There are many things to consider when it comes to game development. The success of a game development company significantly depends on the team as there is a huge competition in the gaming industry. In this article, we will take a look at what makes a great development team while introducing some of its important roles.
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People incorrectly assume that one person takes one role in the development team and does everything that role demands. It may be true for a small team consisting of just a few developers, but generally, it would be really hard to find even one role in a game development team where one person does all the job. Because of that, you will need help from other members. Only a strong team that works together can be successful in developing a game. If there is even a single piece of the puzzle missing, it may damage the whole project.
If you are thinking about creating a highly effective team, there is a list of positions you need to fill. However, this list may not be the same for every company. For example, if you are creating a game without audio or writing, you can omit some of the otherwise essential positions.
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The very first role a game development team should think of. Without an exceptional programmer, your ideas will never come to life. A programmer is a person who develops the tools and codebase of the game. These are irreplaceable aspects of every game and since games are technological entertainment, there is no game without a programmer.
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In the beginning of the game development process, you establish a certain vision. The game producer then not only maintains this vision, but also coordinates the entire development team. He also ensures the set deadlines are met and handles the business side of things, including economic assessment or marketing strategies.
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Game designers connect all parts of the game’s creation and decide the general design of the game. This position ensures the quality of all game art aspects including storytelling, concept art or 2D and 3D art. Moreover, there are very often designers with certain specialization such as a game designer for game mechanics, storyline, or environment. For instance, a game mechanics designer works on the game balance while the environmental designer creates multiple environments of the game.
Technical artist focuses on incorporating art assets into games without going beyond the technical limits of the platform or disrupting the artistic vision. Moreover, his job is to connect game artists and game developers. Due to this, a technical artist needs to be skilled both at art and programming. His responsibilities also include deciding which tools a studio should use or looking out for new techniques and subsequently implementing them in projects.
If a game is not interesting, despite having a great storytelling and characters, and players are not motivated and attracted to continue playing, a game economy designer comes to play. His main focus is to analyse the game’s performance based on data and come up with solutions for improving the game’s economic model. It is necessary that he has profound knowledge and experience both in video games and real-life economy.
Level designer’s job is to create the entry and exit points of each level and to guide the players logically through the game. The sequence of levels is also very important to consider, as the first level should introduce the game, establish the characters, and explain the storyline, while the following levels should focus on developing the characters and expanding the story.
QA Testers are an essential part of every development team. Their main focus is on finding bugs, but they also provide feedback in terms of game design, art or user interface in order to improve the video game.
The video game industry is developing very rapidly. A still increasing number of outsourcing companies are offering their services for a very decent price and hiring individual specialists is more expensive than working with an outsourcing studio. If you are looking for a graphic studio, the best thing you can do is to look for an experienced team such as Fanatic Games.
We are an established studio with over twenty years of experience in game design. We have worked on projects as big as Assassin’s Creed, Mafia or Call of Duty, so choosing our company will significantly increase your odds of developing a successful game. Hiring us will also secure one of the best price/quality ratios on the market and because we work fast, any deadline you set for us will be met.