| Critical Mass Interactive's Answers to Some Frequently Asked Questions About the Game Industry |
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We receive a lot of email from people and people from magazines that want to learn more about us or the industry or games in general. We collected a few samples and put them here for your information and amusement. Click on any of the questions below to be taken to the answers. Enjoy!
Questions from email:
What got you into the video game design business?
Who or what inspired you to join the video game industry?
Where did you get your start?
Why did you think that you could get into the game industry?
Where did you attend school?
What classes/subjects should someone wanting this career focus on?
What were the classes you took in college that helped you obtain this job?
Did you ever want to switch careers in college because a class was too hard?
Do you recommend any good game schools?
What was your biggest challenge when you started?
What is the most enjoyable part of your job today?
What is your main objective everyday you come to work?
What was your most favorite project to do while working for Critical Mass Interactive?
Which of the games that you've ever worked on was your favorite?
What skills does a developer need to have to get a job in the industry?
Do you enjoy working with your coworkers?
How much do you enjoy your job?
What are some of your favorite aspects of game design?
What, if anything, do you dislike about being in this industry?
What is the average pay of someone in this industry?
How long have you been interested in game design?
What games are you currently working on?
What is your role in the gaming industry?
What do you think is the future of video game design?
Is there any additional information you feel a student needs?
What does your company do, and what is its mission?
Could you describe a typical day?
Would you suggest any specific academic areas or specific skills or knowledge that would be helpful in this industry?
What is a basic skill-set you seek in an applicant's portfolio?
How can I get my resume noticed?
With whom do you work – a team or individuals?
What motivates you or inspires you to do your work everyday?
What are major trends, changes or issues facing your industry that a game art and design major entering the field should be aware of?
Any final thoughts?
What keeps you motivated at your job?
What are you excited about?
What do you consider to be the big thing now, or in 5 years, or in 10 years?
What was the big thing when you started?
How is the subject of intellectual property in the video game industry different from that of, say, movies, music, or software applications?
Is intellectual property protection less of an issue for the video game industry than for other industries?
What is "virtual property?"
What kind of intellectual property litigation might a video game company face?
What intellectual property threats has your company faced?
How might this issue affect the Austin video game community?
Is the Austin video game community ahead of, with, or behind the curve on this issue?
What kind of changes do you see in intellectual property protection in the short term?
The long term?
When was Critical Mass Interactive founded?
How many employees does Critical Mass Interactive have?
Which programs does your company base most of its creations on?
Which Program do you think is easiest to use?
Questions from Gamecloud’s End of 2005 - Looking to 2006 Q&A Survey
Overall, what do you feel was the most significant thing that happened in 2005 in the video and PC game industry?
Other than games you worked on that were released this year, what video or PC game released in 2005 was your favorite and why?
What video or PC game that was released in 2005 that you played was the most disappointing and why?
As we look ahead to 2006, what video or PC game that is currently scheduled to be released that year are you most looking forward to and why?
What do you see are the big events and trends that will affect the video/PC game industry in 2006?
Finally, is there anything else you wish to say about the past year in games and/or the upcoming year in games?
Questions from Digital Media Management MBA Students at St. Edwards University from October 2007
What is the one piece of management advice you would give to me?
What do you know now that you wish you knew earlier in your career?
What do you think makes a great manager?
What is a brief synopsis of your background and entrance into the gaming industry (education, early work in the industry, reasons for being in this industry)?
How did the idea to form CMI come about and what were some hurdles and early successes that helped shape CMI into what it is today?
As President and Business Developer Manager, what are typical ‘duties’ of your role at CMI?
How do you see the business model (contracting, outsourcing) of CMI aiding in the success of your company? What issues does CMI face today?
Who handles finding and licensing content to include in games CMI is developing? Is CMI pursuing licenses with film companies to develop games based on films, or films based on games you are developing?
When hiring employees/ contract workers, what qualities and skills are most important in regards to the success of CMI?
