All About the Industry! Amanda Chaffin Ph. D. Student

2 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Game Delivery What are the steps that you need to be aware of? Who do you need to know?

3 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Product Path for a Console Game

4 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Game Developers Categorizations Independent 2D Boy ~ World of Goo Introversion Software ~ Darwinia Media Molecule – Little Big Planet Subsidiary of a Publisher EA

EA Subsidiaries EA Criterion Games ~ Burnout Mythic Entertainment ~ Dark Age of Camelot Bioware ~ Baldur’s Gate, NWN, Mass Effect EA SportsEA TiburonEA CanadaEA NC 5 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin

Game Funding PopCap Take-Two Interactive (Rockstar) Ubisoft (Red Storm) Publishers Square Enix Epic Games In-House/Self Funding Private capital, usually for stock/ownership options Venture Capital Mostly used in film but getting to the game industry Completion Bond Funding Rich associates willing to put up the $ Angel Financing 6 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin

7 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Console Game - $50 Hours Played – 100 $0.50 Entertainment per Hour - Priceless AmountPurposePaid ByPaid To $3Cost of goodsPublisherMedia manufacturer $7Publishing license royaltyPublisherPlatform holder $13Retailer profitConsumerRetailer $3Markdown reservePublisherRetailer $8Development costPublisherDeveloper $10Operating costPublisherInternal (overhead, freight, co-op, bad debt) $6MarketingPublisherAd agencies and media Items in bold can be converted to profit through careful publisher cost management.

Service Providers Motion Capture House of Moves Games - Everquest II, Tekken III Movies - Spiderman 1 and 2 Music Video - "Ghosts" by Michael Jackson Art and Animation BoxxStudios 3D Creation Studio QA Ishir Absolute Quality Recreate Solutions Audio Game Audio LTD Twisted Metal Head On Spyro: A Hero’s Tale 3Peak Audio Rock Solid Arcade Evolution Vault PR Firms Triple Point EA SpilGames 2XL Games 8 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin

9 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Platform Holders Revenue comes from: Hardware sales Licensing fees from compatible peripherals First-party games Licensing fees from third-party games Licensing fees from development tools Sales of proprietary delivery media

10 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin PC – Open Platform Intersecting relationships among: CPU manufacturers, application software providers, graphics chip manufacturers, box assemblers CPU and graphics card manufacturers provide developer support, direct marketing Application software providers give developers free toolsBox manufacturers may bundle hot software titlesLow barrier entry, high shelf space competition

11 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Console – Closed Platform Console companies (Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft) control most games on their platforms Proprietary development hardware and software Have to be a licensed publisher License to use console company trademarks in marketing May require permission to start game Certification of finished game Investment in hardware must be offset by revenue from software (around $7/unit for third-party games)

12 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Discussion Compare and contrast the benefits of Open Platform development vs. Closed Platform development.

Manufacturing/Distribution Disk based except for Game Boy DS Not always needed (Steam delivered) Manufacturing Buy from publisher Some companies will not buy direct so a distributer is needed 3% margin on sales Distribution 13 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin

14 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Retail Contracted sales personnel to retail for publisher Manufacturer’ Representative Survives with knowledge and service Regional Retailers Blockbuster Hollywood Video Rental Retailers

15 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin National Retailers In store merchandizing (posters, standees, box fronts) Product placement, aka what shelf the game is on Inventory Crazy amount of power because of direct relationships and control that retailer has Direct shipment to location Generous sales terms (average net 60) Excellent inventory management Some perks include meals, game tickets, etc…unless you deal with WalMart Good aspects include

16 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Discussion Make a list of descriptors for each of the three game companies below… Genre Game names Connotations associated w/ the company

17 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Summary Entities in video game industry haven’t changed much in 30 years However, flow of money (ergo, balance of power) shifted greatly Balance of power will shifts every time a next-generation consoles are released

18 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Content Regulation A brief study of American historyESRB RatingsForeign Content Regulation

19 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin American History on Censorship First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (1971): “Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech…” Legal basis for American speech protection Fourteenth Amendment (1968) extended the First Amendment to states and localities “No State shall make … any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive … any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” U.S. Supreme Court ultimate interpreter of free speech rights

20 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Free Speech Standards Appeals to prurient interest in sex Portrays sexual conduct in patently offensive way Does not have serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value Sexually obscene expression can be censored only if the material, taken as a whole: A higher degree of constitutional protection Violent but not sexually explicit expression subject to “strict scrutiny” by the courts

21 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Video Games in Congress Senate hearings in early 1990s showed public concern for the emerging violent and sexual nature of video games reaching children Harm to children was assumed Rather than substantiated by experts who testified Hearings carried an implicit threat of content regulation if children were not protected

22 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Discussion How does video game regulation differ from regulation of books, arts, and movies?

