Game Developers Conference Identity Crisis?
by Dexter Chow · 03/16/2012 (1:24 pm) · 7 comments
The Game Developer's Conference in my home town of San Francisco was great as usual. However, I wonder what the identity of the show is now? In the early days (early 90s), it was clearly a developer show and it felt more like a gathering at somebody's house than a commercialized show. Of course it is much bigger now, more business oriented and the audience now includes education, indies and 2000 companies telling you how to monetize your game.
My opinion is I really like the opening up of the show to students and indies because it gives them a chance to get exposure for their products and talents. The sessions seem to be hit and miss, but generally I think they get good, experienced speakers who speak on relevant topics for some subset of the audience at the show.
So my tally is the show has 5 personalities right now.
- Job Fair
- Education on Dev Topics
- Indies and Small Studios
- Big Technology Showcase
- Business and Publishing
I am mixed on whether there is an identity crisis here. I guess if you measure it from a growth perspective,it is a success and there is no problem here...I just miss those days when you would go to a suite and talk to the actual developers, share war stories and get a few tips from the trenches.
Thoughts?
My opinion is I really like the opening up of the show to students and indies because it gives them a chance to get exposure for their products and talents. The sessions seem to be hit and miss, but generally I think they get good, experienced speakers who speak on relevant topics for some subset of the audience at the show.
So my tally is the show has 5 personalities right now.
- Job Fair
- Education on Dev Topics
- Indies and Small Studios
- Big Technology Showcase
- Business and Publishing
I am mixed on whether there is an identity crisis here. I guess if you measure it from a growth perspective,it is a success and there is no problem here...I just miss those days when you would go to a suite and talk to the actual developers, share war stories and get a few tips from the trenches.
Thoughts?
About the author
Designer, Producer and Business Development Manager
#2
03/17/2012 (11:59 am)
It sounds like the very familiar of losing your core identity during a growth period. 
#3
Not that I was in the industry in the 90s (unless you count failing Indie teams, lol), but GDC seems to have represented that time well. The fact that GDC holds conferences in San Francisco, Austin, Germany, and China every single year points to the industry having done a fantastic amount of growth.
I agree that the "monetization" thing is a bit crazy, and in many ways can overshadow the actual design of the game in the heads of those looking for some kind of huge pay-day. But I haven't been to a GDC I didn't like, and the more people and booths, the better! When the day comes that GDC is back to being small groups of people, something bad would have preceded it...
03/19/2012 (10:06 am)
I don't have a problem with GDC's setup. The fact is, they're a Game Development Conference, and so they need to grow and diversify their presentations in order to reflect the industry they're representing. If they don't do that, then someone with the proper vision will (whether or not they would actually do it better than GDC currently does is up for debate).Not that I was in the industry in the 90s (unless you count failing Indie teams, lol), but GDC seems to have represented that time well. The fact that GDC holds conferences in San Francisco, Austin, Germany, and China every single year points to the industry having done a fantastic amount of growth.
I agree that the "monetization" thing is a bit crazy, and in many ways can overshadow the actual design of the game in the heads of those looking for some kind of huge pay-day. But I haven't been to a GDC I didn't like, and the more people and booths, the better! When the day comes that GDC is back to being small groups of people, something bad would have preceded it...
#4
My first GDC was 2000 and at the time, I felt like the conference was 90% expert and 10% beginner (and I was in that 10%).
Now I feel like it's 80% beginner and 20% expert. I'm glad that there is a place for beginners, but it also changes the dynamic a lot.
I think it's that conversion has changed it from being an industry trade show to a marketing showcase and commercial event.
It's just a natural occurrence of a maturing industry.
03/19/2012 (11:08 am)
I feel like my earlier days of GDC had a bit more to offer for me personally, but it could just be that the newness has worn off on me a bit.My first GDC was 2000 and at the time, I felt like the conference was 90% expert and 10% beginner (and I was in that 10%).
Now I feel like it's 80% beginner and 20% expert. I'm glad that there is a place for beginners, but it also changes the dynamic a lot.
I think it's that conversion has changed it from being an industry trade show to a marketing showcase and commercial event.
It's just a natural occurrence of a maturing industry.
#5
03/19/2012 (12:10 pm)
I was a regular at GDC for years but I wasn't getting anything out of it after a while. So I stopped going. Meeting developers was the best thing.
#6
I guess the same thing happened to comic book conventions and Gencon. I remember going to local weekend swap meets to trade and sell comic books in the 80s. I just took my daughter to Comicon and it was as big a show as a national car show.
Oh well, I guess I have to accept the growth in our industry and the reflection of that in shows...
03/23/2012 (12:10 pm)
Thanks all, after reading the responses and reflecting a bit, I agree with the general comment that this expansion is a natural reflection of the growth (and diversity) in development. Having been to my first DICE recently, it is no replacement for GDC in the early days. It is very business development and executive focused (not that there is anything wrong with this). I don't know of a replacement for the smaller, development focused show. I guess the same thing happened to comic book conventions and Gencon. I remember going to local weekend swap meets to trade and sell comic books in the 80s. I just took my daughter to Comicon and it was as big a show as a national car show.
Oh well, I guess I have to accept the growth in our industry and the reflection of that in shows...
#7
The first time, the entire feel was "should I/could I join one of these companies?" and "what do you see as a niche in gaming>" and "congratulations. I think you'll go far with that." The fringe was people selling board games, two of which I bought.
The second time, I brought my wife and we had fun. Maybe I was subliminally trying to convince her to let me join the gaming industry after a long stent with Amazon.
The third time, the crowd was impossible to navigate. There was a giant Microsoft booth. It was loud. It was over-flowing with MS jar heads and Seattle Sounders sponsorship logos and seething, overly-cool, whooping in the halls. Hey, I'm a bit of a jar head myself, but I had other conferences for that attitude. Oh well.
The last two years I didn't go but I hear it was even larger.
03/29/2012 (10:09 am)
I hear you. I'm in Seattle, home of PAX. I went 4 and 5 years ago and it was awesome. I saw The Behemoth trying to sell a little game called Castle Crashers. I talked to a group working on a pirate turn-based game. I went to talk to Tell-Tale and picked up some Sam & Max swag for my wife, 'cause we love playing that series together.The first time, the entire feel was "should I/could I join one of these companies?" and "what do you see as a niche in gaming>" and "congratulations. I think you'll go far with that." The fringe was people selling board games, two of which I bought.
The second time, I brought my wife and we had fun. Maybe I was subliminally trying to convince her to let me join the gaming industry after a long stent with Amazon.
The third time, the crowd was impossible to navigate. There was a giant Microsoft booth. It was loud. It was over-flowing with MS jar heads and Seattle Sounders sponsorship logos and seething, overly-cool, whooping in the halls. Hey, I'm a bit of a jar head myself, but I had other conferences for that attitude. Oh well.
The last two years I didn't go but I hear it was even larger.
Torque Owner Jules
Something2Play
So, no matter how big your presence there I don't think it's needed, and you certainly don't need to show it, but I guess if you have enough followers and you know how many are going to be on your stand at any given time then yes, make good use of the space.
Personally, I'd just have a nice area with a couple of sofas and chairs for people to relax, play a few games and chat about things, whether its business or just about a game.