Do you find having the business in Austin restrictive in any way?
What one piece(s) of management advice would you give in regards to starting a media company and in staying relevant in a market that is constantly changing with technological advances?
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Question: What got you into the video game design business?
Billy: My roommate got a job at Origin Systems and I couldn’t believe that was a career opportunity. I fell in love with the possibility when I got a taste of the inside of a game company. So many smart people working together on a common goal! Right then I decided that I needed to be in games. I did SO many silly things to convince them that I would be a good hire that I could just about fill up a book. Ultimately, I spent 1.5 years becoming part of the team at Origin while I watched for job openings and applied for each of them I felt qualified for. Persistence and kindness ultimately paid off.
Question: Who or what inspired you to join the video game industry?
Billy: A lifelong love of video games.
Question: Where did you get your start?
Billy: Origin Systems in Austin, TX. I was hired as a level designer on Ultima: Black Gate on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Eventually I was doing four other people’s work as they had left the company or moved to other positions. Ultimately I became the de facto project lead.
Question: Why did you think that you could get into the game industry?
Billy: My life experiences led me to it. I had been playing games since I could remember, playing video games since I was 8, playing Dungeons and Dragons since I was 10, playing arcade games since they existed, I had taken business classes in college, and I spent a collective total of 5 or six years in all sorts of bands. All of these added up to a belief that I had something to offer. When they were all added all together, they were each huge parts of how that helped me be a better team player, manager, and game designer.
Question: Where did you attend school?
Billy: High School: Brazosport High School in Freeport TX, College: Brazosport Community College, University of Texas, Austin Community College. I never completed a degree – I was working my way through college when I decided to enter the industry. Now I have no student loans! :)
Question: What classes/subjects should someone wanting this career focus on?
Billy: Teamwork! Programming, art, design, typing, web design, and playing a lot of games. You can’t really do this well unless you play a lot of games.
Question: What were the classes you took in college that helped you obtain this job?
Billy: Communication, micro and macro economics, music, band, math, programming (high school and college, actually), business law, and tons of English!!
Question: Did you ever want to switch careers in college because a class was too hard?
Billy: Well, I didn't go to college for this job, but truth be told I never backed out of any class because it was too hard. That's a quitter's attitude. You could always take the class again, take it somewhere else, audit the class until you understand it, spend extra time with the instructor, get a tutor, start a study group, etc. Nowadays, there's so much information available on the internet that I'm constantly surprised that there are people that can't figure out anything they want to right in front of a monitor. That's where I do most of my research for everything, including downloading demos of other games for research purposes. I had other issues in college. Like how could I stay in class on a Friday afternoon when the day was so nice and the beach was just a few miles away? :)
Question: Do you recommend any good game schools?
Billy: Full Sail Real World Education in Winter Park, FL is one that I am very familiar with and I would recommend them wholeheartedly. They are not cheap, but you will get out of it what you put into it. The Guildhall at SMU in Dallas, TX is also a great place to go. I am sure there are many other great places – I just don’t have personal experience with other university. If you happen to be in the Austin area, you might consider ACC's video game certificate program. They have a great curriculum and training. Its only downside is that it is certificate only. They do not offer a degree. (Info is current as of 12/2007).
Question: What was your biggest challenge when you started?
Billy: Learning how to be humble and communicate well with a team. I thought I knew everything, and I learned that I didn’t pretty quickly. It took me a long time to rebuild relationships after I nuked a couple of them from orbit because of my smart-ass mouth. Sometimes you have to learn the hard way, and I certainly did. I doubt I would have the same opportunity today if I was trying to get into the industry. So… learn some tact from my mistake, before it craters your potential career!
Question: What is the most enjoyable part of your job today?
Billy: Helping others succeed.
Question: What is your main objective everyday you come to work?
Billy: To do the best I can to make the team more productive.
Question: What was your most favorite project to do while working for Critical Mass Interactive?
