Games Brief

Author Archive

1. nDreams is hiring a digital product manager

   February 1, 2012

   Earlier this week, I put up a blog post about the role of product manager in the new world of free-to-play games.

   One of the companies where I am a director and have an equity stake (nDreams) is looking for a a “digital product manager”. I’ve reprinted the full job spec here, because it is a great illustration of what a digital product manager needs to do.

   Go to the post

   Posted in: Sandbox

   Tagged with: ndreams, product manager, recruitment

   2 Comments

2. GAMESbrief’s Black Swans

   February 1, 2012

   In December 2011, one of my “Black Swans” came good. Several people have asked me to explain what a Black Swan is. This post will explain what it is, and help you understand why I run GAMESbrief the way that I do.

   Go to the post

   Posted in: Opinion

   Tagged with: black swan

   5 Comments

3. Why product managers are about to be the most important people in Gaming

   January 30, 2012

   The games industry is changing so fast that there are new roles that we need that didn’t exist five years ago. I’m a non-executive at nDreams, and one of the people we need right now is a digital product manager.

   What’s a digital product manager? Read on to find out.

   Go to the post

   Posted in: Opinion

   Tagged with: ndreams, product manager

   5 Comments

4. Business Masterclass – bring a colleague!

   January 26, 2012

   Now is your chance to take advantage of the earlybird discount for my next GamesDev Business Masterclass. If you book before 31st January, you can save £50 on your delegate pass. Plus, you can bring colleagues along for half-price with a colleague pass!

   Go to the post

   Posted in: Events

   Tagged with: business masterclass, masterclasses

   No Comments

5. 50 questions: Do i need “competitive tension” in my fundraising process?

   January 25, 2012

   How many VCs do you want competing to invest in you?

   It’s not a facetious question. Too few, and there is no sense of urgency or competitive tension. Too many, and you can be bewildered by choice, leaving hot prospects to go cold and chasing the next potential investor. Net result in both cases: no deal.

   Go to the post

   Posted in: 50 questions, Finance

   Tagged with: capital raising, competitive tension, investors, shopsmart

   No Comments

6. Zynga’s cloning protection racket

   January 25, 2012

   Zynga has just launched a game Dream Heights which is a direct clone of Tiny Tower from independent developers Nimblebit.

   Now it turns out that Nimblebit turned down an acquisition offer from Zynga.

   For me, that puts the cloning in a different light.

   Go to the post

   Posted in: Opinion

   Tagged with: nimblebit, threat, tiny tower, zynga

   18 Comments

7. Temple Run saw revenues leap 4x when they went free to play

   January 25, 2012

   Current iOS darling Temple Run started life as a paid app. It cost 99c and contained in-app-purchases.

   According to an interview with Gamasutra, the app reached the top 50 in the paid app charts in August 2011, and developer Imangi turned it free in September, with impressive results.

   Go to the post

   Posted in: Sales

   Tagged with: f2p, free-to-play, imangi, iOS, temple run

   2 Comments