Enter the digital playground

Font Size

Print

Feedback

Email

Discuss

: as development cost. And they’re very high priced: $20-60 per game in the retail market. So, if there are not enough consumers for them, it doesn’t make sense to develop such games. Market development, therefore, is crucial.

Thriller film franchises, of course, are the obvious partnership deals to strike. But here, too, one should not assume that readymade character or concept fame via the silver screen will translate into success without any of a game’s own thrills. Global competition is high, and production is a stiff challenge. Top-class “epic” games can take a couple of years to make—the process is even more elaborate than a film, with animation software and special effects to go along with the game’s “script”. Game developers tend to be specialised units, such as Bungie Software (of Halo 3 fame), id Software and Ninja Theory. Microsoft is trying to create an “open ecosystem” by inviting gamers to develop games for its Xbox. The future is big. It is also a 21st century opportunity for Indian developers to combine Indian software development and entertainment industry skills to compete for the big money.