Plan for Britton LaRoche
by Britton LaRoche · 08/27/2004 (10:48 pm) · 14 comments
Yep our message is simple. Lets work together and make the game industry fun again. Greed stinks, when risk averse companies focus on the bottom line instead of fun their games suck. Eventually they face the inevitable truth, accountants stink as game developers. Big corporate politics and fun just dont mix.
Take a look at Acclaim:
www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?section_name=pub&aid=4061
www.cubed-3.co.uk/modules/news/article.php?storyid=2713
cube.ign.com/articles/542/542718p1.html
www.gamespot.com/news/2004/08/27/news_6105926.html
www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?section_name=pub&aid=4064
After the GDC my gut tells me more are on the way. Whats that mean to us? There are a lot of pro-developers that should be smart enough to become indies. I hope they join us at Garage Games and Game Beavers.
The revolution is at hand. The TGE has given us the power. We have been formulating new plans at Game Beavers. We have been trying to come up with a site mirror or hosting system and we may have come up with a good solution. We also have a solid 5 year, 1 year and 6 month plan.
In additon we have our new slogan. World Domination Through Collaboration (TM) (c) 2002 Mark Frohnmayer All Rights Reserved.
Mark came up with the slogan and we took it to heart!
We will work together as indies and take back the market. GG gave us the power and GB will give us the means. Lets not forget our new product mission: "A fun independently produced game on every computer." We also have a recruiting mission: "A licensed membership for every game developer."
Our five year goal is to have 50% of the computer ( PC / Mac / Linux ) Game Market controlled by independently produced games in the year 2009. By 2010 AD we hope to have won over the market. I wont bore you with the details but just give you the highlights.
Remeber! The emphasis is on FUN. Our target market is the 18-34 year old male market who both play and make games. So we have strategized accordingly. The double entendre is in full force. Expect T-Shirts soon.
Joel Studeler is working on the logos for our new strategic operations. The important thing is we now have a set of clear goals and plans in place. We will begin communicating these plans over the next few months as we make progress.
The next six months will be focused on development. We will be delivering the game content packs, finishing the sublicense and EULA agreements. We will be automating more of the website, for asset submissions and membership agreements. We will be provding a new site network with a replication system. Next we will focus on a solid beta code base to be released to the GG community.
This is operation "Beaver Dam" we toyed with the idea of Beaver Dam Nation suggested in the forums. And then "Global Beaver Dam Nation" or GBDN pronounced "GloBeDamN" sound alot like "well I'll be d**mned" when said quickly. Thats the Build Portion of our mission.
Once this is in place we will have a devide and conquer approach a with a two pronged attack on the gaming industry. The first mission is to provide fun games using the TGE and we plan on providing the indies with the content and code examples to do that.
The market penetration strategy to get a fun indie game on every desktop has been code named, naturally "Beaver Penetration"
The next mission entails a strong recruiting drive designed to attract top tallent, those with no or poor tallent (like me) will be put to work with administrative, recruiting and marketing tasks. (no offense Jay, I mean artistic tallent) We want every developer to join, period. This recruiting effort will require a constant relentless pounding to get the thrust of the idea accross to the development community. It should reach a climax as we reach critical mass gathering more and more developers. Because of the relentless pounding and spamming this operation has been code named "Beaver Pounding" It will be used instead of spam from now on.
To keep game beavers alive and spread it around we have developed a plan to procreate and produce offspring sites. We will have an xml feed much like rss that will be used by a php script to insert data into the mysql databases of sites in the GloBeDamN or "Beaver Dam" net work. We will name the new process DNA for Dynamic Network Architecture.
The xml file (named dna.xml) code named "Rooster" will contain information on new members, polls, new asset submissions, news, files and images. Once the data is inserted into mysql a second script will ftp the files and images to the child server. Rooster will provide a method of procreating new offspring by penetrating the Beavers back end and spreading its data through DNA.
A new site can be created by downloading the code base and then placing it on the new server. An installation script will run allowing the site to register with the master beaver site. The master beaver site will then send back a list of other child sites to be stored on the new server. It will be updated with the rest of the data too. If the master site ever dies the new site will go through the list in order of seniority to find the new master server. It will check to see if the old master ever comes back online and swithc bask if it does. If not it will coninue to use the new master.
This insures Game Beavers survival. This list of server in the GBDN network will be provided on each site as well. If anyone wanted to start their own site the only request is that the word "beavers" be included in the host name. For example if Joel started his own beaver site a good name might be www.joelsbeavers.org
We know what we are doing. We are kicking ass and making games. Or as I like to say... "We came here to chew bubble gum and kick ass, and we are all out of bubble gum." -quote from the movie "They Live"
Look out accountants here we come. We have no overhead, no costs and no barriers. "Ask not for whom the bell tolls it tolls for thee."
