Tag Archives: UK Games Industry

Train2Game / Game Horizon Developer Drinks

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  • Opportunity for students to meet industry professionals and discuss course details
  • Developer drinks on Tuesday 19 July gives developers access to hot new industry talent

Train2Game, provider of games industry training courses, today announces details of its participation in the 2011 Develop Conference, including its first ever ‘Guru Bar’ on stand B12 – giving those interested in the games industry a forum to interact with key figures and ask questions about training, career development and the community at large.

For developers eager to wind down after a long day marching the floors of the show, Train2Game will also be teaming up with leading games business network, GameHorizon, to host an evening of drinks at Alfresco, a Brighton seafront bar. Here, developers are invited to meet future industry talent and rising stars of the course, as well as get more information on how to get involved with placement programmes.

Key facts of the placement schemes follow below:

  • The placement schemes operate across the all Train2Game courses – Artists, Animators, Developers, Designers and QA.
  • Developer placements programmes are subsidised by Train2Game and can range for periods of 2 – 6 months.
  • Developers can choose from the top performers to suit their needs

Tony Bickley, Course Director at Train2Game sees events like Develop as the perfect place for the present and future of the games industry to collide: “While it’s easier than ever to connect online, there’s no replacement for meeting your peers face to face, both when on the hunt for new talent or considering a route into the industry. It’s the same logic which fuels our courses – substantial relationships and interaction online supported by face time wherever possible.”

Train2Game is a blended-learning organisation designed to fast track the best, most ambitious and motivated students into the games industry through comprehensive, expert-supervised courses. A big part of this is co-ordinating with the best developers in the country and providing top tier talented graduates for placements in the workplace.

Train2Game Guru Bar Details
Date: Weds 20 – Thurs 21 July
Venue: Develop Expo, Stand B12
Hilton Metropole, Brighton
Attendance is free, please RSVP at the Develop 2011 front desk

Train2Game/ Game Horizon Developer Drinks
Date: Tuesday 19th July
Time: 17:00 – 19:00
Venue: Alfresco,
The Milkmaid Pavilion,
Kings Road Arches,
Brighton,
BN1 2LN

Train2Game news – UK Charts: Zumba Fitness No.1 again

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Train2Game students are possibly getting fed up with hearing the same thing every week, but Zumba Fitness is once again the UK No.1.  It’s the dance title’s fourth consecutive top spot and seventh overall.

DIRT 3 jumps five places to No.2, equalling the position the Train2Game blog reported it reached in its debut week at the end of May. Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon climbs to No.3, no doubt thanks to the release of the film.  LEGO: Pirates of the Carribean drops to No.4, while three times No.1 L.A. Noire drops to No.5

Virtua Tennis slips one place to No.6, while Call of Duty: Black Ops re-enters the top ten at No.7.  Former No.1 Brink moves up one to No.8, F.E.A.R 3 drops five to No.9 while Top Spin 4 completes the top ten.

UFC Fitness sees an increase in sales, rising from last week’s debut position of No.22 to No.13.

The UKIE Gfk Chart-Track All Formats Top 10 for the week ending 9th July 2011 is therefore as follows:

1. Zumba Fitness (505 Games)
2. Dirt 3 (Codemasters)
3. Transformers: Dark of the Moon (Activision)
4. LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean (Disney)
5. LA Noire (Rockstar)
6. Virtua Tennis 4 (Sega)
7. Call of Duty: Black Ops (Activision)
8. Brink (Bethesda)
9. FEAR 3 (Warner)
10. Top Spin 4 (2K Games)

It’s another relatively quiet week for new releases, which include Captain America: Super Solider and Earth Defence Force: Insect Armageddon.

So Train2Game, could Zumba Fitness hold onto No.1 for the rest of the summer? Why do you think it’s so popular?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

[Source: UKIE Games Charts©, compiled by GfK Chart-Track]

Train2Game Industry Experience Diaries – Johnny Robinson No.2

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Train2Game Game Designer Johnny Robinson is on a  Train2Game student work placement at DR Studios.

This is the second in a series of Train2Game student work placement diaries Johnny will be writing during his placement. Read it below or on the official Train2Game industry experience diaries website.

You can also watch Johnny’s second video diary here on the Train2Game blog.

Train2Game students will be happy, Over half of UK population plays games

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If Train2Game students ever needed something to remind them about what reach the games industry has, this is it; over 50% of people in the UK play games.

That’s according to a report from games market research firm Newzoo, which suggests estimates the 31million people in the UK, or 52% of the population, spend money on video games.

Train2Game students probably aren’t surprised to hear that its consoles that bring in the most money, with an estimated £1.6 billion to be spent on the various consoles and their games this year.

Other estimates suggest that £450 million will be spent on physical copies of PC & Mac games, £400 will go on casual games, with£350 million being spent on MMOS. Digital downloads of PC and Mac games through programmes such as Steam will see £330 million being spent on them, while Brit is will spend £300 million on mobile games.

The average person in the UK plays games on 3.9 of the above platforms, with casual gaming websites proving the most popular. Consoles are the second most popular means of playing video games. People spend an average of 43 minutes playing games everyday.

“Compared to the US, the UK shows a more traditional divide of money spent by consumers, with 56 per cent spent on console and boxed PC/Mac games, whereas in the US, this figure has dropped to 45 per cent,” Newzoo CEO and co-founder  Peter Warman said..

“No other country surveyed shows such a significant difference between time and money spent. For instance, in the UK, online and mobile gaming takes 60 per cent of time but only 35 per cent of money.

“We expect the free-to-play business models on all platforms, including consoles, to not only push the UK market back to growth but also decrease the current gap between time and money spent.”

