Task - 3 Be able to apply pre-production planning for a specific media production
Elements of production
Finance in video games differs between publisher and development companies. Although whatever the amount of a budget for example 5 million (Indie) or 20-100 million (AAA) the money will be spilt in two, development and marketing. Development includes equipment, personnel, offices, etc. Marketing includes TV adverts, merchandise, apps, etc. Most critics and gamers label a video games cost by the amount of budget put into development but marketing even though it is apart of the budget is regular not included. This is because publishers don't reveal its marketing budget so its left to scepticism and the true budget of a game is left uncountable. When publishers or developers are asked questions about a video games marketing budget they deceptively dodge these questions.
Chris Sigarty (Bethesda, producer for star craft 2) said "Blizzard doesn't have any sort of set budget for their games, and spends as much as is necessary to make the games the company wants to make." This statement was intended to argued with The Wall Street Journals claims that Star Craft 2 (Bethesda, 2010) cost 100 million to make altogether. 7 years after the games release its budget hasn't surfaced even on the games Wiki page its missing the budget. Bethesda's resilience not to reveal the budget of one of its most critically praised games is duplicitous from my perspective. The deceitful projection I have created around this subject is purely to my own scepticism. I believe that the marketing budget for a AAA game is left out due to it being very expensive and this may damage its image. If publishers decrease a games true budget in the public's eye and reveal only the development budget then its easy for the game to become a success because of the smaller figure released.
Activision has some of the best marketing plans for their games. The publishers biggest title Call of Duty spends every penny when it comes the advertising, their live action TV spots that implement the outrageous fun and over the top action into everyday life and have become the norm for each new title. Trailers like "Frag Phelps" has comedic bit between Olympian Michael Phelps who complains to actor Danny McBride about stealing kills online. Another trailer "Vet and the Noob." was for the title Modern Warfare 3 (Activision, 2011) this was another comedic bit starring Sam Worthington the 'Vet' meaning experienced player of the games and Jonah Hill the 'Noob' which is a gaming term meaning terrible at the game. The marketing for MW3 was a whooping 200 million for advertising and distribution that included this trailer. Although it was worth every penny because within 24 hours of release the game made 400 million between the UK and USA.
Logistics in video games has also gone through an evolution of the times. Traditionally publishers would go through the process of burning a video game on a CD then distributing these copies of the games to a shop across the country and the globe, where they will administer the sales of the games and the cost of this like I said before is unknown and up to speculation. This method costs a lot of money which can cause many issues for example, a shop is stolen or the game isn't successful much like the Atari crash with the ET. video game (1980) where the company had to literally bury the copies of the game in a dump in Mexico.
Finance in video games differs between publisher and development companies. Although whatever the amount of a budget for example 5 million (Indie) or 20-100 million (AAA) the money will be spilt in two, development and marketing. Development includes equipment, personnel, offices, etc. Marketing includes TV adverts, merchandise, apps, etc. Most critics and gamers label a video games cost by the amount of budget put into development but marketing even though it is apart of the budget is regular not included. This is because publishers don't reveal its marketing budget so its left to scepticism and the true budget of a game is left uncountable. When publishers or developers are asked questions about a video games marketing budget they deceptively dodge these questions.
Chris Sigarty (Bethesda, producer for star craft 2) said "Blizzard doesn't have any sort of set budget for their games, and spends as much as is necessary to make the games the company wants to make." This statement was intended to argued with The Wall Street Journals claims that Star Craft 2 (Bethesda, 2010) cost 100 million to make altogether. 7 years after the games release its budget hasn't surfaced even on the games Wiki page its missing the budget. Bethesda's resilience not to reveal the budget of one of its most critically praised games is duplicitous from my perspective. The deceitful projection I have created around this subject is purely to my own scepticism. I believe that the marketing budget for a AAA game is left out due to it being very expensive and this may damage its image. If publishers decrease a games true budget in the public's eye and reveal only the development budget then its easy for the game to become a success because of the smaller figure released.