Take a look at Acclaim:
www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?section_name=pub&aid=4061
www.cubed-3.co.uk/modules/news/article.php?storyid=2713
cube.ign.com/articles/542/542718p1.html
www.gamespot.com/news/2004/08/27/news_6105926.html
www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?section_name=pub&aid=4064
After the GDC my gut tells me more are on the way. Whats that mean to us? There are a lot of pro-developers that should be smart enough to become indies. I hope they join us at Garage Games and Game Beavers.
The revolution is at hand. The TGE has given us the power. We have been formulating new plans at Game Beavers. We have been trying to come up with a site mirror or hosting system and we may have come up with a good solution. We also have a solid 5 year, 1 year and 6 month plan.
In additon we have our new slogan. World Domination Through Collaboration (TM) (c) 2002 Mark Frohnmayer All Rights Reserved.
Mark came up with the slogan and we took it to heart!
We will work together as indies and take back the market. GG gave us the power and GB will give us the means. Lets not forget our new product mission: "A fun independently produced game on every computer." We also have a recruiting mission: "A licensed membership for every game developer."
Our five year goal is to have 50% of the computer ( PC / Mac / Linux ) Game Market controlled by independently produced games in the year 2009. By 2010 AD we hope to have won over the market. I wont bore you with the details but just give you the highlights.
Remeber! The emphasis is on FUN. Our target market is the 18-34 year old male market who both play and make games. So we have strategized accordingly. The double entendre is in full force. Expect T-Shirts soon.
Joel Studeler is working on the logos for our new strategic operations. The important thing is we now have a set of clear goals and plans in place. We will begin communicating these plans over the next few months as we make progress.
The next six months will be focused on development. We will be delivering the game content packs, finishing the sublicense and EULA agreements. We will be automating more of the website, for asset submissions and membership agreements. We will be provding a new site network with a replication system. Next we will focus on a solid beta code base to be released to the GG community.
This is operation "Beaver Dam" we toyed with the idea of Beaver Dam Nation suggested in the forums. And then "Global Beaver Dam Nation" or GBDN pronounced "GloBeDamN" sound alot like "well I'll be d**mned" when said quickly. Thats the Build Portion of our mission.
Once this is in place we will have a devide and conquer approach a with a two pronged attack on the gaming industry. The first mission is to provide fun games using the TGE and we plan on providing the indies with the content and code examples to do that.
The market penetration strategy to get a fun indie game on every desktop has been code named, naturally "Beaver Penetration"
The next mission entails a strong recruiting drive designed to attract top tallent, those with no or poor tallent (like me) will be put to work with administrative, recruiting and marketing tasks. (no offense Jay, I mean artistic tallent) We want every developer to join, period. This recruiting effort will require a constant relentless pounding to get the thrust of the idea accross to the development community. It should reach a climax as we reach critical mass gathering more and more developers. Because of the relentless pounding and spamming this operation has been code named "Beaver Pounding" It will be used instead of spam from now on.
To keep game beavers alive and spread it around we have developed a plan to procreate and produce offspring sites. We will have an xml feed much like rss that will be used by a php script to insert data into the mysql databases of sites in the GloBeDamN or "Beaver Dam" net work. We will name the new process DNA for Dynamic Network Architecture.
The xml file (named dna.xml) code named "Rooster" will contain information on new members, polls, new asset submissions, news, files and images. Once the data is inserted into mysql a second script will ftp the files and images to the child server. Rooster will provide a method of procreating new offspring by penetrating the Beavers back end and spreading its data through DNA.
A new site can be created by downloading the code base and then placing it on the new server. An installation script will run allowing the site to register with the master beaver site. The master beaver site will then send back a list of other child sites to be stored on the new server. It will be updated with the rest of the data too. If the master site ever dies the new site will go through the list in order of seniority to find the new master server. It will check to see if the old master ever comes back online and swithc bask if it does. If not it will coninue to use the new master.
This insures Game Beavers survival. This list of server in the GBDN network will be provided on each site as well. If anyone wanted to start their own site the only request is that the word "beavers" be included in the host name. For example if Joel started his own beaver site a good name might be www.joelsbeavers.org
We know what we are doing. We are kicking ass and making games. Or as I like to say... "We came here to chew bubble gum and kick ass, and we are all out of bubble gum." -quote from the movie "They Live"
Look out accountants here we come. We have no overhead, no costs and no barriers. "Ask not for whom the bell tolls it tolls for thee."
#2
Go indies go
08/28/2004 (5:52 am)
Oh man, I don't usually go for dirty jokes but that was all too funny. I just have to express some concern that it may be difficult to achieve the objectives by only targeting 18-34 year old males. In fact that part is starting to make me a little nervous now that I think of it.Go indies go
#3
08/28/2004 (1:45 pm)
Ah don't sweat it. Thats the market we are targeting. We may not have a "G" Rating but we are still "PG" If we want to target another market then that is up to the individual indie teams that use our stuff. We dont exlude anyone, and we will swear up and down that the double entendre is only dirty to those who think that way. All we are talking about is a bunch of scout masters, and a small aquatic rodent that chews on trees.
