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Letter from the Director
The International World of Casual Games
Here we are in Amsterdam for our third
year. Who would have ever imagined that
in three short years we would have already
grown so large—it seems everyone is talking
about casual games. For those of us who
were here in Year One, the growth of our
association is nothing short of amazing.
We have truly become an international
industry: our development occurs all
over the map, with hotbeds in Eastern
and Western Europe, in Russia, and
in South and North America. That
internationalization of the industry did not
happen merely by chance. On the contrary,
as an industry we have focused since the
very beginning on creating this global
industry we now enjoy.
Which perhaps begs the question: Why
is internationalization important for the
success and health of our industry? I can
think of several good reasons:
1. Since electrons are easy to move around,
it is really easy for us to reach customers
all across the globe. With this great
opportunity comes a small complication
which must be addressed flawlessly:
understanding of the local market. I
would guess that three years ago most
of us (including myself) didn’t truly
understand the importance of taking
into account the differences in the local
market. Localization is more than just
getting the right translations—it is about
creating a game that appeals to a culture
through language, art, and themes.
2. Different cultures and regions have come
to excel in different ways. This is one
phenomenon that never fails to amaze
us—the differences in focus that seem to
appear almost spontaneously when we
meet with industry members throughout
the world. That multiplicity of talents is
a sign of great promise for our industry,
especially as we learn to better take
advantage of our individual strengths.
3. New ideas flow from the meeting of
minds with different backgrounds.
Think of the various business models
and design elements we have come to
take for granted and the wide range
of continents from which they sprang:
micro-transactions (Asia & Russia),
trial-to-purchase (North America),
mobile (Asia & Europe), Wii (Asia), DS
(Asia), Xbox (North America), Solitaire
(Europe), Mahjong (Asia). None of our
business models would be complete
without influence from other cultures.
4. Interaction helps to broaden our
perspective—which in turn leads to
greater stability. The marked differences
in the market dynamics in different
regions of the world enable us all to
watch, learn, and modify without the
risk that might otherwise be associated
with trying something new. For example,
sitting comfortably in North America
one may have never conceived of the
micro-payment business model. Seeing
it flourish elsewhere, North American
developers and publishers can’t help
but wonder how they might adapt that
approach to their market as well.
5. Working together, across borders and
oceans and many, many time zones,
makes us better global citizens. Faceto-face
contact and collaboration go a
long way toward dispelling prejudice and
ethnocentricity.
While we have made much progress, we
still have quite a way to go. But as we learn
to accept other cultures and work as one
big team, the barriers will continue to fall.
I’m convinced, in fact, that our industry is
uniquely positioned to succeed precisely
because our cultural differences tend to
enrich rather than divide us.
Ultimately we speak the common language
of play. Fun knows no borders.
Jessica Tams
“
Ultimately we speak
the common language
of play. Fun knows no
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”