Activision has some of the best marketing plans for their games. The publishers biggest title Call of Duty spends every penny when it comes the advertising, their live action TV spots that implement the outrageous fun and over the top action into everyday life and have become the norm for each new title. Trailers like "Frag Phelps" has comedic bit between Olympian Michael Phelps who complains to actor Danny McBride about stealing kills online. Another trailer "Vet and the Noob." was for the title Modern Warfare 3 (Activision, 2011) this was another comedic bit starring Sam Worthington the 'Vet' meaning experienced player of the games and Jonah Hill the 'Noob' which is a gaming term meaning terrible at the game. The marketing for MW3 was a whooping 200 million for advertising and distribution that included this trailer. Although it was worth every penny because within 24 hours of release the game made 400 million between the UK and USA.
Logistics in video games has also gone through an evolution of the times. Traditionally publishers would go through the process of burning a video game on a CD then distributing these copies of the games to a shop across the country and the globe, where they will administer the sales of the games and the cost of this like I said before is unknown and up to speculation. This method costs a lot of money which can cause many issues for example, a shop is stolen or the game isn't successful much like the Atari crash with the ET. video game (1980) where the company had to literally bury the copies of the game in a dump in Mexico.
The path to digital distribution
started with the introduction of better quality of DLC and pay-to-win
transactions. Mass Effect 3 (2012, Bioware) was one of the first games where Bioware
had to apologise to the fans because of the critically inconsistent plot holes
in the story driven game. Fans of the franchise prepared a petition called “Retake
Mass Effect” taking in £80,000. Eventually the developers of the game delivered
a DLC called “The Extended Cut” that didn’t save the game but fans where happy
with the resolve.
Steam created by Valve supplies over 5 million PC gamers with over 2,000 video games online. This is a great website for Indie developers who don't have the money for traditional distribution further increasing the range and quality of video games. Sony and Microsoft have recently adopted this method and more and more indie games are being added to their online stores since 2013 for their current platforms. Although Microsoft have innervated this idea with their "Trade" option which includes a individual can trade a game they have bought within 30 days for another of equal price. This meant games couldn't buy and sell their hard copy games in retail shops which Microsoft felt heavy scrutiny from all kinds of critics and shop owners, and unfortunately Microsoft had to withdraw this feature for the Xbox One. Sony had a similar idea called "PlayStation Now" which is a streaming service for the PlayStation 4 that includes over 500 popular games from old and current gen for a small monthly payment of £9. Personally I have used this subscription with a 7 day trail so I could experience the God of War (2005, Santa Monica Studio), whilst using this service their was no problem although the game lagged a few times and if my internet was bad then I could see how it can be a problem.
Digital distribution exploded in 2013, now I believe in a few years this will become the primary distribution of video games, although it will kill video game retail shops and I will miss the experience of going to a nerdy shop to buy a game but you cant disagree that buying a video game online from home is easier and minimises risks. I have bought every game I've wanted in the last two years on Sony's Play Store and each time I've had to put considerable amount judging before buying it because I cant trade it in shops. I believe that more features like Microsoft "Trade" system will improve digital distribution eventually pushing it to the primary distribution of video games.
Steam created by Valve supplies over 5 million PC gamers with over 2,000 video games online. This is a great website for Indie developers who don't have the money for traditional distribution further increasing the range and quality of video games. Sony and Microsoft have recently adopted this method and more and more indie games are being added to their online stores since 2013 for their current platforms. Although Microsoft have innervated this idea with their "Trade" option which includes a individual can trade a game they have bought within 30 days for another of equal price. This meant games couldn't buy and sell their hard copy games in retail shops which Microsoft felt heavy scrutiny from all kinds of critics and shop owners, and unfortunately Microsoft had to withdraw this feature for the Xbox One. Sony had a similar idea called "PlayStation Now" which is a streaming service for the PlayStation 4 that includes over 500 popular games from old and current gen for a small monthly payment of £9. Personally I have used this subscription with a 7 day trail so I could experience the God of War (2005, Santa Monica Studio), whilst using this service their was no problem although the game lagged a few times and if my internet was bad then I could see how it can be a problem.