#4
08/28/2004 (1:49 pm)
Believe me this is nothing any where near the stuff in Grand Theft auto. 
#5
08/28/2004 (2:18 pm)
Poor Acclaim, but anyway.... sorry to go off topic but... Britton, I
#6
08/28/2004 (4:13 pm)
Beaver pounding? Oooh, suits you sir!
#7
Some of the members may be interested in working with you. I'm going to be releasing a public domain version of Amped Bot 101a for use by anyone pretty soon, so you can use him if you like
08/28/2004 (4:27 pm)
Joseph, yeah sure there are plenty of Artists at GB, why dont you post your requests in the Request section of the assets forums. You can post your requests here: Game beaver RequestsSome of the members may be interested in working with you. I'm going to be releasing a public domain version of Amped Bot 101a for use by anyone pretty soon, so you can use him if you like
#8
08/28/2004 (6:21 pm)
Mike, yep we pound the beaver pretty hard. But hey we hope to make sure everyone gets the thrust of our penetration efforts. I mean our market penetration efforts. Does that sound better? 
#9
-Jeff Tunnell GG
08/28/2004 (8:48 pm)
Wow, enthusiasm! Not that we really care, but "World domination thorugh collaboration" is a slogan that Mark came up with and has been used a bunch by GG for the past couple of years.-Jeff Tunnell GG
#10
Jay Moore is the one who first mentioned we should some how work the word "collaboration" into our slogan. I knew I had heard it somewhere before but could not quite place it. So it was Mark eh? We believe in giving credit where its due at GB. I'll have to make a note on the news posts.
World Domination Through Collaboration (TM) (c) 2002 Mark Frohnmayer All Rights Reserved
Yeah enthusiasm. You bet, its something the big guys lack. Its the very thing they suck out of their hard working developers before they kick em out on the streets. I have never worked as an employee in the game industry, and I dont want to. From what I have seen and heard and read, its not pretty. Apparenlty Acclaim just shut down the Austin Texas office with out much warning. Not too cool. I'm sure someone at the top knew this one was coming.
We do want to be in the game industry making our own games the way we want to and we want to help others do the same!
08/28/2004 (9:08 pm)
Jeff, ah so thats why it sounds so familiar. We like you guys. Sure you guys may have come up with the slogan, but we thought it resonated perfectly with our mission. We figure if we are using your game engine, then what the heck? We might as well borrow the slogan. Hey why re-invent the wheel?Jay Moore is the one who first mentioned we should some how work the word "collaboration" into our slogan. I knew I had heard it somewhere before but could not quite place it. So it was Mark eh? We believe in giving credit where its due at GB. I'll have to make a note on the news posts.
World Domination Through Collaboration (TM) (c) 2002 Mark Frohnmayer All Rights Reserved
Yeah enthusiasm. You bet, its something the big guys lack. Its the very thing they suck out of their hard working developers before they kick em out on the streets. I have never worked as an employee in the game industry, and I dont want to. From what I have seen and heard and read, its not pretty. Apparenlty Acclaim just shut down the Austin Texas office with out much warning. Not too cool. I'm sure someone at the top knew this one was coming.
We do want to be in the game industry making our own games the way we want to and we want to help others do the same!
#11
The items are sold with no Mark up through Cafe Press. Game beavers is a non profit company. Anyone who wishes to sell GB marketing items and accessories for a profit may do so.
08/28/2004 (11:26 pm)
Oh boy T-Shirts and buttons etc... are ready:The items are sold with no Mark up through Cafe Press. Game beavers is a non profit company. Anyone who wishes to sell GB marketing items and accessories for a profit may do so.
#12
Also thanks for the offer of the bot but I don't think it will work very well in the game i'm making :)
08/29/2004 (5:37 pm)
Thanks Britton I will post a request on the GB forum in the next few days. Also thanks for the offer of the bot but I don't think it will work very well in the game i'm making :)
#13
Britton you have to be one of the most modivated people I have seen aside from the gg people of course. Keep it up and you may well be the next gates.
Ben
08/29/2004 (5:58 pm)
Hahaha, the Beaver Empire (sounds a bit like a porn company, perhaps you can fund gamebeaver with beaver.com :) ).. Sorry just had to say it. Britton you have to be one of the most modivated people I have seen aside from the gg people of course. Keep it up and you may well be the next gates.
Ben
#14
08/30/2004 (5:07 am)
@Ben, I hope to help everyone take down the evil empire already in place. The day is soon coming where a fun game can stand on its own merits. 
Torque Owner Jeremy Alessi