Warman may be right when it comes to predicting that free-to-play model will expand, indeed, as reported by the Train2Game blog just last week, EA believe freemium can be as profitable as console games.

What’s certain is that with an ever increasing number of people playing games, partially thanks to the rise of casual and mobile games, it’s a good time to attempt to get into the games industry through completing a Train2Game course.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on the figures? Does anything surprise you? Does it offer you encouragement about your choice of career path?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Train2Game News, Media Molecule revealed as Develop Conference headliners

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Develop Conference logo

Many Train2Game students already know that the Develop Conference is one of the biggest games industry events in the UK.

It’s been announced that leading UK games developer Media Molecule, the studio behind multi-award winning LittleBigPlanet, will headline this year’s Develop Conference, which takes place 19 – 21 July in Brighton.

Industry luminary Phil Harrison, co-founder and general manager of London Venture Partners, will interview Media Molecule founding directors Alex Evans, Mark Healey and Kareem Ettouney for the conference’s Opening Keynote session: Living Inside a Molecule.

“We’re delighted that Media Molecule is opening the conference this year,” commented Andy Lane, managing director of Tandem Events.

“They are the pioneers of user-generated content and remain one of the most creative studios around. It will be fascinating to hear their stories from the trenches – and who better to help them relive their tales than the man who helped them on their way: Phil Harrison.”

The Train2Game blog has previously promoted the potential importance of LittleBigPlanet 2 to Train2Game students, with a in depth rundown of why available to see here.

The user generated content tools allow LittleBigPlanet players to create their own levels, with the Train2Game blog reporting that the best community level creators even being hired by Media Molecule.

And in an interview with the Train2Game blog last month, Red Faction: Armageddon Lead Level Designer Jameson Durall recommended Train2Game students get their hands on the LittleBigPlanet creation tools purely for the experience of building their own creations.

The sixth Develop Conference will take place at the Hilton Metropole in Brighton, UK, from 19 – 21 July 2011. It attracts around 1300 game developers from over 20 different territories and has become firmly established as the leading conference in Europe for games developers.

The Train2Game blog will be sure to report on the biggest news to come out of Develop later this month.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on Media Molecule giving the keynote? Do you see them as one of the top British studios?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Laurence Gee – Industry Experience Diary No.4

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Train2Game student Laurence Gee writes about his Train2Game industry work experience placement for the fourth time.

Read his Train2Game industry experience diary on the official website, or here on the Train2Game blog. Industry diary 3 is also available on the Train2Game blog.

UK Charts: Zumba Fitness back on top

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In news that may surprise Train2Game blog readers, Zumba Fitness has once again reclaimed No.1 in the UK Charts. The dancing game retakes the top spot it last occupied 6 weeks ago, as previously reported on the Train2Game blog.

The repeat success of Zumba Fitness denies The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time 3D for the Nintendo 3DS top spot in its first week in the chart as it settles for No.2.  Last weeks No.1 as reported by the Train2Game blog, Duke Nukem Forever, drops to No.3 while L.A. Noire drops two to No.4.

Brink rises two places to No.5, passing LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean with drops one to No.6, while Dirt 3 also drops one to No.7.

Infamous 2 drops from No.4 to No.8 in its second week in the charts, Dungeon Siege III enters at No.1 in its first week of release, while FIFA 11 completes the top ten.

Call of Duty: Black Ops and Red Faction: Armageddon both leave the top ten dropping to No.11 and No.12 respectively.  Both are ahead of Alice: Madness returns with debuts at No. 13. The highly praised Child of Eden enters the UK Chart at No.25 in its first week on sale.

The UKIE Gfk Chart-Track All Formats Top 10 for the week ending 18th June 2011 is therefore as follows:

1. Zumba Fitness (505 Games)
2. The Legend of Zelda: OCarina of Time 3D
3. Duke Nukem Forever (2K Games)
4. LA Noire (Rockstar)
5. Brink (Bethesda)
6. LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean (Disney)
7. Dirt 3 (Codemasters)
8. InFamous 2 (Sony)
9. Dungeon Siege III (Square Enix)
10. FIFA 11 (EA)

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on this weeks charts? Are you surpised to see Zumba Fitness back at No.1? What does it say about the UK games industry right now?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

[Source: UKIE Games Charts©, compiled by GfK Chart-Track]

Minecraft for Xbox 360 being developed by British Studio

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The Xbox 360 version of Train2Game forum user favourite Minecraft is being developed by Dundee based team 4J Studios.

The news was confirmed in a Tweet by Minecraft creator Markus ‘Notch’ Persson, which said “They ported Oblivion to PS3 and Perfect Dark to Xbox360! It’s 4J Studios:http://t.co/vG8Np8n”

As reported by the Train2Game blog, the Xbox 360 version of Minecraft will come with Kinect support.

Earlier this week, the Train2Game blog reported that Minecraft, despite still being in Beta, has been bought and downloaded over 2.5 million times.

The indie smash hit is also heading to smartphones, as  also previously mentioned by the Train2Game blog.

The news of the Xbox 360 version of Minecraft being developed in the UK comes as the Train2Game blog revealed SEGA are opening a new studio in the Midlands.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on the news?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

Train2Game Art & Animation student David Sims speaks to Train2Game Radio

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David Sims is studying to become a Game Artist & Animator with Train2Game.  Train2Game Radio caught up with him to find out why he chose to study with Train2Game, how he’s finding the course and what he wants to achieve in a career in the games industry. Listen to the interview at www.audioboo.fm/train2game Discuss it here on the Train2Game forum.