20 years building games: from 8-bit code to studio production
Before modern engines and networked tools, building games meant writing low level code, managing memory and inventing your own tools. This four part career record follows that...
Games industry archive
Historical game development writing: production, design, career progression, studio culture, and marketing during the console and PC era. These are archival records — context belongs to their time, not the present.
Featured writing
What I was responsible for as Studio Head
I'm having a bit of a dig about in some old documents and I found my old
Latest in Games industry archive
20 years of a Video Game Developer's Career - Part 4
The twilight of PlayStation 2, starting studio number two from scratch and the formative moments that defined the second half of a game development career.
20 years of a Video Game Developer's Career - Part 3
I'd like to share with you my game development career experience as part
20 years of a Video Game Developer's Career - Part 2
I follow on from Part 1 of this
Archive writing (10 items)
What Limited Connectivity Taught Me About Protected Focus
A week with difficult internet access changed how I handled email, calls and online noise. The useful lesson was not disconnection: it was deciding when communication deserved...
Outsourcing Artwork for Better Game Development
Hi, my name is David Tolley and I'd like to share my many years of
The Polarising Size of Video Game Developers
There used to be a time when developers of all sizes existed from small
Book Review - Linchpin, Seth Godin
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0749953357?tag=sp affiliate 21
Why Outcomes Matter More Than Fixed Attendance in Creative Work
Fixed attendance is easy to count, but it is a poor measure of creative contribution. Clear outcomes, autonomy, feedback and protected focus make a stronger operating model...
Why Standardised Processes Fail Creative Technical Teams
Standardisation helps until it treats skilled people as interchangeable operators. When enterprise process replaces frontline judgement, creative technical work becomes...
Thought - Who are you talking to?
Remember, you're always talking to your game players, the end audience. You're not talking to the middle man, the Interviewer, Lead Designer, Journalist or your Manager. Think...
Marketing your video game is everyone's job
In a world of freelancers, contractors and small, tight development
What Does Quality Mean in Creative and Technical Work?
Quality is not a decorative label or the amount of effort somebody spent. It is a judgement against explicit expectations: fitness for purpose, reliability, craft and the trade...
Why No Delivery Process Works for Every Team and Project
Scrum, PRINCE2, Lean and XP can all help. None removes the need to understand the team, uncertainty and constraints in front of you. A delivery process is a working hypothesis,...
Related records
View selected credits on MobyGames : My professional games career ran from 1987 to 2011. MobyGames provides an independent record of selected credited work from that period.
