UPDATED: UK Tax Cuts for 'culturally British' Pantomime Dames

UPDATE: The UKIE has released a PDF (download) explaining the criteria that must be met in order for a game to apply for tax relief. Projects will be assessed with a cultural test and granted points based on the criteria, which include the amount of characters and the portion of the game set in the UK or an EEA country, whether or not a game's story is based on that of a British or other European story, the amount of work completed in the UK and whether or not the creators are usually UK based. This is good news as it means that companies can't just move to the UK and start applying to tax cuts and will hopefully allow British cultural games to shine through. The PDF also explains how the tax cuts will break down over a game's cost and which companies are eligible, including a note that abandoned projects will not have the relief affected.



That's - erm - that's games in Cockney rhyming slam... Pantomime Dames I mean...

"You what guv'na?!"

The European Commision (EC) today approved a tax relief plan for the British games industry that may see up to 25% in tax cuts for games that meet cultural criteria. There is little information as to what these criteria will be as of yet but they are sure to be discussed at the upcoming event hosted by the UKIE to discuss the impact and effects of the tax relief, announced two days ago. This event will be attended by "a senior government minister" as well as representatives of the industry and the UKIE. The tax relief is thought to affect 25% of games produced in the UK and will surely bolster an already thriving industry.


So is that the future of UK produced games? Desperately strong-arming British references in there for tax cuts? It's hard to say without seeing the criteria that's being conveniently skirted over in every press release and statement. At the same time, I don't want to be a cynic. I'm not particularly patriotic but having lived in England my whole life it is the culture I know and understand, a humour I get that much of the world doesn't, a certain British-ness in the way we are, in the way the characters we create are. My concern is that what we'll see is a rise in games that contain a bunch of British stereotypes, not for the purpose of amusement, satire or affectionate ribbing but simply for the sake of tax cuts.

Then again, maybe it's time time for a second go at this?

I don't just refer to comedic characters and references, in the vain of say Family Guy (I find this particular clip encompasses so many British-isms it's like art, Seth McFarlane gets it), but even more supposedly serious characters. I don't want every game to be set in jolly old London town and be surrounded by fruit sellers, buskers singing George Formby and chimney sweeps doing delightful jigs.

This... this actually looks okay

But I have faith in British developers, faith that they won't just be out to make a quick buck and they truly want to add to the British cultural lexicon. The UK has had a massive cultural impact on the world in the past, and not just because they went round taking over every country they step foot in. We are a nation with a strong identity and mixed culture and the media we produce is often uniquely British, but the world in recent years has started to pick up on not just our fashion but our media too, a thing that was often confined to out little island as the rest of the world "wouldn't get it".

What does it all mean?!

An immediate and obvious example of this is Ricky Gervais' hit show The Office, a show that took the world by storm and became more than just a cult hit, spawning various regional versions worldwide. This was a uniquely British show with uniquely British humour; the awkwardness of daily interactions, the polite, reserved way we tend to deal with situations, the fools we suffer so as not to be rude. All of this was blown a bit wide for comedic purposes in some cases but the show was often based on real events from the writer's lives. It made it feel real and like home for me, like I could meet these people at any pub in the country. There were stereotypes but the character's were genuine and it made them feel more like character quirks and flaws. Perhaps having British culture in the hands of British developers is the best thing for it then.

And seriously, GTA: London 2 you guys! GTA: London 2!

Oculus Rift Acquired by Facebook

The internet is abuzz with talk of Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg's announcement yesterday afternoon that the company would be acquiring Oculus Rift for a sum of $2billion. Zuckerberg intends to explore the potential of the device as a social media tool and more besides gaming, though we are assured that Oculus' original plan will still go ahead, though at an accelerated rate. In a post to Facebook about the announcement, Zuckerberg says:

"But this is just the start. After games, we're going to make Oculus a platform for many other experiences. Imagine enjoying a court side seat at a game, studying in a classroom of students and teachers all over the world or consulting with a doctor face-to-face -- just by putting on goggles in your home."

In the same announcement Zuckerberg goes on to predict that the future of the world lies in virtual reality systems, and Facebook clearly wants to adopt the technology early. This has caused concern with some, with Marcus "Notch" Perrson, owner of Mojang announcing over Twitter that his company has cancelled plans to support the Oculus device, saying "Facebook creeps me out." He does note that a mod is available for users interested in using the device.

Just over 18 months ago Oculus Rift achieved and surpassed its goal of $250 000 by over 37 times, receiving almost $9.5million in backing on Kickstarter. It has now been acquired for an estimated $2billion, more than 200 times as much as the original Kickstarter raised. This is great news for Oculus and the huge cash injection will be sure to speed up the delivery of the system. At last week's GDC they had announced the Oculus Development Kit 2, an updated version of the first kit, for $350 and it seems this is going ahead with the device being sold now. Perhaps this is a good sign that Zuckerman's promise of the company still operating independently isn't just PR talk, at least for now.

Does the future really lie in VR? And what are Facebook doing to ensure the privacy of its users? They talk of wanting to share everything with everyone. This sharing is data which they can and have used to target adverts to people and increase the power of those adverts. How will virtual reality data be collected and used and what will the form will this virtual space take? Look out for further developments and announcements in the coming months.

Sony has also recently announced a VR headset, Project Morpheus, a direct rival to Oculus Rift. Both companies have the capital and business networks to gain market share in the games sector but it is difficult to tell what the final products of either will really be like, though reviews of both have been favourable.

