Organisations in gaming and how that can be organised.

1. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Video Game Industry

2. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Organise the following companies…

3. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
A. Or ‘the audience’ - anyone that buys, plays, downloads games.
B. These are companies that are responsible for the marketing and distribution of
the game.
C. Games are created by development studios comprised of software engineers,
artists and programmers who write the code, create the structure and animate
the game making them playable for gamers. It’s these developers that are
perceived as the ‘talent’ in the industry.
D.These companies work with retailers (shops, online) to make product available
for the consumers to purchase. In the games industry the Publisher usually
handles the distribution.
E. The companies that make the machines games are played on, e.g. games
consoles, that games are played on –specifically Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo and,
now that mobile phone based platforms are emerging, companies such as Nokia.

4. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Games are created by development studios comprised of software engineers, artists
and programmers who write the code, create the structure and animate the game
making them playable for gamers. It’s these developers that are perceived as the
‘talent’ in the industry.
These are companies that are responsible for the marketing and distribution of the
game.
The companies that make the machines games are played on, e.g. games consoles,
that games are played on –specifically Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo and, now that
mobile phone based platforms are emerging, companies such as Nokia.
A distributor works with retailers (shops, online) to make product available for the
consumers to purchase. In the games industry the Publisher usually handles the
distribution.
Or ‘the audience’ - anyone that buys, plays, downloads games.

5. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.

6. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.

7. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.

8. Vertical Integration
Conglomerates…
Console
Manufacturer
Games
Developer
Games
Publisher
Games
Developer
Horizontal Integration
Where a
parent
company
owns several
companies at
different
stages of the
game
industry.
Where a parent company owns multiple companies
at the same stage of the game industry.
Games
Developer
To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.

9. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Bethesda Softworks is a publisher
Games developers

10. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Developer, distributor and publisher
Developer, distributor and publisher
Developer and publisher

11. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Console/Computer
Manufacturer
Developer and Publisher
17 game development studios
Second/Third Party

12. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Parent Subsidiary

13. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Swallowtail Games are the creators behind Tick Tock Toys.
The company was founded by Sophia George, a graduate in Games
Art and Design from the Norwich University of the Arts.
They are an excellent example of the opposite end of the conglomerates that
dominate the industry. These independent startups are becoming more and
more frequent.
Whilst these companies do not have the
resources or revenue of the larger
conglomerates, they still manage to
produce innovative and entertaining games.

14. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.

15. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.

16. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.

17. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Rockstar Games is a games developer and publisher, whose main offices
are in New York City. However, they have multiple studios around the
world, each responsible for developing different games on varying
platforms.

18. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Frontier was founded in 1994 by David Braben and is one of the UK’s longest running
game developers. It is a good example of a medium size development company in the
UK. It employs 230 staff and is lead by their CEO David Braben. He is supported by a
board of two non-executive directors and three officers.
The company has its main headquarters in Cambridge, UK, but also a development
studio in Halifax, Canada. Their work is spread between these two locations.
Frontier works with a number of external publishers to deliver their games to market,
but have also recently been self-publishing titles on digital distribution channels on the
major gaming platforms, allowing them greater access to the games market.

19. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Frontier also develop their own technology, specifically COBRA. These
cutting edge techniques and tools help develop innovative, multi-platform
gameplay. Their engine allows for their games to be
developed on PC but be accessible on PS3, XBox 360, iOS and
Nintendo WiiU. This vastly improves their ability to quality assure and
then publish games.
Frontier produce a variety of games for a
multitude of platforms, from the award
winning platformer ‘Lostwinds’ (iPad,
iPod, iPhone), to the simulator ‘Zoo
Tycoon’, a leading title on Xbox and the
hotly anticipated multi-player space
simulator ‘Elite: Dangerous’ (PC), which
recently won the Best of E3 award.
To date they have developed nearly 20
titles across all platforms.

20. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Frontier are currently developing their external relationships, especially with
Microsoft, where they are developing in-house titles for the Xbox, including
exclusive releases of Zoo Tycoon for Xbox One.
They have also worked in conjunction with Disney to develop ‘Disneyland
Adventures’ for use with Kinect. This is just one of the titles that can be used with
Kinect, showing how Frontier are developing a specialty for motion sensor based
gaming aimed at families and young children.

21. To understand the different organisational structures in the games industry.
Research three companies to illustrate the different
types of companies you can get in the games
industry. You must include details of the following…
• The structure of the company
• The number of people they employ
• How much revenue they earn
• Where this revenue comes from
• Locations they have offices in
• Subsidiaries they own
• What types of game they produce

22. What platforms do UK studios work on?