Billy: I like them all, but if I was forced to pick one, it would probably be USAF: Air Dominance. It was our biggest game, done start to finish in three months. Lots of good teamwork and it was fun to play from the very beginning. I wish we could share it with the world, but alas, the United States Air Force owns it lock, stock, and barrel.
Question: Which of the games that you've ever worked on was your favorite?
Billy: EA Sports Rugby World Cup ’95. It had the best team I ever worked with and the best producer. I learned how it really should be done from Kevin Buckner, my producer. He’s my hero.
Question: What skills does a developer need to have to get a job in the industry?
Billy: Adaptability, teamwork, networking, humility, teamwork, and teamwork.
Question: Do you enjoy working with your coworkers?
Billy: Yes, emphatically. We don't always enjoy all parts of the job because sometimes it's just things you have to slog through (development’s sometimes just hard work), but if we're all pulling in the same direction it can be one of the most rewarding experiences of your life.
Question: How much do you enjoy your job?
Billy: It’s the most rewarding job I could ever imagine, especially when you are working with the right team on a project you really believe in.
Question: What are some of your favorite aspects of game design?
Billy: Game balance, original ideas, and working with a team to create a better gameplay experience for players.
Question: What, if anything, do you dislike about being in this industry?
Billy: Long hours, difficulty of signing the ‘next gig,’ having to fire good people on the team when the money’s tight, companies shutting down during production due to cash shortages. This industry is very volatile, as are all entertainment industries.
Question: What is the average pay of someone in this industry?
Billy: $25-50k on the low end. $50k-75k on the high end. Those are averages, but there are more detailed numbers available online on www.gamasutra.com and www.igda.org.
Question: How long have you been interested in game design?
Billy: Literally for as long as I can remember. I used to write books on “How To Play Defender” for fun. My friends and I would also dissect arcade and home games because we were really bored, and because it was cool.
Question: What games are you currently working on?
Billy: Check out the rest of our website for all current info.
Question: What is your role in the gaming industry?
Billy: I am a people person. I help get things started and finished. I set deadlines as well as standards for behavior at the office. I am a 50% owner of my company and therefore need to make sure that $ is coming through the door and that we provide value for our customers.
Question: What do you think is the future of video game design?
Billy: Bigger games that big companies will want to take less and less risk with. Those will remain as sequels and big name licenses. Smaller games will still be around, bringing innovation – but they won’t get the exposure that the big ones will. Games are being brought to new arenas such as serious gaming (health, education, retraining, etc.) and that will continue.
You should see more ‘mass market’ games come out that should ‘expand the market.’ In other words they will bring more people to games than have ever played them before.
Question: Is there any additional information you feel a student needs?
Billy: Please play games. All types of games. Work WITH others on team projects. Try to design a game on your own. Design others. You will never have too much practice. I’d suggest designing a game to be played with a deck of cards – creating a card game will teach you the basics of rules and how to explain them easily to friends. Who knows, you could create the next Black Jack or Spades!
Question: What does your company do, and what is its mission?
Billy: Critical Mass Interactive is both a video game (or "interactive entertainment") developer and an outsource provider to developers and publishers. We exist to serve your development needs.
Our mission is to provide high-quality art, programming, and design solutions for today's game developers and publishers delivered consistently on time and on budget. Our principals have been creating and managing projects collectively for well over three decades. We have been in the trenches. We know what you are going through. Let us help you reach your goals.
Question: Could you describe a typical day?
Billy: Get in, read and respond to email, answer phone calls. Then make new phone calls and emails. When updating projects, check in with the leads of the projects and get status of each. Provide direction on all projects in production.
Question: Would you suggest any specific academic areas or specific skills or knowledge that would be helpful in this industry?
Billy: Typing, programming, art, design, communication, business.
Question: What is a basic skill-set you seek in an applicant's portfolio?
Billy: An ability to complete tasks to a high standard.
Question: How can I get my resume noticed?
