Laura BularcaThe Eastern European regions are a rising force in gaming, both as developers and as an audience. Laura Bularca, a Romanian herself, discusses what it's like to be a gamer in Romania, and why it's important.
Issue 42: Casual Friday - We Play
- Thread starter The Escapist Staff
- Start date
Original Comment by: Flavius
Fantastic article! I was born in Romania but have been living in the US since I was 5. The article was a great eyeopener. Although I am bilingual, I don't really keep up to date with tech happenings in Romania. I am really looking forward to more articles like this from you, even for articles on how Romanians living abroad like myself can help the Romanian game scene/companies/community, etc.
Fantastic article! I was born in Romania but have been living in the US since I was 5. The article was a great eyeopener. Although I am bilingual, I don't really keep up to date with tech happenings in Romania. I am really looking forward to more articles like this from you, even for articles on how Romanians living abroad like myself can help the Romanian game scene/companies/community, etc.
Original Comment by: Svetoslav
http://-
Hi. I'm born in Bulgaria and I'm aware what is the situation in that part of the world especially the situation with gaming since I'm a fanatic gamer. Also now I live in San Diego so I know the other side of the coin too. Anyway it's cool that Ubi are so big in Romania and also I have a friend in Bulgaria who's working for them too so (hopefully) Ubi hire more and more people in Bulgaria too. But saying money is one of the romanian gamers advantage over the american is retarded man. You obviously don't have an idea of the gap between the income in USA and Eastern Europe. And the quality of the broadband connection for the matter.
http://-
Hi. I'm born in Bulgaria and I'm aware what is the situation in that part of the world especially the situation with gaming since I'm a fanatic gamer. Also now I live in San Diego so I know the other side of the coin too. Anyway it's cool that Ubi are so big in Romania and also I have a friend in Bulgaria who's working for them too so (hopefully) Ubi hire more and more people in Bulgaria too. But saying money is one of the romanian gamers advantage over the american is retarded man. You obviously don't have an idea of the gap between the income in USA and Eastern Europe. And the quality of the broadband connection for the matter.
Original Comment by: Alexandru
Although I don't fully agree with the way the author sees some of the issues in this article, the mere fact that a fellow romanian got a piece published in my favourine zine makes me proud.
Although I don't fully agree with the way the author sees some of the issues in this article, the mere fact that a fellow romanian got a piece published in my favourine zine makes me proud.
Original Comment by: Alexandru
Oh, I'm also glad that at least one other Romanian reads the mag, even if he's not actually living in Romania ...
Oh, I'm also glad that at least one other Romanian reads the mag, even if he's not actually living in Romania ...
Original Comment by: Laura Bularca
Hi all and thank you kindly for your comments!
I do have a very good idea of the gap between the income in USA and Eastern Europe and I don't think I have said that Eastern Europe offers good salaries. I know all the problems, I know that a good Eastern Europe paycheck for a programmer is in best cases a quarter of the American paycheck. But that is not the point. The point is we do earn more compared to the 90's , and also that now, Eastern Europe is a viable market for games (and this was not a true statement back in the 90's).
Hi all and thank you kindly for your comments!
I do have a very good idea of the gap between the income in USA and Eastern Europe and I don't think I have said that Eastern Europe offers good salaries. I know all the problems, I know that a good Eastern Europe paycheck for a programmer is in best cases a quarter of the American paycheck. But that is not the point. The point is we do earn more compared to the 90's , and also that now, Eastern Europe is a viable market for games (and this was not a true statement back in the 90's).
Original Comment by: Lockves
http://lockves.blogspot.com
I am the Second Editor in Chief for the biggest romanian games magazine, Level. Obviously, living in USA makes some people see the things diffrent. I don't know the situation in Bulgaria, but I trully know the one from US and Romania. Brodband connection is already a common thing here. Yes, you don't have 40 Mb but you have 1mb, which is more than enough for any game I can think of. In US you pay 40-70 dolars for a game. Here soon you will pay 20 dolars, because the games are packged for a rather poor market. So, I don't see a gap so big... In my position I have acces to statistics, and trust me, the whole Eastern European block is going up exponentialy. Alot of foreign investors a are a little shocked when they come here and they don't find the dream cheap labour market they've heard about.
