- This topic has 13 replies, 9 voices, and was last updated 18 years, 3 months ago by
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You seem to be very smart in your development. Much better to have outside contractors with set rates and deadlines. The wages and deadlines of programmers/artists etc are someone elses problem not yours. Very clever and its the best way to get into the business. Plus the people you hire are experienced and have great advise on your game design document and package.
Some advise, try keep the names of your subcontractors discreet on your website etc.., publishers casually browsing might bypass frantic and go straight to them with proposals. Take them off the homepage and put them on a partners page or something. Make people aware of Frantic Games, not your contractors. Even on these boards, it just makes business sense. For example what if somebody saw the link and decided to hire them…could mean they juggle resources and place less emphasis on you.
Watch every cent that you spend and stay focused. Aim to produce the best quality and you will be a success. Best of luck.
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Cheers
Well since I work at Ericssons to pay for this project, every penny is spent wisely. We have several contractors available, and several studios available to do our work. We merely list one, because they are more prominent in our developments.
With the new site I will consult with them and find out exactly what they want us to do, and if its ok to remove them. But given that we have a good strong relationship with them, I wouldnt want to jump right in and remove them from our site. They certainly have a large enough crew to handle multiple projects.
I also forgot to mention in 2005 we developed a small indie racing game as part of a community effort. This helped to promote us, and show how easy it would be to mod 1944
[Edit]I just want to add, that if you want to make sure an artist doesnt waste your time. Give them a piece of work that you expect to be met. For example the above weapons are a good starting point for us. So we would ask a developer if they can meet those standards. If their portfolio doesnt match the standard. Then request them to do a trial segment or piece. This can be just a portion of a texture or an un-optomised model.
My own personal rule of thumb. 4 hours for a weapon, 8 hours for a base character, 2 hours fo each further character (no head changes), 6 hours for a vehicle. Texture are far harder, but you can expect about 2 hours for an unwrap and 4 hours per map. Normal Mapping is another issue with a ZBrush work taking about 5 hours or alternatively a high poly model taking about 8 hours.
If you are being charged more than this, I would consider looking into how efficient their workflow is. Obviously its all subjective given the different degree’s of complexity of a piece. But still its fair to say that since you are paying you have a right to know where your money is going.
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Great plan to read Ronan =)
Keep up the good work and best wishes for 2006 to all at Frantic Games.Keith
StarCave -
Looking good! And that Luger model is sweet! :D
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Some community members just read this and gave out to me for not showing these 2 weapon skins:
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beaut Ronan :D .. if you ever need any help with music, give me a shout..
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Looking good Ronan!
The Reality engine seems to be a great engine, but of course ( as seen by your screenshots etc ), it’s only a tool, the real talent lies in both your team members, and in the way you have financed it… it’s very inspirational to see this ( what some might see as very risky ) venture working so well!
Mal
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Thanks all, the PC Gamer article has given us a huge boost with other magazines from around the world looking to do interviews. Which is all good, Fitch I will PM you soon, while the game will feature no music in game, title music etc is a must.
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Nice one for the update, looks like things are going grand :)
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Nice one, looks top notch
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Just thought I would post a quick update since today seems to be when we get alot of press ;)
All related to speedtree but seeing as how we are mentioned with some really top products. Its all good:
http://www.gamershell.com/news/27279.html
http://www.gamedev.net/community/fo…topic_id=368715
http://www.speedtree.com/html/press.htm
http://www.speedtree.com/(On speedtree.com we appear on the right in blue amongst the list of added developers)
This is pretty good exposure, and we have been finding several other news articles littered around the web.
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It’s been interesting to follow the team’s progress, Ronan. Outsourcing significant parts of the development process is something that I’ve been reading up on lately. I think it’s potentially a business model that could work for game developers who don’t have the backing of a publisher and their money.
Could you tell us the advantages and disadvantages you’ve discovered while working with the company?
Good luck in 2006 and keep us updated!
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