Billy: Find a company you really want to work for. Learn a lot about them. Play the games from their company. Seriously. Write custom cover letters that reference games that those companies have written. Also find a city that you really want to work. When an opening comes up, re-write your resume to match that listing - WITHOUT LYING! HR is filtering these usually, and they are checking against the listing. Those are the top tips I could give you.
Question: With whom do you work – a team or individuals?
Billy: Both. Usually a team, but as an independent contractor, I work by myself. The truth is, no matter how much I do independently, I still have to meld my work with the team – so it's ALWAYS a team effort.
Question: What motivates you or inspires you to do your work everyday?
Billy: I love it! And I've always felt in charge of my own destiny in this industry.
Question: What are major trends, changes or issues facing your industry that a game art and design major entering the field should be aware of?
Billy: Outsourcing, off-shoring, lack of great game designers, increased risk due to the size of the games and their budgets, less creativity.
Question: Any final thoughts?
Billy: Don't get in this industry unless you love it. It's not just a job – it's a lifestyle. Keep a balance, though. It's too easy to game all the time and lose track of time, life, friends, and family. And don't think that you have to work at one place forever, especially if you have to work crazy hours with no extra pay. Do what you need to so that you can move the project forward, and then when it's at a place where you can leave (and still sleep with yourself) get off the train. Sanity is a high goal that you can lose quickly while you are trying to make a name for yourself, which everyone is…
Question: What keeps you motivated at your job?
Billy: I truly love video games. And I truly enjoy watching a team come together to become more than the sum of its parts.
Question: What are you excited about?
Billy: I want to play games that I have only imagined as a kid. I know they’re coming faster than I ever imagined, but I’m just ready for them right now!
Question: What do you consider to be the big thing now, or in 5 years, or in 10 years?
Billy: Now (2006) – sequels and licensed product. 5 years – different sequels and lots of differentiation in the market, so everyone will have lots of variety in the games they can play. 10 years… hmmm… I’m guessing that we’re going to see more of the same. Each 5 year period or so has been a new home console system transition and I expect they’ll continue to do so. Mobile phones are going to improve in the US, although we’ll trail the rest of the world for probably the next 50 years or so, until one unified system gets installed in the US.
Question: What was the big thing when you started?
Billy: The SNES and Genesis were big, PCs were still next to impossible to write big games for, and people considered it 50% of the game to be able to get the game to actually run. There was NO Direct X, and people had to write their own memory managers, etc. Origin was doing some of the largest, most detailed games in the industry at the time. They were also the first to use voice synthesis in games, I believe, and that was a really new development.
Question: How is the subject of intellectual property in the video game industry different from that of, say, movies, music, or software applications?
Billy: First of all, I'm not a lawyer (and I don't play one on television) so you're only going to get a layman's understanding of all these questions, but I'll do the best I can. As far as I can tell, straight intellectual property (IP) issues are the same in videogames as in all other media. However, there are issues being tried in the courts about gameplay ideas being ownable at least in the case of “Crazy Taxi” versus “The Simpsons Hit and Run.” The video game industry (like all technical industries) tends to run ahead of the laws that are designed to protect it, and there are also people that are making money by patenting things that other people have invented, used and just never patented. One item like that was 'controller vibration,' which was patented by Immersion. Microsoft's Xbox controllers had vibration support (as did Sony's and many cell phones) but when Immersion sued MS, MS invested in the company and now they (MS) get a piece of every licensed use of Immersion's patent. Pretty smooth choice on MS's side, but was this really fair to the rest of the video gaming world? Vibrating controllers or controllers with force feedback had been out for almost two decades. I can think of pinball machines that shook long ago, providing that type of feedback. Regardless, Immersion has successfully done it and their reinvestment in the technology is very cool – I’ve seen, played, and felt their newest work. It’s awesome and I’m looking forward to seeing what they do with it. But I am really bummed that Sony didn’t put the rumble in the PS3 controllers.
Question: Is intellectual property protection less of an issue for the video game industry than for other industries?
