Fields has spent more than 15 years developing games for some of the world's top publishers (EA, Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo). He has
designed and produced titles in most major genres and has lectured on topics from AI to team management. Currently, Tim manages six different
teams spread across five countries, working to create the next versions of top game franchises: Need for Speed, SSX, Brute Force, Jack
Nicklaus Golf.
Description
Game companies have started using a highly distributed development model involving use of creative terms to work on portions
of games, and then compiling at the home company. Game industry veteran Tim Fields teaches video game producers and directors how to
challenge conventional wisdom and make use of this model by working collaboratively in teams.
Fields interviews a broad spectrum
of people in the industry, from producers at top game publishers, to small business owners in the US and UK. These subjects have a wealth
of hard-earned experience in different facets of distributed development, and their stories provide a fascinating goldmine of information
and insight.
Game Producers and Directors will learn just how to find the best people for any job, and work with them to make
successful games, using a distributed development model.
A supplementary web site provides filmed interviews from the book, a
forum, and additional tips and tricks.
Audience
Primary: Video Game Producers, Directors, Project Managers, Company Leaders. Secondary: Students of Game Design & Production
Level: Beginner to Intermediate.
Contents
Distributed Game Development
Introduction
i. Overview
ii. Who is this document for?
Preamble on Distributed Development
i.
Why would you have distributed development?
ii. Who we will meet in our case studies, and why we care about what they have to say.
Chapter 1: Organizing Your Teams
i. Types of Distributed Collaboration: How to Know what you need
ii. How to pick external
collaborators
a. INTERVIEW: Fay Griffith - Head of outsourcing and external development, Electronic Arts. On How to Select Partners
iii.
How to pick an external team
iv. Insourcing
v. Roles & Responsibilities
a. INTERVIEW: Sergio Rosas - Studio Head CGBot,
Monterrey Mexico. On Tailoring Creation Teams for Different Clients
vi. Subcontractors
vii. Quality Assurance
viii. Localization
ix.
Infrastructure
x. The contract and other legal issues
xi. Failure Study: When the Organization phase went wrong.
Chapter
2: Getting off on the right foot
i. Defining project parameters
1. Scheduling Goals, Techniques, Milestones
ii. Make sure you
have a shared vision.
a. INTERVIEW: Bill Byrne - Freelance Motion Graphics Editor. Setting project tone through visuals.
iii. Kickoff
Meetings
iv. Scheduling Types & Tactics
1. SCRUM/AGILE vs. WATERFALL
a. INTERVIEW: Everett Lee - Producer, Sony Entertainment.
?How to lead great teams through more agile planning.
v. Failure Study: When the schedule is wrong.
vi. Failure Study: When your
vision is clouded.
Chapter 3: Maintaining the organism
i. Establishing & Maintaining Trust
a. INTERVIEW: Kyle Clark
- VP Production, ReelFX. Delivering content to spec for motion pictures & television.
ii. Progress Checkpoints
iii. Milestones
iv.
How to deal with product goal or design changes
a. INTERVIEW: Rhett Bennatt - Project Manager, Aspyre Entertainment. Nimble projects
for maximum profits.
v. Cross Pollination
vi. Finaling and product submission
vii. Planning for your next date
viii. Failure
Study: Feature Creep and the carnival of design changes.
Chapter 4: Site Visits
i. Site visits
ii. Who to send & why
iii.
When to go?
a. INTERVIEW: Michael Wyman - Founder, Big Splash Entertainment. Distributed development for Casual Games.
iv. Representing
your company and the project while on site.
v. Communication
vi. Language barriers
vii. Dealing with distractions
viii.
Cultural Differences
a. INTERVIEW: Frank Klier - Senior Technical Director, Microsoft. Coordinating technical solutions across cultural
boundaries.
ix. Regional Conditions
x. Helpful Tools for staying in touch with home base
xi. Failure Study: What happens when
communication between home base and the field goes awry.
Chapter 5: Common Situations
i. Hot Potato Projects
a. INTERVIEW:
Mark Greenshields - President, Firebrand Games. Delivering quality products on time.
ii. Crisis Management
iii. The constantly
moving target
iv. Bug Counts / Defect management
v. Localization
vi. Central Content Teams
vii. Central Tech Groups
viii.
Sense of Urgency
a. INTERVIEW: Dave Hawkins - Managing Director, Exient LTD. How to select projects for your development team.
ix.
Failure Case: When the bugs eat you.
Conclusions:
i. Wrapping it up
ii. What the future holds
iii. Where to get more
information
iv. Helpful templates
| Bibliographic details |
Paperback, 240 pages, publication date: APR-2010
ISBN-13: 978-0-240-81271-7
Imprint: FOCAL PRESS
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| Price and Ordering |
Price:
EUR 32.95
USD 44.95
GBP 27.99
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Last update: 6 Nov 2009
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