The dawn of a new age in gaming or just a night of the living dead?

Holy crap, so meta bro!

The Real Thinkings

What the hell?! Facebook?! Really?!

Okay, initial outburst out of the way I'm not really sure what to think. I raged at first, then I wondered if I was the guy raging against this new fangled technology, bearing my torch and pitchfork like a seasoned pro.

"Back, oh ye purveyor of immersive worlds, oh ye peddler of fun!"

But then I called bullshit on that pretty quick because I had no problem with Rift before now and was super excited, still am! What I have a problem with is Facebook. I use Facebook, I don't like it, I use it. I'm a hypocrite, so that's out of the way now. I'm not keen on my data being collected like that, I'm not sure any of of us really are. I do understand that some of it has to be collected in order for the services I like to exist but it's when my name and picture are used to advertise stuff I get uneasy. I make a point of not liking pages, especially those of businesses, as I don't want everyone to be told "Hey, Daniel likes Akira's Used Pantie Emporium, you should too!" I mean, not that I would be liking something called Akira's Used Pantie Emporium or anything... Those rumours were never confirmed...

*cough**cough* Shameful *cough*

It's not about what I like or don't like and whether it's private or not, clearly if I didn't want people to know I liked something I wouldn't thumbup it on Facebook, and I don't do that. My beef is with this insistence that EVERY single thing has to collect data now. Analytics can helpful as balls, especially to a game developer because they can tell you so much about your game and how you can improve it, so there's a flip side to it but I don't want to have to sign my life away as a walking advert simply to communicate with friends.

I don't know if this is a good move, but I agree with Notch, this shit creeps me out! I'm concerned about the future of tech and media but at the same time I'm super excited about the future of tech and media! Oculus Rift, as of yet, hasn't changed and I still can't wait to get my hands on one and create some worlds, try and use the device in a different or interesting way. I have no idea what the future holds, it's impossible to predict with certain accuracy, but VR is definitely in it and Oculus and Facebook are going to be a big part of it.

So what's Steam gonna do? Anything?

New Day's Resolution

Too long once more! It is my New Day's Resolution (New Year's was a little far...) that I will try to update this thing at least once a week. But onward, to content!

I've been to Prague and back for a short holiday to get away from the madness and had a great time just walking around and taking the city in.

There was so much to see this guy didn't even

live to see it all!

The astronomical clock, the Charles Bridge and so much more! I took a bunch of photos and got blisters I'm still recovering from due to all the walking on cobbled streets but being alone in a new place like that was something I had to do at least once. I'm glad I did and I'm glad I didn't die. I really want to go back in the summer one day though, visit Chapeau Rouge and take a stroll by the Vltava River and see some live music in the evening. But there are so many places I must visit, perhaps I'll save my return for another year.

I've also been working hard as hell on my dissertation and second term project. The dissertation is titled 'Narratology vs. Ludology: Rules, story and their impact on design' and was extremely interesting to research (and well worth the late fees from the library which I will totally pay off soon and return the books...). I had to delve into transmedia worlds, hypertext fiction, ludological definitions and tenets and more. I think it really helped me to solidify some of my ideas about design and forced me to look a little into the future and see where game design is going. An invaluable mad rush that I would repeat any day!

The project is a game prototype I've been working on for about 3 weeks. It was the third design iteration I'd been through and none of the three designs were anything alike. The first was uninspired and rushed, a side-scrolling platformer with little substance. The second was a good idea but too vast and the territory was too new for me to feel confident in successfully completing it in time. I won't discuss that one for now because it's an idea I'm still developing and may resume work on soon. But the third is a side-scrolling shoot 'em up, filled with goo monsters, French themes and the cutest darn cat you ever saw ^^ (Simple characters, simple game, simple*3). I didn't have much time after the re-design so I put together something that's scalable but simple and hopefully fun as heck! I'm not releasing anything for now but watch this space! I intend to develop it further although the project may be a little too large to focus on completely and the design needs to be fleshed out a lot too.

The start of something beautiful?

I was at the awesome Indie Games Collective Conference for Developers all day yesterday and will be heading back there for the second day later this morning. Day 1 was informative and all the talks were a really interesting perspective on game design, development and distribution from both an indie perspective and a PR perspective, an interesting side of the process rarely considered by many devs until it's too late. There was a particularly awesome speech from Louise Adams on why Twitter is so amazing for making contacts. She seemed nervous and not particularly willing to give the talk at first but as soon as she opened her mouth she had the whole room laughing and hanging on her every word, and rarely have I heard so endearing a phrase as "I was supposed to do some slides but I panicked and made a physics engine instead".

This is how all presentations should be given.

There was a great panel at the end and and Paul Marrable had us all cracking up. Some very interesting discussions about dual-screen vs. second-screen, developing games for large touchscreens and plenty of great advice for any indie developer, new or old to the scene.

A friend of mine is producing a web show based at his university and they will be joining me at the IGCCGD day 2 for interviews, filming and some more of that great advice from industry experts and indie devs alike! So keep your eyes peeled for the vid. In the meantime they have a few news videos and coverage from a couple of events with some killer interviews so check them out at SU Productions on Youtube and Facebook, subscribe and like and share and all that malarkey, help them make it great!

I shall be back to report on day 2 of the IGCCGD and will attempt to sort through all my notes to write something at least relatively informative for once :)