23 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Self Regulation Following hearings, major game companies formed Entertainment Software Association To devise industry standards To create lobbying and public relations programs to deal with censorship threat Electronic Software Rating Board (ESRB) formed To develop and enforce voluntary video game ratings based upon the model of the Motion Picture Association of America

ESRB Ratings 3 and older – Contains no material that parents would find inappropriate EC (Early Childhood) 6 and older – Minimal cartoon, fantasy or mild violence and/or infrequent use of mild language E (Everyone) 10 and older – Cartoon, fantasy or mild violence, mild language, and/or minimal suggestive themes E10+ (Everyone 10+) 13 and older – Violent content, infrequent strong language, and/or suggestive themes T (Teen) 17 and older – Mature sexual themes, more intense violence and/or strong language M (Mature) Content suitable only for adults – not intended for under 18 Graphic depictions of sex and/or violence AO (Adults Only) Has been submitted to the ESRB and is awaiting final rating RP (Rating Pending) 24 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin

25 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin ESRB Descriptors In addition to codes, the ESRB has 32 “descriptors” to further inform Descriptors include: BLOOD AND GORE CARTOON VIOLENCE FANTASY VIOLENCE INTENSE VIOLENCE NUDITY SEXUAL VIOLENCE STRONG LYRICS STRONG SEXUAL CONTENT USE OF DRUGS USE OF TOBACCO

26 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Discussion Is private self regulation always preferable to government regulation? Is self regulation more suppressive than public controls?

27 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin ESRB Criticisms Voluntary system is too lenient and lacks effective penalties Voluntary system is too harsh and is a form of overbroad self censorship Ratings are incomplete and do not cover online-created content Ratings are ignored or misunderstood by target audience Publishers ignore ratings in marketing efforts

28 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin It’s for the Courts to Decide Courts differentiate between sexual and violent video game content, affording greater protection to violent content Early video game cases involved violence, newer games raise sexual content issues not yet decided by courts Courts have found lack of reliable support linking game violence with harm to children and have ruled in favor of video game makers

29 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Discussion Many games rely on user delivered content (Little Big Planet, Left 4 Dead, Counter Striker) and user delivered content is a good way to cut down on studio costs… How can you rate a game with user delivered content? Can you, the game developer, be held liable for user content?

30 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Foreign Content Regulation The U.S. First Amendment legal scheme evolved over 200 years and is unique among countries Other countries typically provide less protection to speech, particularly sexual or violence oriented speech The European Union, China and Australia enforce a rating system (but Australia does not have a +18 rating) Canadian game companies follow the ESRB ratings although they are not members

31 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin China and Greece Politically offensive Recognizes Tibet, Sinkiang, Manchuria, and Taiwan as independent countries – Hearts of Iron Smears “the image of China and the Chinese army” – Command & Conquer Generals China bans games that are 2002 attempted to ban all video games as subversive The law was deemed unconstitutional and since reversed Greece

32 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin German Index Nazi symbology or references High impact violence (so no blood) High impact cruelty Games are banned for Wolfenstein 3D – Nazi references Mortal Kombat – Violence and cruelty Banned Games

Top 10 Banned Games Banned in: Australia High impact violence 5. Dark Sector Banned in: United Arab Emirates High impact violence 4. Grand Theft Auto IV Banned in: Germany High impact violence 3. Condemned 2: Bloodshot Banned in: Australia Adult content 2. Sexy Poker Banned in: Saudi Arabia Cruelty and violence against Islamic soldiers 1. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 33 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Banned in: Australia High impact violence 10. Aliens Vs Predator Banned in: Japan Gory violence against Japanese soldiers 9. Call of Duty: World at War Banned in: India Depicts a 2 headed cow 8. Fallout 3 Banned in: Australia High impact violence 7. Left 4 Dead 2 Banned in: Singapore Cross species lesbian relations 6. Mass Effect

34 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin GDC Network, network, networkResume and Business cards are a mustDo your research and don’t be afraid to talk to peopleBe prepared to demo 30 seconds 60 seconds 2 minutes Be memorableClothing Casual and comfortable, especially shoes Be CLEAN!!!

35 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin GDC Parties Have your business cardsGame developers drink… And I mean DRINK Don’t try to hang if you can’t Go with friends…always But especially if you are going to drink Let people come to you, don’t force yourself on them – cool clothing works wellhttp://tinysubversions.com/effective-networking/

36 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Industry Prep Questions Given a rectangular (cuboidal) cake with a rectangular piece removed (any size or orientation), how would you cut the remainder of the cake into two equal halves with one straight cut of a knife ?

37 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Industry Prep Questions What is your reaction to this line of code? delete this;

38 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Industry Prep Questions main() { int c[ ]={2.8,3.4,4,6.7,5}; int j,*p=c,*q=c; for(j=0;j<5;j++) { printf(" %d ",*c); ++q; } for(j=0;j<5;j++){ printf(" %d ",*p); ++p; } }

39 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Industry Prep Questions What is wrong with the following code? void incrementBy7(int *p) { int * p1, p2; p1 = p; while(!(p2 = p1-7)) { ++p2; ++(*p2); }

40 ~ 1/8/2016Amanda Chaffin Questions? Thank you for listening. Amanda Chaffin Ph. D. Student UNC Charlotte