In recent times, almost every games studio has been forced to send their staff home and cease operating out of an office. This has caused many of them to become de facto ‘remote’ studios. However, there have been studios that have been primarily working remotely since well before it was required.
The relationship between game development and marketing can be a contentious one. Many times when a game gets a negative reaction from fans on release, the reason is as much about how the game was marketed than anything else. Making sure that the public’s expectations are aligned with reality is essential to the success of…
YouTube has emerged as one of the best ways for game developers to share how their games are made. And more importantly, how you can make them too. This list is not about the design of your game, rather how to develop your game. That is to say, the below channels are less likely to…
Any die-hard Trekkies out there should be familiar with the Scotty Principle, even if you haven’t heard it referred to as that. You may not, however, know how it can apply to game development. Read on and you can find out. But first, for the uninitiated… What is the Scotty Principle? The Scotty Principle (also…
Podcasts are my personal favorite way to learn new things and absorb information. Much to my girlfriend’s chagrin, I have them playing all the time. Including whenever I do chores around the house like washing the dishes or hanging the laundry. I find the long-form conversations podcasting encourages are the perfect venue to explore the…
At Tiny Hydra, we believe that Crunch should be avoided at all costs. With proper planning and vigilance, it can be in many cases. However, we recognize that disasters happen and even the best of intentions can’t always protect a game from last-minute upsets. Game engine updates break your code, global pandemics torpedo your best-laid…
A good quality education in game design has become more accessible than ever given the burgeoning array of physical courses as well as the emergence of many reputable online courses. The growing interest in game design has also facilitated the growth of informal educational channels on YouTube. Many of these channels can help you learn more…
Talking to people who are disillusioned by crunch, we hear about a scenario that is becoming more and more common. A game studio goes through an intensive period of crunch to release a game. Everyone pulls together, works hard, and manages to meet their deadline. A few weeks or months of relative calm ensues. And…
Reddit is a great place for game designers and developers to find a community with which they can share ideas, get inspiration, and even ask for help when they hit a roadblock. We decided to go looking for subreddits that we thought would be helpful with some aspect of game development, and it turns out…
Unions are few and far between in the games industry and as we have discussed in our breakdown of crunch, there are almost none that can halt the production of a triple A game. Most of the unions on this list are small and relatively new. Similarly, most only exist in one country, and therefore…
The process of looking for a new job in the games industry can be gruelling. Unless you’ve been lucky enough to make a name for yourself in the industry, the chances are that you will have to deal with rejections, promising leads that trail off and go nowhere, and of course, lots of interviews. Depending…
The popularity of video games has exploded in the last decade. Because of this, there is a greater variety of people playing games than ever before. To keep up with the demand for great games, the industry is growing at a breakneck pace. That means lots of new people entering the industry and lots of…