Billy: In fact, it's one of the main issues, as intellectual property, including characters and gameplay is what sells games. If you build an intellectual property up so that a big publisher wants to buy it, that's all you have to sell. That's not to even TOUCH on the piracy issues in other countries.
Question: What is "virtual property?"
Billy: This is property inside a Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMOG) that can be 'owned' by a player. There are people that get items or property (virtual real estate) in a game and they actually sell it for real world dollars. In other countries, they have people work in sweatshops where they get paid pennies to 'mine' for gold, rare items, and the like. Then their company sells it online to people in the US or other countries that when it's taken as an aggregate, they turn a profit because their employees are so cheap. On the other hand, there are other companies that completely forbid this from happening. I believe that one of the biggest MMOGs, World of Warcraft, from Blizzard, just cancelled thousands of accounts due to alleged 'mining.'
Question: What kind of intellectual property litigation might a video game company face?
Billy: Gameplay mechanics are stolen regularly. Characters and character likenesses are stolen regularly. As stated above, violating someone else's patents (knowingly or not) can get you into hot water. The list is as varied as you can imagine. Using a voice actor in a game may put you in a position where you always need to sell your game - no free downloads later when the game is not marketable anymore. Be careful what you sign with anyone attached to a game.
Question: What intellectual property threats has your company faced?
Billy: None at my current company. At an earlier company, we hired voice actors to play parts in the game. It was more expensive to buy their voices in perpetuity, so the company decided to go ‘cheap’ and buy them for the single game release only. When they decided to release a 'gold version,' which is really the old version with a lot of new stuff, we had to go back and renegotiate the contracts with all the actors. Then we actually re-recorded them all because the old material was considered as attached to the old contract. So, the company paid more than the value of twice the original amount and we had to do tons of more work, just to save a little money on the front end. Silly, it seems, but these types of things can crop up from anywhere.
Question: How might this issue affect the Austin video game community?
Billy: Well, it happened in Austin if that helps. :)
Question: Is the Austin video game community ahead of, with, or behind the curve on this issue?
Billy: Actually the Austin game community is getting more aware of issues like this by just becoming more mature. The development directors and studio owners I know are well up on these issues. Plus we have ACC, DeVry, and St. Edwards University all with some type of video game program in place to handle many of these issues.
Question: What kind of changes do you see in intellectual property protection in the short term?
Billy: I'm not seeing anything that's happening quickly at this time, but I have seen some interesting things with copyright lately. I'm not as well-versed as I'd like to be there, so I'll leave that to the people that are really up on it.
Question: The long term?
Billy: Create intellectual property (IP) with value. Create contracts that state clearly who owns what. Protect it with everything you have. Then sell it to the highest bidder. That's what is going on right now. The biggest studios can't take as many chances with their cash. The market is way too volatile and they have stockholders to answer to. These publishers look to the market (smaller developers) to create new IPs. Then when the IP looks really valuable, they will buy it. But make sure that whoever builds it with you knows what their ownership % is, if any. Nothing ruins a friendship, company, or an IP than having a foggy view on who owns what. This isn't a garage industry anymore. It's run by people in business suits with armies of lawyers behind them and they are ready to make the most money out of your property, which when they buy it - it becomes theirs.
Question: When was Critical Mass Interactive founded?
Billy: We were founded in early 2003.
Question: How many employees does Critical Mass Interactive have?
Billy: Two, with a contract staff in the thousands.
Question: Which programs does your company base most of its creations on?
Billy: That's a tough one. We do every game differently. We use custom game editors as well as many middle ware products. As far as art, we use 3D Studio, Photoshop and Maya, along with just about everything else, but those are the most used.
Question: Which Program do you think is easiest to use?
Billy: Wow. That's a loaded question. They all have their strengths and weaknesses. :) Once you get comfortable with the paradigm of a type of program, generally it's just a matter of learning the interface.
Gamecloud’s End of 2005 - Looking to 2006 Q&A Survey
Question: Overall, what do you feel was the most significant thing that happened in 2005 in the video and PC game industry?
