Abertay University is helping small and new businesses create prototypes of games and other interactive digital content by offering grants of up to £25,000. Development will be carried out at our new prototyping studio, and elsewhere all around the UK.
Established in November 2010, The Connected Set design and produce content, TV formats, games and digital products. The Connected Set used their prototype grant to develop Tate Britain QuizTrail, a location-based iPhone game that guides players on themed trails around the famous London gallery. Each trail has three levels of play that cover simple observational questions to tougher multiple-choice questions requiring players to read display captions to find the answer. Players are rewarded with a discount at the Tate Online Shop. Visitors can share their new found knowledge of the works with friends as they progress on their trail and share their prizes too via a bespoke Facebook app. The Connected Set will be porting the game to Android later in 2012 and are already in talks to develop versions of QuizTrail for other museums and galleries in UK, Europe and the US.
Dry Ice Studios' first title will be a side-scrolling adventure distributed via digital download. Solid game play and high production quality are very important factors and we plan to keep our development team small and focused.
Triple B Games is an indie developer based in Dundee. Founded in 2007 we have released five titles on the Xbox 360’s Indie Games channel: Fitba, a particularly Scottish football game; Inside Lacrosse’s CL2010, the first Lacrosse game on the Xbox 360; NLL 2010, the first officially licensed Lacrosse title; College Lacrosse 2011; Zombiez 8 My Cookiez; and Flowrider. Flowrider uses a large scale realtime fluid dynamics simulation to provide a unique top down racing experience. Flowrider features online, split-screen and single player modes with futuristic visuals in full HD and a custom-composed soundtrack. Flowrider is coming soon to Xbox 360 Indie Games.
Bookmarked Games is a partnership between educational gaming entrepreneur Jeremiah Alexander of Ideonic and author & public policy strategist Oliver Roberts.
Although their first game is currently in development, we can’t say too much yet. What we can say is that it will focus on stories which play a major role in early childhood development. We’re one of just six companies in the UK to receive a grant from the first round of the UK’s new game prototyping fund, run by the University of Abertay. That means the game concept’s already been through a rigorous vetting process in its development; and that we have the backing of the University’s expertise to help us make it a success.
Alongside supporting new businesses, the fund also aims to build skills in the UK’s digital sector, by paying for recent graduates to help us build the game. We’re fully committed to the aims of that fund, and so by taking people on we’re also committed to their development, bringing on their skills and ensuring this project helps launch their careers in this sector.
14 Principles provides tools, training, and consultancy to make teams more effective. For years, running game projects has been about the wrong thing: cliff-edge releases, go big or go home, large teams, and large budgets. Our lightweight, delivery-focussed approach draws upon lean and agile practices. It’s ideally suited to small game development teams looking to bring brave, creative ideas to market without betting the farm.