Digital distribution exploded in 2013, now I believe in a few years this will become the primary distribution of video games, although it will kill video game retail shops and I will miss the experience of going to a nerdy shop to buy a game but you cant disagree that buying a video game online from home is easier and minimises risks. I have bought every game I've wanted in the last two years on Sony's Play Store and each time I've had to put considerable amount judging before buying it because I cant trade it in shops. I believe that more features like Microsoft "Trade" system will improve digital distribution eventually pushing it to the primary distribution of video games.
Creative processes of a video game includes many different job roles working together. The creative process starts with an idea mainly about a story. This idea is informed to Script Writers and Artists who will create drawings for 3D models from ideas for example concept art. An example is freelance artist Ryan DeMtia who was brought in by Bungie to create ideas for a new level in their game Destiny (2014, Bungie, Activison), Ryan created everything from ships and bosses which in my opinion brought more gravitas to a fun and good looking game that saved Bungie from losing their players. These artists begin fabricating the games image. Once a story is finished and the art connects it will be given to 3D modellers and Game designers these role comprises of designing a game through 3D modelling and animating, a games design will also focus on gameplay and the story of the game. An example is Hironobu Sakaguchi a Japanese Game Developer who created the long lasting series Final Fantasy (1987, Square) which has sold over 100 million copies and each game is praised for its unique story. Whilst 3D modellers build the Programmers will write a code that best supports the project. A Technical artist is a person who will be the bridge between programmer and artist this person will not directly be involved like a producer but will act as a adviser for both teams for example finding a new modelling techniques and updating new script language for the coders. This is my short but descriptive explanation of the creative process in the video game industry.
Although companies like Valve Inc. would disagree. At Valve workers are given freedom to pursue anything they want much like children in a playground, they find a friend, share ideas then work together. But Valves employee's aren't the usual games designers for someone to be accepted by Valve they must be one of the best having a brilliance of talent within them. A quote from Valve's website agrees with my statement "When you give smart talented people the freedom to create without fear of failure, amazing things happen."
Although companies like Valve Inc. would disagree. At Valve workers are given freedom to pursue anything they want much like children in a playground, they find a friend, share ideas then work together. But Valves employee's aren't the usual games designers for someone to be accepted by Valve they must be one of the best having a brilliance of talent within them. A quote from Valve's website agrees with my statement "When you give smart talented people the freedom to create without fear of failure, amazing things happen."
Project management
There are numerous tasks that must be managed in pre-production. Many are meek but are significant in declaring the green light for production. The most important aspect in production is time which management like producers and head of areas must take responsibility. Companies enlisted the management teams to complete a set of certain task which they can record in either day, week or month. This helps abolish problems that involves timing issue when approaching deadlines, supposing a problem is to arise then employee’s must do the dreaded “Crunch time”. This is a term used in many industries alike, employee’s must work countless hours after their usual schedule so their area of work can catch up. This problem can be founded from varies issues but two I can think of is, the instigators are troubled workers who are unhappy with pay so they refuse to work, or a bad boss who cannot handle his/her own time well. Crunch time is bad for both parties as relationship between employee and management falls which deprives the potential of the creative product. In my opinion, these problems like all problems can be solved with communication. Feedback and constant scheduling will benefit all parties so the involvement of Runners as such will provide easier delivery of information resolving smaller issues so when a catastrophic problem must be dealt with there are no daggers in backs between employee’s and management.
There are numerous tasks that must be managed in pre-production. Many are meek but are significant in declaring the green light for production. The most important aspect in production is time which management like producers and head of areas must take responsibility. Companies enlisted the management teams to complete a set of certain task which they can record in either day, week or month. This helps abolish problems that involves timing issue when approaching deadlines, supposing a problem is to arise then employee’s must do the dreaded “Crunch time”. This is a term used in many industries alike, employee’s must work countless hours after their usual schedule so their area of work can catch up. This problem can be founded from varies issues but two I can think of is, the instigators are troubled workers who are unhappy with pay so they refuse to work, or a bad boss who cannot handle his/her own time well. Crunch time is bad for both parties as relationship between employee and management falls which deprives the potential of the creative product. In my opinion, these problems like all problems can be solved with communication. Feedback and constant scheduling will benefit all parties so the involvement of Runners as such will provide easier delivery of information resolving smaller issues so when a catastrophic problem must be dealt with there are no daggers in backs between employee’s and management.
