Category Archives: Personal Stuff

I decided to run for the board of the IGDA this year. As part of that process, I was asked to write a “candidate position statement” and answer some questions, all of which I have copied below. (This material is also available on the IGDA website.)

If you are an IGDA member, I would really appreciate your vote. The poll is open now and closes on February 28th.

Candidate Position Statement:

I am running for the IGDA Board because I believe the IGDA is faced with a vital problem: many people in our industry can’t see why they should join or actively participate in the IGDA. It’s easy to understand why. First, our industry’s most prestigious publications and conferences are operated by other organizations. Second, our government lobbying is led primarily by the ESA. And lastly, the tangible benefits of IGDA membership – other than the recent health insurance offering – are unclear to many people. I believe that lack of progress on these fronts will jeopardize the IGDA and undermine its ability to tackle issues its members care about, such as quality of life and credit standards.

We — that is, *all* game developers, not just the large companies that comprise the ESA’s membership — need an organization that represents our interests and enhances the creative and business opportunities available to each of us. But we will never reach that goal without first building an organization whose value to potential members is self-evident. When people can’t see the value in paying $48 bucks for an annual membership, you know something is wrong.

If elected, I will focus on increasing the tangible value of IGDA membership. I’d like to ensure that content from the excellent IGDA Leadership Forum is freely available to all members, not just those who can attend the event. I’d like to enhance the ties between the IGDA and GDC to the extent that it benefits IGDA members. I’d like to grow programs, such as the IGDA’s webinar series, that bring useful business and legal information to IGDA members worldwide. And lastly, I’d like to explore the creation of additional benefits like the IGDA’s new group health plan; for example, a group legal plan.

In my time as portfolio manager of Xbox LIVE Arcade and as a consultant, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting many game developers. What has differentiated those that succeed from those that struggle is a combination of skill, luck, access to information, and the ability (and opportunity) to promote themselves. The IGDA can’t give developers luck, but it *can* open their eyes to common stumbling blocks, teach them about business, enhance their networking opportunities and help improve their skills. It can reduce the financial burdens that developers face and arm them with the tools they need to succeed… and increase its own legitimacy in the process.

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For those of you who have been considering making a donation to help the people of Haiti, but who have been deterred by the bewildering array of non-profit organizations currently asking for help, my wife has identified Partners In Health as a group that has been operating in Haiti for a very long time and has relationships, knowledge and infrastructure to leverage during this crisis, which will hopefully make them a little more effective. Here’s a note that we received from Partners in Health after making our own donation.

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My friend Terry took these fantastic photos of my dogs, Pooka (the white one) and Keiko (the black one). They were simply too good not to share. Check out the dirt that Pooka is kicking up in the first photo — she’s one mean running machine! :-)

I have been actively maintaining this blog for four years, as of today. There are very few things that I have remained actively committed to for such a length of time… my lovely wife, my garden, and of course, games. So it feels like a real milestone to me!

Anyway, I just wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you for reading along. Whether you started recently or in the distant past, your interest in this blog means a lot to me. And to those who have taken the time to comment on posts or send me private notes, an especially big thank you. I had always hoped this blog would evolve into a dialogue, but I’ve learned more from you all than I could have imagined way back in 2005. I’ve truly appreciated your words of support when you’ve liked what I’ve written, and (especially!) your counter-arguments when you’ve disagreed with my opinions.

It’s funny to look back on my oldest posts… this was a very different blog back when. Oh, and I’m still waiting for someone to make an RPG that I enjoy as much as Planescape: Torment, dammit. :-)

Just wanted to mention that I’ll be giving the keynote at the Digital Distribution Summit in Melbourne on September 29th, organized by Film Victoria. I’ve been asked to focus my lecture on XBLA/PSN, but I think the other speakers will address iPhone, Steam, etc. Simon Carless and Jamil Moledina will be there as well, so it should be a good time. :-)

This will be my first visit to Australia, so I’m excited! Tourism suggestions welcome. And of course if you’re going to be at the conference, drop me a note.

PS. I’ll be traveling for three weeks (leaving this Thursday) so my blog activity will be light during that time.

Partial explanation for my recent blog downtime: Eve and I rescued “Keiko,” a lovely half-fox terrier, half-Italian greyhound pup! If you’ve ever had a puppy, you know how incredibly engaging they can be. :-)

We suspect Keiko’s first few months of life were hard; he was picked up off the streets and is scared of strangers, especially large men. For the first few days we had him in our home, when I approached him at a normal pace he would either run away or drop to his belly and crawl piteously towards me. I had to drop to my knees to make him feel safe enough to approach. He still does the “don’t hurt me!” belly crawl on a regular basis, but at least he doesn’t run away from me anymore. Better still, he loves to snuggle once I’ve comforted him for a few seconds.

Keiko also likes to lick your face (if you’ll let him), bounce around like a kangaroo (he’s got an impressive vertical!) and tussle with our other dog, Pooka, who outweighs him by almost 200%. Fortunately, she’s gracious enough to frequently let him feel like he’s winning the battle. And as of today, she has started allowing him to nap next to her on the same bed.

Keiko also enjoys pooping in the house. That part is a bit less endearing, I’ll admit. But we’ll break him of the habit soon, I hope. Either way, it’s a good thing we were planning on replacing the carpets soon. :P

As promised to attendees of my lecture, here’s my PPT — it includes links or citations for all the figures I mentioned (you need to click “notes on slide” which appears below the presentation itself to actually see the links/citations.)

Unfortunately, my presentation style is light on text and very heavy on chatter, so if you didn’t attend the lecture I’m afraid this PPT won’t be very useful for you. That said, if a video of the lecture is made public I’ll link to it here for the rest of you!

I’m finally done with all the formalities of setting up my new consulting business. I’d love to tell you that I picked the name “Fuzbi” for some profound and/or touching reason, but no. I picked Fuzbi because it was a five-letter, pronounceable, available .com that (to my knowledge) does not mean anything in any common language. I’ve always liked the idea of picking a name that you can invest with your own meaning, like “Google.” And Fuzbi sounds fun to me, which is good enough for my purposes.

I owe a big hug to Danc for creating the Fuzbi logo. I wasted a good five or six hours making an absolute idiot of myself with Photoshop before Danc rescued me from myself. :-)

So there you go — I’m official. And I’m already working on a few interesting projects for clients both inside and outside the US, so I’m feeling sassy to boot! If you might be interested in learning more about my consulting services, or if you’d just like to hang out and help me celebrate my new business, I’ll be at E3 on the 2nd and 3rd of June. Just drop me a line!