Comments on: Research for the Industry

By: BC

BC — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 17:45:00 +0000

I think Ben and Jane’s vehemenence is interesting. If we aren’t talking to developers, then to whom are we talking? Or phrased more provocatively, are we really only interested in engaging in intellectual masturbation?

Of course this is a (gross) over-simplification of their position.

It is worth asking Hopson to which kinds of research he was referring. Jane and Ian presented wonderful examples of applied research that would be immediately useful to game designers at last year’s GDC. So it does exist.

And there is a growing body of work surrounding deeper questions and philosophies of play. This form of research is more ‘out there’ to the developer. it doesn’t solve an immediate need. But it hopefully points to a larger trend that can be exploited by the vigilant or curious. Current designers and developers ignore it (at their peril) and this will result in Aubrey (meekly) leading the charge to claim the future of game design.

By: Jesper

Jesper — Sun, 03 Dec 2006 18:55:17 +0000

Clara, I agree. I don’t think the game industry is exactly dying (and every day I am happy about the good games I get to play).

It’s all part of the plan: It just takes a while for researchers to learn to speak a language that developers find useful, and it takes a while for developers to figure out when researchers are speaking to them.

By: Clara

Clara — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 05:58:17 +0000

There should certainly be more communication between academia and the industry, or else game studies will become as detached (and neglected) as film studies from the movie industry. We should start building the bridge right now, or else we will end up with a sad chasm between both areas. We (scholars) could try starting to talk to them for starters, because there are a few game designers/makers who are willing to listen. Dismissing the whole industry as dead and gone is as bad a move as pretending that academic research should be cheap R&D for the industry, in my opinion.

By: Jane McG

Jane McG — Fri, 24 Nov 2006 13:16:20 +0000

>>I feel as a games researcher that maybe I should publish an article entitled: ?We weren?t talking to You?…. I’m interested in talking to the ?game industry??s successors. >>

AMEN! I could not agree more.

By: Allen Sligar

Allen Sligar — Wed, 22 Nov 2006 19:35:37 +0000

I think perhaps the points been missed, from a nuts and bolts standpoint (business) executives want “value add” research.

In other industries this AND data are readily available, why should games research be any different?

Research grants get funded from companies who recieve the subsequent benifit of innovation in every social and hard science.

Its less about whos providing what value to whom and when, than it is about being abile to communicate your needs as a party to advancing the academic and business aspects of the same thing (games).

If you cannot communicate, they will fund someone else with grants who can, every experianced professor knows this. Its a two way street, executive need to understand the trends in the ivory tower just as much as academics need to understand the trends in business….

By: Aubrey

Aubrey — Mon, 20 Nov 2006 07:00:32 +0000

I am the meekest.

By: Jesper

Jesper — Sat, 18 Nov 2006 20:39:23 +0000

As I said, I don’t worry much about this. I wouldn’t expect the industry to wholeheartedly embrace academic research on games – and just the fact that industry publications have begun to mention academic research is a sign of progress.

Aubrey, does that mean that those who listen to academics are meek?

By: Aubrey

Aubrey — Sat, 18 Nov 2006 20:25:47 +0000

I’m an indie developer who has grown up listening to acadmics, rather than developers. It isn’t developers’ jobs to teach people (out side of their company). Most of the time, they’ll tell you about real technicalities, or simply embellish their most recent game’s selling points. They’re not great teachers.

Academics aren’t perfect at giving you what-you-need-to-know. But they’re not there for that, really. Learning to code, learning the tools of the trade, and learning about business and politics is up to each individual. Academics (I’ve found) force me to think a lot harder about the creative aspects of game design.

So I’m in agreement with Ben, and hoping that those who have listend to academics will inheret the earth.

By: Ben

Ben — Sat, 18 Nov 2006 11:11:49 +0000

I feel as a games researcher that maybe I should publish an article entitled: “We weren’t talking to You”. The games industry is dying, and MS games research can continue approving of sequels to clones of 10 year old games, I’m interested in talking to the “game industry”‘s successors.

By: Brook

Brook — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 17:32:40 +0000

I disagree with that article on a few points. But from the people I have spoken to in the industry I get the impression that they don’t understand the research side.