Billy: Yet another Spike TV Video Game Award Show that had nothing to do with the actual game developers that built the game. This is one that has long term ramifications for developers to make their names known. Developers need to get the publicity that they deserve for creating the games. Actors are only brought out for marketing and this Spike TV award show is the pinnacle of developers being hidden and downplayed by the publishers / marketers. Believe me, I understand the importance of marketing, but is this the future of our industry? Think about it. Everyone wants to design games, but do they realize they’ll never (on average) get to design their own games? At this rate, we’re all going to be working on sequels and licensed product.
Question: Other than games you worked on that were released this year, what video or PC game released in 2005 was your favorite and why?
Billy: I didn’t get to REALLY play any of the ones I wanted to from this year. I finally got to really play Half-Life 2 (2004) and its surrounding work. I am not qualified to answer this question. Kids and a wife, game job and a life all prevented me from really getting into anything too heavily. When I really get into a game, I spend over 100 hours on it. Nothing yet in ’05 has driven me into that much of a tizzy.
Question: What video or PC game that was released in 2005 that you played was the most disappointing and why?
Billy: Again, not qualified to answer. Working on all the games we did this year prevented much exploration. I wouldn’t want to pick anything I haven’t had time to fully play and experiment around in.
Question: As we look ahead to 2006, what video or PC game that is currently scheduled to be released that year are you most looking forward to and why?
Billy: Most everything seems to be more of the same. Look at the charts. How many aren’t sequels or truly seem groundbreaking? Here’s something that’s important to remember – I’m not the audience or the market for the gaming industry. I am a small segment, a dad that has a little time for games, but if something really grabs me, I’ll go crazy on it. I play a lot of different games, but I don’t have anything I’m dying for at the moment. When the next GTA gets announced, that will change. J
Question: What do you see are the big events and trends that will affect the video/PC game industry in 2006?
Billy: Less new game ideas, more sequels, more derivative work, more marketing of ‘stars’ and ‘actors’ to sell games. There will be more advertising in games, since TiVo is effectively destroying TV advertising and all their viewers are now playing games. Games are costing so much to make, there will be less innovation from the major publishers because the stock holders will not reward risk-takers – they will reward players that can consistently deliver profit. There will finally be more outsourcing of work to other countries or companies because the publishers will not be able to find the employees to hire, and because it would bloat their budgets too high to be able to make a profit on their games. It will become more normal to have relationships with outsource companies. I also see more people from game schools getting picked up in the industry as entry level employees.
Question: Finally, is there anything else you wish to say about the past year in games and/or the upcoming year in games?
Billy: It seems that there are more people coming into the game market (as enthusiasts) and that is a good thing. However as a father I am still looking to the industry to continue to create games that I can share with my children. I love the game myself as an adult and as a gamer, but I can’t play GTA around my kids with a good conscience. I don’t know if the fine people at Rockstar ever considered it, but if there was a code that turned off everything, I could at least drive around with my kids and let them get a glimpse as to what it’s like to drive around a city, without worrying about running people over and having the police chase me down. It’s just such a great environment that it makes me sad that I can’t share it with them. And I don’t think this is going to get better with all the other violent games coming out.
St. Edwards' MBA Student Questions from October 2007
What is the one piece of management advice you would give to me?
Matt: The gaming industry is a business of budgets, schedules and management plans resulting in entertainment products more complex than anything else experienced, to date. The development teams in games must generate enough content to garner an in-depth, immersive experience for the player that is more like a season of programming on television wrapped into one entity. The development of this final product comes from expert management and empowerment of a team of programmers, designers and artists. As a manager in this industry, you must be, first and foremost, a personnel developer, facilitator and leader. Concentrating on those methodologies that will empower your ability to identify and lead such a team is of paramount importance to your development as a manager.
What do you know now that you wish you knew earlier in your career?
