Respawn - Gathering of Game Developers 2016

At the beginning of a game project things are “easy”. Small core team, everyone involved has a voice and each member of the team usually has a strong sense of ownership on the game. As production goes, as teams grow, as pressure gets stronger, as quick decisions need to be made, it is very easy to have a team where people don’t feel like they own the game they are making anymore.How do we preserve that sense of ownership in the long run? How do we integrate new members to the team and give them a sense of involvement as high as if they were part of the original core team? What happens when we reach that moment in production when there is simply no more time for new contributions without giving the feeling to the team that they are mindless executants? 

These are just some of many topics addressed which our seasoned panel of protagonists like Fleur Marty from Eidos Montreal, Hannes Seifert from IO Interactive, Klaas Kersting from Flaregames and Moderator Jason della Rocca from Executions Labs will discuss.

There is no mythical chest of coins to grab on the other end of the rainbow when you need it. Raising funds for your studio or project is a non-trivial process. While it is obvious that you must have a high potential investable opportunity, the real magic is in knowing which sources to approach and when. This diverse panel of investors will discuss how and when to approach different types of investors.

German technology for computer games development is worldwide successful. Nevertheless, German game developers do often not use their home-grown technology in priority. It seems as if German technology providers find most of their clients outside Germany. The penal discussion tries to follow these issues to and to understand why we as Germans see technologies from outside our own ecosystem sometimes preferable. The advantages of a regional tech-ecosystem are obvious - especially in the area of support and the possibility to get direct feedback. And on the other hand the development of technology is depends on a current dialogue with developers.

Both gamers and critics love innovation. It’s lauded as the one thing that makes the rise of indies so interesting for games as a medium. But is it really a good idea? And how do you innovate best? In this panel we will discuss the pros and cons of innovation, talk about best practices and experiences with an eye towards building a sustainable, independent studio.