Gusto Games - Developer Profile Feature
Derek dela Fuente
02/03/2006
TVG chats to Simon Phillips, Managing Director of UK developer Gusto Games...
Gusto maybe a relatively new name on the Britsoft stage but with expertise dating back to the popular MegaDrive footie title, Fever Pitch, and core members from Silicon Dreams, they're certainly one that knows the sports genre inside out. Having stepped into the world of football management with the console conversions of Eidos' Championship Manager 5, Gusto Games are currently putting the finishing touches to the promising World Tour Golf.
TVG recently had the chance to speak with Simon Phillips, Managing Director, at Gusto Games about the direction and vision for this Britsoft developer.
How many people work at Gusto and can you give our readers a little insight into the games some of the personnel have worked on and the breakdown of the team?
We have just over 35 people at Gusto towers now and have a great blend of industry veterans and talented graduates a-like. The company is split into two core game teams, a QA and a Tech department. Amongst the guys we have worked on games ranging from Fever Pitch on the Megadrive up to the UEFA Champions League series of games and more recently Championship Manager on PS2, Xbox and PSP. We have a really nice setup where the guys writing the games are really passionate about what they are doing. But hey, effectively they are paid to watch football and golf - what could be better?!
Looking at the games created and that of titles in the pipeline would it be fair to say your focus is very much on sports title and can we expect to see more variety of products or do you feel developers really need to specialise?
Without a doubt. One of our competitive advantages is actually that we love sport. It makes it so much easier working on things that you enjoy and I think that shows through in the final products. In terms of specialising, I guess it would be fair to say that for the foreseeable future our major releases will feature sports. However, we still like to flirt with guns and aliens and all that, and have some smaller projects in the pipeline - keep your eyes peeled!
Do Gusto have an internal R/D department and how focused are you on creating your own tools and technology?
Indeed we do. We are fortunate enough to have our own mature cross-platform internal technology called Proteus that basically allows us to develop for one platform and then move it to another, at the same time adding bespoke features, like shaders and controllers etc. It's actually been developed over the last 14 years or so and re-written a couple of times to meet future demands. Currently our game code can scale between Mobiles and PocketPC right up to 360 and PS3 with very little differences! Having good, solid technology is a must for a developer now-a-days and with the power of today's consoles and PCs it would be a costly and incredibly risky thing to start from scratch. We are very lucky.
"One of our competitive advantages is actually that we love sport..."
What would be your mission statement and do you as a developer have any kind of unique business model that you believe places you in good position?
I guess it would be - Enjoy your game. It's important for the teams to enjoy what they are working on and really care about what happens when the player does x and y, that's something we have here and I really couldn't put a price on that. Combine that with our technology, which as I mentioned gives us a massive advantage from a business point of view. The board of Gusto is actually made up entirely of people passionate about a game, which also helps!!
Are you excited by the next-generation of consoles and do they provide a platform to be more creative with game concepts?
I think we have always been able to think creatively and then convert that into what is possible and make the most of the technology; after all, a great game will always be a great game regardless of the platform that it's being played on. That said, the portability of the PSP can never be underestimated and now that we are pretty much permanently connected to the Internet we have the scope to do some really cool, new stuff. This excites me a lot (probably a little too much actually!!!)
What are your thoughts on Microsoft's two-model strategy behind the Xbox360, do you have any concerns over a split demographic? Equally does the apparent development cost on the Playstation3 and other next gen formats concern you and are you already looking towards developing on PS3?
I guess only time will tell about the two-model strategy. The great thing about developing for consoles has always been that the hardware is a constant, so you can see where problems could develop. I'd rather try and solve the problem of getting a great game that can be enjoyed on all variants, going for the lowest common denominator, rather than cut off half of the audience.
We are pretty much tooled up to deliver on all next gen platforms and if you are not careful and clever the costs can spiral to the point of saying "is it actually worth it?" But fortunately enough for us and our publishers, some forward thinking and planning should keep that under control.
Does the decline of the Britsoft scene concern you and is a thriving UK scene a good thing? What can you put the decline down to?
Yes. Having been in games for some time, I love Brit Soft. Traditionally British developers tend to come up with some of the most creative and novel ideas around. But I don't think that these will necessarily disappear, just kind of go a bit more "underground". Xbox Live Arcade will unearth some great treasures!
I guess as the industry grows into a more "mature" business it attracts a lot of outside funding, largely from the US and as such its being more and more influenced. There are still some great Brit Soft outfits around, we are fortunate enough to be working with SCi who share my passion in our industry.
"Traditionally British developers tend to come up with some of the most creative and novel ideas around."
In general do you create your own game designs or do publishers contact you with ideas? Do you feel that generally most publishers are going for tried and trusted ideas and do not want to take a risk and be creative - and possibly reap bigger rewards?
Both. As the cost of the projects go up, publishers are taking bigger risks with advances so, understandably, need to go with some more tried and trusted ideas. There is still a lot of scope for creativity; you just have to be sensible in not only what's fun as a game idea, but also what's right as a product.
How important is it for you to stay independent and does that come at a cost and with the trend over the last few years to create big teams do you envisage a time when small will be good?
It's swings and roundabouts really. Being independent is fantastic because we can have a discussion about a great idea in the morning and by lunchtime have someone working on it. That allows us true freedom to try things out. It's obviously not without its risks financially, but one of the most attractive things we offer to our publishers are strong, stable roots with a passion for our games. Priceless.
"Being independent is fantastic because we can have a discussion about a great idea in the morning and by lunchtime have someone working on it."
If you could create a game without risk or restrictions (including budget, what would it be and would you be excited about this prospect?
I am a Championship Manager nut, so I would stick to that theme I think. An entirely connected world of real managers with constantly updating player stats influenced by real-world results. Imagine being able to scout players from anywhere in the world, down to the smallest academies in the most far flung places from an infinitely expanding "live" database. Ahhhhhhhh.....
What are your goals for 2006 and can you see any trends becoming more apparent?
Are you positive for the gaming scene?
Goals for 2006 - to continue improving Championship Manager and its scene and aim for the best possible launch ever for our new Golf title, World Tour Golf, coming out this summer. That and trying to spend time with my family.
Positive? - Always.
TVG would like to thank Simon Phillips for taking the time to answer our questions on both Gusto Games and the Brit Soft scene. Gusto Games are currently working on two titles, Championship Manager 2006 on Xbox and PlayStation2 for Eidos, and World Tour Golf on Xbox, PlayStation2, PC and PSP for Oxygen Interactive.