Matt: Early in my career, my passion for making games was intense, and at times, due to the volatile nature of the process and the people making games, would result in aggressive behavior towards certain management issues affecting the team. For example, in early development, the programmers always received the best, new machines while the artists and designers were left with the hand-me-downs. Once the graphics called for in games improved, the artists needed the faster machines in order to maintain schedules and production values. There were several heated arguments at the time, which resulted in the artists getting the better machines if a choice had to be made. Knowing how to harness this passion in positive, pro-active ways would have enabled further successful changes like these without having to enact "power-plays" and other, more argumentative methods to foster more efficient production methods. Don't lose the passion, use it.
What do you think makes a great manager?
Matt: A great manager is someone who can develop great teams. The success of every manager in the game development industry requires that great team, otherwise great games would never be delivered to the marketplace. This manager is someone pro-active in attitude, motivational in methodology, and organized in planning and communication. Through the measured choices of team members, along with the establishment of solid hierarchies, defining responsibility and authority chains along with communication procedures, a good manager becomes great. Adding solid budgeting and scheduling skills to this organized development scheme and you have an unbeatable process pipeline. Notice that the creative aspects are not mentioned in this definition. I believe every great manager in game development has to have the ability to not only be creative, themselves, but to empower this process in others. Every great manager in this industry has the potential to be both Producer and Director, but the wisdom to embody these roles in selected subordinates, as these productions take teams of talented people to accomplish successfully.
What is a brief synopsis of your background and entrance into the gaming industry (education, early work in the industry, reasons for being in this industry)?
Matt: I was a Regional Property Manager in Real Estate for ten years prior to entering the game development industry almost twenty years ago. I managed a portfolio of investment properties for major companies in the Northeast US, including NY to Chicago, south to Virginia. The value of these investments were in the tens of millions of dollars. By the way, my higher education ranged from Fine Art to Bioengineering to English and Art History. When I entered this industry I was on vacation from Real Estate and went to an Open House at Microprose on a Wednesday and had a job in the industry the following Tuesday. I have been in it ever since. Obviously, there is more to the story than this, but to save time, I worked on the original Civilization, with Sid Meier, along with many other great games while at Microprose. I went on to several other companies, including Electronic Arts, before forming my own companies over the past eight years. I am in this industry due to a creative passion for games and a love of the fusion of art and technology that is the process of building games.
How did the idea to form CMI come about and what were some hurdles and early successes that helped shape CMI into what it is today?
Matt: I have been an independent contract animator and illustrator while in school and during every full-time job I have had, that is close to thirty years of my working life. I believe in the independent structure for development services in film, broadcast, publishing, games and set out to form a corporate entity whose sole purpose is to house development and outsource contract services under the same roof. When building more standard format development studios in the past, with a standing workforce of employees and all of the overhead costs of support, we found that survival relied on a sequence of hiring, developing and laying off once projects were completed. By changing the model and having every resource on contract, when needed, we have been able to stabilize the inconsistencies of the business. As with movie development strategies, CMI gets contracts for development, then we tool up the resources appropriate to each project and manage them through the process to completion. At the end of each product cycle, the workforce is reassigned to the next project, when, and if, necessary. By building solid client relationships, CMI has been able to generate multiple contracts with the same clients over the years, with many numbering above fifteen consecutive contracts each over the five years of our existence. We also have had the luxury of working for every major publisher over these years, where before, as a standard studio we only could work for one, or two publishers, at most, simultaneously. By creating a business plan and model that is consistently able to read market trends (note our decision to outsource over 65% of our projects at our standard studio, prior to CMI, and the choice to create a 100% outsource company in CMI, several years before outsourcing became the standard method in the industry), we have been able to stay ahead with the choices of projects and clients we work with, and the product markets we penetrate as both service provider and developer.
As President and Business Developer Manager, what are typical ‘duties’ of your role at CMI?
