Amidst announcements of more studio closures --
Bizarre Creations and
Propaganda -- Tim Carter calls on developers to adopt a new model for collaborative creation.
While outsourcing models have been adopted widely, writes Carter in his
latest Gamasutra feature, "The problems of remote development are well known by now. People working remotely don't work well together -- no matter how much emailing, messaging, Skyping they do. Distributed work just doesn't compare to in-person work."
However, it's also well-known that keeping studios functioning for project after project is increasingly difficult in today's climate. Carter's suggestion? A "bivouac", or temporary grouping that meets the needs of the production and which disperses upon its completion -- a model similar to film and TV production.
In that industry, "the space is nevertheless temporary: eventually production will wrap and the contractors go their respective ways (on to new projects), freeing the production company of its overhead burden; freeing the core talent of its obligation to remain married to one studio regardless of its wishes."
To learn more about how Carter envisions this would work in the game industry, check
Gamasutra's latest feature, Is It Time For The Bivouac Game Studio?, which is now live.
