GDC Europe 2013's call for talks now open until April 22  
by Staff [04.02.13]
The call for submissions to present talks at this August's Gamescom co-located 2013 Game Developers Conference Europe is now open through Monday, April 22.
Console/PC, Social/Online, Smartphone/Tablet, Indie, Programming, Art, Audio, Design, Production, Business/Marketing, GDC Europe

---

Video: Sony Online's tricks for getting the most out of social media  
by Staff [10.17.12]
The house that EverQuest built has learned a lot about keeping its players engaged, taking risks that sometimes work out and sometimes fall flat. Take a tour of their dos and don'ts in this free GDC Europe video.
Console/PC, Art, Exclusive, Video, GDC Europe

---

Video: Identifying your mobile player's habits  
by Staff [09.21.12]
In this GDC Europe presentation, Flurry's Richard Firminger presents his firm's latest data on the mobile game market, detailing new player habits, emerging business strategies, and much more.
Social/Online, Business/Marketing, Exclusive, Video, GDC Europe

---

Video: Managing a game studio doesn't have to be like herding cats 1
by Staff [09.17.12]
Overseeing a game studio is never easy, but Sproing CEO Harald Riegler believes that encouraging a sense of studio culture can eliminate the feeling of "herding cats" and alleviate many management woes.
Console/PC, Design, Exclusive, Video, GDC Europe

---

Record attendance for GDC Europe 2012, dates for 2013  
by Mike Rose [08.20.12]
The 2012 Game Developers Conference Europe (GDC Europe) saw more than 2,100 game industry professionals through its doors last week, breaking the event's previous attendance record.
Console/PC, Business/Marketing, GDC Europe

---

Dinosaurs with lasers? Sure, as long as it makes sense 2
by Mike Rose [08.17.12]
Vlambeer's Jan Willem Nijman and Rami Ismail take the underlying fiction in their games very seriously, even if that fiction involves a construction worker blasting aliens on the moon as in Super Crate Box.
Console/PC, Indie, Design, GDC Europe

---

Modding tools for Battlefield 3? It's a scary business, says DICE 18
by Mike Rose [08.17.12]
DICE's Karl Magnus Troedsson explained this week at GDC Europe why Battlefield 3 does not include any modding tools -- essentially, the company is a bit scared to release the code into the wild.
Console/PC, Programming, Design, GDC Europe

---

BioWare: Some players want day-one DLC 92
by Mike Rose [08.17.12]
Day one downloadable content is becoming commonplace in the video game marketplace. BioWare Montreal director of online development Fernando Melo explains why BioWare is committed to that trend.
Console/PC, Business/Marketing, GDC Europe

---

Taking the 'less is more' approach to level design 12
by Mike Rose [08.15.12]
Eufloria's Rudolf Kremers believes that "less is more" is the perfect approach for indie developers on a budget when it comes to level design, and his GDC Europe talk today described the various ways this approach can be achieved.
Console/PC, Indie, Design, GDC Europe

---

Avoiding 'false choices' and giving your players real trade-offs 9
by Mike Rose [08.15.12]
James Russell, lead designer at Creative Assembly, is a big fan of player choices and trade-offs in video games -- and noted at GDC Europe that these choices actually have to be interesting, otherwise they become meaningless.
Console/PC, Design, GDC Europe

---

What went wrong during the making of Journey 30
by Cassandra Khaw [08.15.12]
Former thatgamecompany executive producer Robin Hunicke discusses in frank detail the things that went wrong during the making of Journey, hoping to inspire better practices among her peers.
Console/PC, Design, GDC Europe

---

Craftsmanship vs. art -- what are games? 63
by Christian Nutt [08.15.12]
Are games art? Is it okay if games aren't art? Developers including Kellee Santiago and Alex Evans debated what it would take for the medium to get there -- if it hasn't already.
Console/PC, Indie, Design, Gamescom, GDC Europe

---

MMO designers need to focus more on the 'why', not the 'what' 5
by Mike Rose [08.15.12]
MMO designers need to stop focusing so much on what players want to do in online games, and instead hone in on why these players choose to put so many hours into the MMOs they play, says Funcom creative director Craig Morrison.
Console/PC, Social/Online, Design, GDC Europe

---

The keys to a company culture that works 19
by Christian Nutt [08.15.12]
In a heartfelt talk at GDC Europe, Harald Riegler, co-founder of Sproing, frankly discussed the challenges and advantages of shaping a company culture that leads to respect and success.
Console/PC, Indie, Business/Marketing, GDC Europe

---

Working from home with Ngmoco  
by Cassandra Khaw [08.14.12]
Ngmoco's Senta Jakobson gave GDC Europe attendees an inside look at her experience managing a distributed team: When working from home, "you are only ever judged on your results," she says.
Smartphone/Tablet, Production, GDC Europe

---

If people are buying your 'premium' iOS game, why try free-to-play? 26
by Cassandra Khaw [08.14.12]
FishLabs Entertainment's space-faring iOS games have proven successful, selling a complete experience for $6.99 and above. So why did the "old school" studio decide to turn to in-app payments?
Smartphone/Tablet, Business/Marketing, GDC Europe

---

Mobile games taking big bites out of Nintendo, Sony's handheld biz 14
by Cassandra Khaw [08.14.12]
"It's really sort the biggest content revolution that we've ever seen. It's exciting and it shows that indies can kill a very, very established market," said Richard Firminger of Flurry Analytics at GDC Europe.
Smartphone/Tablet, Business/Marketing, GDC Europe

---

How GoldenEye's famous multiplayer mode was sneaked in at the last minute 10
by Mike Rose [08.14.12]
GDC Europe attendees were today treated to a rare postmortem for the Nintendo 64 classic GoldenEye from the game's director Martin Hollis.
Console/PC, Business/Marketing, GDC Europe

---

Don't let popular opinion get in the way of your vision 3
by Mike Rose [08.14.12]
Simon Flesser and Magnus Gardeback of mobile game studio Simogo urged developers at GDC Europe today to "base [design and business] decisions on what feels right instead of what is considered right."
Smartphone/Tablet, Indie, Design, Business/Marketing, GDC Europe

---

Five key facts about free-to-play design 29
by Christian Nutt [08.13.12]
As the head of game design for free-to-play browser game publisher Bigpoint (Battlestar Galactica Online), Jan Richter shares insights he learned while "exploring new territory" in what he calls the fastest-moving segment of game design.
Social/Online, Design, Business/Marketing, GDC Europe

---