Building a Solid Foundation for a Game Startup
Building a Solid Foundation for a Game Startup
The valuable lessons I’ve learned from running a game startup in Finland and working with an indie team in Sweden. Slides: www.slideshare.net/VGVisionary
Quick Disclaimer
Nothing in this talk is new, but we just don’t talk about it often enough!
Question
Are you prepared to run a game startup?
Answer:
Ask yourself Don’s questions: http://gdcvault.com/play/1022021/Going-Indie-10-Questions-to
Table of contents • Who is this dude? • The lessons I really really hope you won’t have to learn the hard way after this talk (or at least you will be able to fix them faster when you stumble over them). • The road ahead for any game startup
• Summary • Questions
Who am I? This is a talk by
Vlad Micu Former Head of Studio at
Critical Force Entertainment Used to be the PR Manager of
Get Social Did production, game design and creative direction for
arkavis Siam co. ltd. in Thailand Wrote for many other international outlets including
Gamesauce.org, TechInAsia.com, PocketGamer.biz, Control Magazine, Gamer.nl, XBLAFans.com, Casual Connect Magazine and many more. Currently at
Data Realms @vgvisionary
Partners & Clients
My personal lessons & mistakes • Agreements & Responsibilities • Adversity & the Reality of Running a business • Constant Growth and getting Outside Perspective • Learning to take the punches
A Culture without Shame helps
And a tight-knit community based on mutual trust is quite nice as well. www.igda.fi
The Right People & Responsibilities
“You know in a startup, you only need three people. You need someone who can make something. You need someone who can sell it. And you need someone to collect the money. That’s the only three roles in a startup. So which one are you?” – Guy Kawasaki
Different Attitude & Vocabulary • Sustainable traction –
who’s ever used that word?
• Cash flow positive –
or this one?
• Share holders/Revenue share agreement • Business plan!? Recommended by @derkdegeus
• Go-to-market strategy? • Product/Market fit
REALLY have Everything Written Down • Meetings, e-mails & contracts • Use team communication platform Slack! • Get your licenses straight: https://tldrlegal.com/
Watch Dmitri Dubograev’s talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXL79-rmvjw
Contracts are Designed against Assholes
Be a dick and demand it. Clauses can always be changed and/or waived later if needed. Chris Natsuume’s talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0UL_QOho6g&list=PLEoI6ST6os509lBweWPn67UYaMrMDSOLS&index=4
Never Stop Learning
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBYhVcO4WgI
Learn with Comic Relief
And squeeze in some Work/Life balance in there while you’re at it!
Embracing Stoicism
The best way to approach life, the Stoics suggest, is to think of oneself as an archer who does his or her best to fire the arrow well but accepts that once it has flown it may be blown off course and miss the target. In this analogy, our intentions are like preparing to fire the arrow, but the outcome of our actions, like hitting the target, is beyond our control and partly the result of external events.
http://fourhourworkweek.com/2009/04/13/stoicism-101-a-practical-guide-for-entrepreneurs/
Find Veterans & Advisors
Let them give you much needed perspective
The Demo Scene
Optimized code > everything else https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyGwv2F3-Fo
Office space is expensive everywhere
The BetaDwarf team lived in a university classroom for 7 months before getting discovered and kicked out http://i.imgur.com/yacucU1.jpg
Pitch all the Time, Everywhere • Know who you are and who you aren’t • Know what the other person wants and doesn’t have • Use that to disarm your opponent and put him/her in the defensive • Make yourself rare/scarce
Learn from Eminem! http://techcrunch.com/2014/01/18/how-to-get-an-mba-from-eminem/
Embrace Competition
“A wise man can learn more from his enemies than a fool from his friends”
A Support System Really Helps
Colleagues Therapist
A FUCKTON of books
Mentors & Peers
Friends
Don’t let Misfortune Define You
http://mobile.nytimes.com/2013/07/02/magazin e/evermans-war.html?referrer
The #1 Skill is still Resilience
The Fins have ‘Sisu’ (perseverance)
Finnish Sisu + Swedish Commercial pragmatism
http://www.dataspelsbranschen.se/media/150924/game_developer_index_2014.pdf/
Summary • Get your agreements straight! • Get both legal & outside perspective.
• Embrace adversity & the reality of running a Business. • Keep taking those punches, you’ll get there! • Most importantly: Talk with each other about failure, entrust each othe with those stories. Foster your community of peers!
Bonus tip: watch my other lectures
www.youtube.com/vgvisionary
#imlonely
Contact me • @vgvisionary • Mail me at [email protected] • Slides: www.slideshare.net/VGVisionary
Thanks!
