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开发者谈超休闲游戏不是短暂潮流,而是文化冲击

发布时间:2019-07-16 09:08:58 Tags:,

开发者谈超休闲游戏不是短暂潮流,而是文化冲击

原作者:Natalie Clayton 译者:Willow Wu

超休闲游戏并不是短暂的潮流,发行商们最好做打持久战的准备——这个观点出自于Draw It开发商Kwalee的发行经理Jack Griffin,他认为有些公司想要利用开发者在超休闲潮流消失之前快速地捞一笔。

自三月份上架以来,Draw It凭借着3000多万的下载量在榜单高居不下。对这个位于利明顿温泉镇的工作室来说,这并不是什么令人震惊的结果,但它进一步展现了该公司对这类游戏的信心。

“我们对这款游戏很有把握,觉得它非常独特,”Griffin说。“它在美国蝉联了两周的冠军,并连续两个多月保持在榜单前十名,目前下载量已超过3000万。”

Draw It的火速成功让Kwalee团队士气大增,更加努力地制作其它几款超休闲游戏。

“通过像Draw It这样特别的游戏获得成功,对大家来说是一种很大的激励,我们会继续对超休闲游戏做出新的尝试,”他说。

Monument Valley(from gamezebo.com)

Monument Valley(from gamezebo.com)

“未来我们还有很多令人兴奋的项目,有来自外部开发者,有的是我们自己的。”

超休闲游戏已经成为了增长速度最快的手游类型之一,而这种势头似乎还会在下半年持续下去。

对于开发者和发行商来说,人们对超休闲游戏的喜爱带来了机会以及挑战。

“超休闲游戏现在真的很受欢迎,这个领域的竞争也越来越激烈的了,”Griffin说。

“市场发展非常快,在跟上潮流的同时做一款能够抓人眼球的游戏是一个不小的挑战。”

Griffin补充说市场只会变得越来越拥挤,尤其是考虑到现在有更多公司加入发行行业。

“有很多游戏开发人才,他们因为缺乏资金或者营销经验而没能让游戏出现在聚光灯下,”他解释说。

更危险的是,有些经验不足的开发者会被开发商利用,成为挣快钱的工具。

据说,在超休闲游戏领域,收入分成上限和长期独占权等做法非常普遍,开发者不应该忍受这种情况。

“商业方面的挑战在于如何让大家明白这不应该成为行业标准,而Kwalee正在努力证明这一点。”

超休闲游戏的快速增长以及持续进化意味着寻找一个适合你的发行商极为关键。

大部分超休闲游戏的开发过程包括快速制作原型、迭代和淘汰,直到开发者找到一个能够坚持下去的项目——这与传统的大型游戏的制作过程大相径庭。

“我强烈建议开发者寻找一个能够帮助游戏脱颖而出的发行商,快速制作出的原型应包含核心机制和略微加工过的画面,”Griffin说。

“你得不断尝试,直到找到可行的那一个。”

如果超休闲游戏只是昙花一现,那你想怎么做都无所谓,但Griffin并不这么认为。尽管之前有讨论说这一类型只是转瞬即逝的潮流,Griffin坚定地认为事实不是这样的。

随着超休闲游戏的持续发展,Griffin认为开发者和发行商需要做好长期坚持下去的准备。

这就意味着那些寻求快速盈利的公司不能像以往一样掠取短期收益,开发者和发行商之间的需要建立更加紧密的联系。成为合作伙伴也要给开发者创造下一个大热门游戏的空间,这样对所有项目相关人员来说都是有益的。

“我们想继续证明给大家看,作为发行商,帮助开发者学习也是有好处的,”Griffin说。

“发行商要在早期分享自己的信息以及专业技能,帮助指导开发者制作成功的原型和游戏。”

超休闲游戏展现出了手游的核心吸引力——下载快速、操作简单,就连非传统玩家都想尝试。

Griffin认为短时间内超休闲游戏趋势不会发生什么变化。这类游戏仍占据下载榜的前排位置,Kwalee也不打算转向其它游戏。

“这类游戏的广泛吸引力还会保持下去,如果说2019年会有什么变化的话,那就是超休闲游戏受众会继续增长。

“超休闲游戏不是一时的潮流,而是对整个手游产业的一种文化冲击。”

本文由游戏邦编译,转载请注明来源,或咨询微信zhengjintiao

Hyper-casual is more than a fad and publishers in the space had better be prepared for the long haul.

