Under the Hat

We’ve all heard the question. What’s your game about? After all, that’s why you asked for the meeting in the first place, to be able to answer that question. But if you need to set up a laptop, queue up the dancing bears, or perform any other gyrations before you [...]

Did you know that, of all the game development companies that have failed over the years, 69% have died from self-inflicted wounds? Also, that 13% of all statistics you read are completely fabricated? Okay, so I made that up. But I actually wouldn’t be surprised if the number of developers [...]

Negotiation is part of our daily lives. Whether we are dealing with customers, co-workers, or our own families, it all comes down to ensuring that your needs are met in a manner that is fair to all involved. Granted, there are those who would feel that the second half of [...]

Working with Big Publishers is not a pipedream, but to accomplish it, you have to learn to think like they do. That means, among other things, proactively addressing risk management. It all starts with your Company Background document, which should be sent as a follow up to every meeting, and [...]

Brand Owners In the mix of 168 distinct licensing categories, “interactive” looms large as a potential revenue generator, and some sources believe it will even eclipse toys and games as the primary category in the long run. From my point of view though, that simply isn't going to reach its full potential until [...]

Most people who have been in the games industry a long time like I have would call 2008-2012 the most difficult time most folks have faced in our history, eclipsing even the fabled crash of 1983. Others would ask how could that view be possible when the market as a [...]

In the current economic climate, we are bombarded with numbers at every turn. And with the exception of declining oil prices, it is difficult to find something in the media to get excited about. Every day for the last quarter of 2008 we heard of studio closings, layoffs, and reduced [...]

Because we are a business development-oriented organization, I spend a lot of time in this column -- and with my clients -- discussing how to get and retain better customers. This month, however, we are going to be a little more introspective and talk about how to attract and retain [...]