Questions? Let’s talk more outside!
The valuable lessons I’ve learned from running a game startup in Finland and working with an indie team in Sweden. Slides: www.slideshare.net/VGVisionary
Quick Disclaimer
Nothing in this talk is new, but we just don’t talk about it often enough!
Question
Are you prepared to run a game startup?
Answer:
Ask yourself Don’s questions: http://gdcvault.com/play/1022021/Going-Indie-10-Questions-to
Table of contents • Who is this dude? • The lessons I really really hope you won’t have to learn the hard way after this talk (or at least you will be able to fix them faster when you stumble over them). • The road ahead for any game startup
• Summary • Questions
Who am I? This is a talk by
Vlad Micu Former Head of Studio at
Critical Force Entertainment Used to be the PR Manager of
Get Social Did production, game design and creative direction for
arkavis Siam co. ltd. in Thailand Wrote for many other international outlets including
Gamesauce.org, TechInAsia.com, PocketGamer.biz, Control Magazine, Gamer.nl, XBLAFans.com, Casual Connect Magazine and many more. Currently at
Data Realms @vgvisionary
Partners & Clients
My personal lessons & mistakes • Agreements & Responsibilities • Adversity & the Reality of Running a business • Constant Growth and getting Outside Perspective • Learning to take the punches
A Culture without Shame helps
And a tight-knit community based on mutual trust is quite nice as well. www.igda.fi
The Right People & Responsibilities
“You know in a startup, you only need three people. You need someone who can make something. You need someone who can sell it. And you need someone to collect the money. That’s the only three roles in a startup. So which one are you?” – Guy Kawasaki
Different Attitude & Vocabulary • Sustainable traction –
who’s ever used that word?
• Cash flow positive –
or this one?
• Share holders/Revenue share agreement • Business plan!? Recommended by @derkdegeus
• Go-to-market strategy? • Product/Market fit
REALLY have Everything Written Down • Meetings, e-mails & contracts • Use team communication platform Slack! • Get your licenses straight: https://tldrlegal.com/
Watch Dmitri Dubograev’s talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXL79-rmvjw
Contracts are Designed against Assholes
Be a dick and demand it. Clauses can always be changed and/or waived later if needed. Chris Natsuume’s talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0UL_QOho6g&list=PLEoI6ST6os509lBweWPn67UYaMrMDSOLS&index=4
Never Stop Learning
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBYhVcO4WgI
Learn with Comic Relief
And squeeze in some Work/Life balance in there while you’re at it!
Embracing Stoicism
The best way to approach life, the Stoics suggest, is to think of oneself as an archer who does his or her best to fire the arrow well but accepts that once it has flown it may be blown off course and miss the target. In this analogy, our intentions are like preparing to fire the arrow, but the outcome of our actions, like hitting the target, is beyond our control and partly the result of external events.
http://fourhourworkweek.com/2009/04/13/stoicism-101-a-practical-guide-for-entrepreneurs/
Find Veterans & Advisors
Let them give you much needed perspective
The Demo Scene
Optimized code > everything else https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyGwv2F3-Fo
Office space is expensive everywhere
The BetaDwarf team lived in a university classroom for 7 months before getting discovered and kicked out http://i.imgur.com/yacucU1.jpg
Pitch all the Time, Everywhere • Know who you are and who you aren’t • Know what the other person wants and doesn’t have • Use that to disarm your opponent and put him/her in the defensive • Make yourself rare/scarce
Learn from Eminem! http://techcrunch.com/2014/01/18/how-to-get-an-mba-from-eminem/
Embrace Competition
“A wise man can learn more from his enemies than a fool from his friends”
A Support System Really Helps
Colleagues Therapist
A FUCKTON of books
Mentors & Peers
Friends
Don’t let Misfortune Define You
http://mobile.nytimes.com/2013/07/02/magazin e/evermans-war.html?referrer
The #1 Skill is still Resilience
The Fins have ‘Sisu’ (perseverance)
Finnish Sisu + Swedish Commercial pragmatism
http://www.dataspelsbranschen.se/media/150924/game_developer_index_2014.pdf/
Summary • Get your agreements straight! • Get both legal & outside perspective.
• Embrace adversity & the reality of running a Business. • Keep taking those punches, you’ll get there! • Most importantly: Talk with each other about failure, entrust each othe with those stories. Foster your community of peers!
Bonus tip: watch my other lectures
www.youtube.com/vgvisionary
#imlonely
Contact me • @vgvisionary • Mail me at [email protected] • Slides: www.slideshare.net/VGVisionary
Thanks!
Questions? Let’s talk more outside!