That’s according to Draw It developer Kwalee’s publishing manager Jack Griffin, who believes some developers are being taken for a ride by companies looking for an easy win before the hype fades.

Since launching in March, Draw It has been topping charts with over 30 million downloads to date. That’s no huge shock for Leamington Spa-based studio Kwalee, but it has helped prove the company’s faith in its games.

“We had a lot of confidence in the game and feel that it’s really unique,” says Griffin. “It achieved number one overall in the US for two weeks and stayed in the top 10 for over two months, achieving over 30 million downloads so far.”

Draw It’s rapid success has given Kwalee’s team a morale boost, pushing production forward on other hyper-casual games the studio currently has in development.

“Achieving success with a unique game like Draw it is really motivating everyone here to push the boundaries of what a hyper-casual game can be,” he says.

“We’ve got a lot of exciting projects on the horizon from external developers and internal development.”

Go fast or go home

Hyper-casual has become one of the fastest-growing trends in mobile gaming and it only looks set to continue through the rest of 2019.

For developers and publishers in the space, that popularity brings its own set of challenges and opportunities.

“Hyper-casual is really hitting its stride and the space is becoming more and more competitive,” says Griffin.

“The market moves incredibly fast and keeping up with trends whilst also making a game that is unique enough to grab people’s attention can be a challenge.”

Griffin adds that the sector is only going to become more crowded, particularly as more businesses move into publishing.

“There are a lot of really talented developers out there who don’t necessarily get the opportunity to put their game into the spotlight due to a lack of financial resources or marketing experience,” he explains.

More dangerously, Griffin warns that inexperienced developers are being taken advantage of by publishers jumping on the trend.

Practices like capped revenue shares and long-term exclusivity are said to be rife in the hyper-casual space and Griffin says developers shouldn’t have to put up with it.

“The challenge from a business side is making it widely known that this shouldn’t be an industry standard and it’s something Kwalee is working hard to demonstrate,” he states.

The rapid growth and continued evolution of hyper-casual means that finding the right publisher is more important than ever.

Much of hyper-casual development involves quickly prototyping, iterating and scrapping projects until a developer finds the one that sticks – a far cry from the more traditional, gradual burn of larger game production.

“I would strongly recommend that developers find a publisher who can help make their game stand out, and work on rapidly producing prototypes that contain a core mechanic and slight polish on the visuals,” says Griffin.

“You have to keep trying until you find one that works.”

Here to stay

None of this would matter if hyper-casual games were a flash in the pan, but Griffin is quick to shoot down such claims. He says while there has been talk in the past about the genre being just a phase or a fleeting trend, he strongly believes that isn’t the case.

With the genre here to stay, then, Griffin feels developers and publishers need to be prepared to stick in for the long haul.

That means less short-term cash grabs from companies looking for a quick buck and more relationship-building between developers and publishers. Building a solid partnership that gives developers the space to create the next hit is a net positive for all involved.

“We want to continue to demonstrate to the market that as a publisher it’s beneficial to help developers learn,” says Griffin.

“To share the information and expertise that publishers have at an early stage to help direct developers towards producing successful prototypes and games.”

Hyper-casual games play into the core appeal of mobile gaming. They’re quick to download, simple to control and they’re attracting audiences outside of the traditional gaming sphere.

Griffin doesn’t see the space going anywhere anytime soon. And while hyper-casual games continue to dominate the download charts, Kwalee plans to be right there with it.

“The incredibly broad audience for these types of games isn’t going anywhere and if anything that audience continues to grow in 2019,” he states.

“Hyper-casual isn’t a phase, it’s a culture shock for the whole mobile industry.”

(source:pocketgamer.biz )


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