The lack of focus in project management can affect
all business. To begin GMI (Governance Metrics international) is the independent
provider of global corporate governance who work for over 5000 companies, and
their job is to identify accounting issues which can stem from a client’s poor decision-making.
Although GMI seems to benefit companies they do suffer back lash as they
release information about a company with tremendous issues, which creates a bad
image also worrying shareholders. For example, SGMS (Scientific Games) a
company that specialises in supplying the latest gambling machines received a
staggeringly low rating from GMI. The report included information stating that
the leading shareholder had unnecessary influence on the company, which lead
them to produce too many machines factoring into the company losing profits. Along
with too many executives receiving compensation for non-minatory work. In my
opinion, this problem resulted in management becoming too greedy neglecting
their project, game machines involving gambling which is ironic as a company
like this gambled largely and lost.
In the processes of managing my own project for Unit 66 making 3D models I believe I have succeeded my goals and met deadlines. I first planned a SWOT analysis of using the 3D modelling software Blender.
Although the equipment I use is provided by the college I did a budget analysis of the equipment I need to rent for one month, which is the time I have spent on this project.
My pre-production started with a mind map about factors of a survival games. Once listing items, environments and other miscellaneous i started sketches. To save time i drew them quickly with not a lot of detail. I did this because i knew blender would take up most of my time. I designed six models in blender i spent 2-3 days on each with the help of my peers, we shared knowledge of techniques and each others models. This was extremely useful for learning and saving time. Below is my mind map, two sketches and two models:
In the processes of managing my own project for Unit 66 making 3D models I believe I have succeeded my goals and met deadlines. I first planned a SWOT analysis of using the 3D modelling software Blender.
My pre-production started with a mind map about factors of a survival games. Once listing items, environments and other miscellaneous i started sketches. To save time i drew them quickly with not a lot of detail. I did this because i knew blender would take up most of my time. I designed six models in blender i spent 2-3 days on each with the help of my peers, we shared knowledge of techniques and each others models. This was extremely useful for learning and saving time. Below is my mind map, two sketches and two models:
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/StarCraft_II:_Wings_of_Liberty#/media/File:StarCraft_II_-_Box_Art.jpg
http://kotaku.com/how-much-does-it-cost-to-make-a-big-video-game-1501413649
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=modern+warfare+3+trailer&view=detail&mid=67200D14BB1F7F493D1867200D14BB1F7F493D18&FORM=VIRE
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=modern+warfare+3+trailer&view=detail&mid=67200D14BB1F7F493D1867200D14BB1F7F493D18&FORM=VIRE
http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/masseffect/images/2/21/ME3_Extended_Cut.png/revision/latest?cb=20120622185513
https://venturebeat.com/community/2014/05/06/how-digital-distribution-is-changing-the-scope-of-gaming/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_distribution_in_video_games
http://www.valvesoftware.com/company/
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/94/72/81/94728177ca64321d2772b28718705993.jpg
http://www.businessinsider.com/author/gmi-ratings?IR=T
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/executive-compensation.html
https://www.gurufocus.com/news/173813/gmi-ratings-governance-issue--scientific-games-corp--
https://www.rentacomputer.com/rentals/office-equipment
http://www.valvesoftware.com/company/
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/94/72/81/94728177ca64321d2772b28718705993.jpg
http://www.businessinsider.com/author/gmi-ratings?IR=T
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/executive-compensation.html
https://www.gurufocus.com/news/173813/gmi-ratings-governance-issue--scientific-games-corp--
https://www.rentacomputer.com/rentals/office-equipment
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