Matt: Along with the standard administrative duties every CEO has to deal with, as President and Business Development Manager of CMI, I oversee the generation of every contract negotiation from initial call to final document, along with my business partner, Billy Cain. We manage thousands of contacts in the game development, entertainment and technology industries every day, to glean opportunities for outsource contract services, potential full contract development deals and our own individual properties in creative and technology categories. These projects span the mobile, console and PC platform game industries, along with defense and educational projects, and community service for the development of our city, state and nation. After the projects are defined, we manage contacts with individual contractors (designers, programmers, artists, writers, managers, etc.) and companies, worldwide, with a total potential workforce of over 7500, in groups from 1 to 1000, at independent studios from Shanghai to Prague. In all cases, we define a management structure at the early stages of each contract, with an individual Producer and staff, who report to Billy and myself. We don’t do this juggling act on a daily basis without help.
How do you see the business model (contracting, outsourcing) of CMI aiding in the success of your company? What issues does CMI face today?
Matt: CMI, and its business model, has been embraced by every major publisher since our inception. Many are now developing internal Outsource Producers and Divisions to better facilitate the use of companies like CMI. This model is the lifeline to the future for all levels of development in our industry. The publishers cannot afford to house and manage all of the resources necessary to generate the new games in a timely and economically feasible way. By supporting our business model, which has become the industry de-facto standard during the years of our existence, the game industry can adapt to changing market conditions more rapidly, without the devastating upheavals of annual, massive layoffs and the displacement of talent and manpower that must, of course, be available for new projects. CMI has a fourfold agenda to deal with the issues we are facing. Continued support of our publisher partners with outsource management and resources; development of full projects for entertainment, defense and education; an outreach program to educational, governmental, financial and industry entities to inform and develop the community; and, finally, building relationships with publishers, developers and educational partners to define industry best practices and to develop new talent to enter and contribute to the industry’s success. CMI has supported the IGDA, globally and in Austin; co-founded the Austin Game Conference to move forward on the agenda noted above; and continues to support educational institutions and students at SMU, UT, ACC, St. Edwards, Full Sail, and others.
Who handles finding and licensing content to include in games CMI is developing? Is CMI pursuing licenses with film companies to develop games based on films, or films based on games you are developing?
Matt: CMI (Billy and myself) has pursued license materials, in the past, and will in the future. The industry projects consistently revolve around cross-market licensing. We have entertainment lawyers who assist us in the licensing of content, in both directions. We have gone after the Ghost Rider, Hellboy, and others in the past. We landed the SpongeBob and Jimmy Neutron licenses through THQ in our previous company, co-owned by Billy, myself and three other senior managers. CMI is currently researching several licenses for availability for game development and we are preparing several of our own IPs for presentation to film and broadcast licensing outlets in the near future.
When hiring employees/ contract workers, what qualities and skills are most important in regards to the success of CMI?
Matt: Talent is a good start, whether writing, drawing, or programming, CMI expects each candidate to have solid basics in their respective areas of development. Team work ethic, supportive of the group development effort, is equally important. Adaptability to new challenges is a requirement, as well, as the team must surf above the waves of chaos that assail every development project, not become tangled in them. Finally, strong communication skills are necessary to give, and take, work orders, as well as to manage internally to the team and externally to the client.
Do you find having the business in Austin restrictive in any way?
Matt: Having the business in Austin does not restrict the business in any way; it enhances it. The spirit of life in Austin is quite different from every other major development center in our industry, and our ability to coordinate more efficiently with clients and partners throughout the world, is a direct result of living here.
What one piece(s) of management advice would you give in regards to starting a media company and in staying relevant in a market that is constantly changing with technological advances?
Matt: Maintain a cutting edge awareness of the industry trends affecting your clients/projects. Know what they need to ease their development pains, as these will be your pains, as well. This industry awareness covers market trends in the financing of projects and the distribution pipeline, the changing technologies and best practices of development, the evolving workforce and management methodologies necessary to produce content and assets rapidly at high production values, and the involvement in developing and maintaining the community relationships to facilitate bringing the proper solutions to your client, or to your project.
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