The article, as I see it, is Laura's personal oppinion based on real facts that I can confirm. So, anything said about the facts, should be argumented, Svetoslav.
http://lockves.blogspot.com
I am the Second Editor in Chief for the biggest romanian games magazine, Level. Obviously, living in USA makes some people see the things diffrent. I don't know the situation in Bulgaria, but I trully know the one from US and Romania. Brodband connection is already a common thing here. Yes, you don't have 40 Mb but you have 1mb, which is more than enough for any game I can think of. In US you pay 40-70 dolars for a game. Here soon you will pay 20 dolars, because the games are packged for a rather poor market. So, I don't see a gap so big... In my position I have acces to statistics, and trust me, the whole Eastern European block is going up exponentialy. Alot of foreign investors a are a little shocked when they come here and they don't find the dream cheap labour market they've heard about.
The article, as I see it, is Laura's personal oppinion based on real facts that I can confirm. So, anything said about the facts, should be argumented, Svetoslav.
Original Comment by: Wandering Taoist
Who would have thought that an American magazine would draw such a number of fellow Eastern European gamers? Living in Slovakia, I would just like to add one fact: the games are not only relatively more expensive, they are also nominally more expensive down here. Reading about uproar in the US stemming from next-gen games costing unheard-of 60 USD makes me laugh. A new PS2 game costs more than 80 USD down here, games for XBOX360 are 90 USD apiece. PC games, which are dominant down here, are usually cheaper, but I still marvel at the paradox of pricing. But I love my original games, collect them rabidly, guess it comes from their total absence back when I was a kid
Great article!
Who would have thought that an American magazine would draw such a number of fellow Eastern European gamers? Living in Slovakia, I would just like to add one fact: the games are not only relatively more expensive, they are also nominally more expensive down here. Reading about uproar in the US stemming from next-gen games costing unheard-of 60 USD makes me laugh. A new PS2 game costs more than 80 USD down here, games for XBOX360 are 90 USD apiece. PC games, which are dominant down here, are usually cheaper, but I still marvel at the paradox of pricing. But I love my original games, collect them rabidly, guess it comes from their total absence back when I was a kid
Great article!
Original Comment by: Patrick
http://www.kingludic.blogspot.com
I think it was made by Ukranians, but Tower Defence (http://www.towerdefence.com/) is a great game that shows how the eastern european dev scene can produce some real gems. I recommend you all check it out.
http://www.kingludic.blogspot.com
I think it was made by Ukranians, but Tower Defence (http://www.towerdefence.com/) is a great game that shows how the eastern european dev scene can produce some real gems. I recommend you all check it out.
Original Comment by: Staminal
Yes we got coders. Excellent once, and I'd like to see romanian and eastern european gamers making their voices heard on-line.
But you're a liar If you earn 800 - 900 US dollars per month, that doesn't mean we all do. I'm an engineer, I'm busting my ass for a better Mercedes that will please our wealthy customers and all I get for doing that is a couple of food coupons per day and 150 US dollars per month. I have a phone bill to pay and a "broadband" connection to the Internet that "sounds" like a dial-up one (20 US dollars per month for 20KB/s, if I'm lucky, and a so-coled dinamic IP... who the hell invented this crap?). Well, let me just say that my provider (yes, the allmighty RDS that doesn't giva a damn about his customers) sucks big time. And on top of that, I have to pay more bills, I have to eat, I have to take my girlfriend out for a spin every once in a while, and play games.
But many games are hard to get (for me) here, in Romania. I want to play EVE or WoW, just like you do every day. But It's too damn expensive! I wanna play F.E.A.R. Well, gues what, not only that the game is expensive (about 40 dollars), but I don't have the hardware to run it! My PC is absolete, and there's nothing I can do about it in the near future. Not when I'm still trying to find a better job and an employe that respects a well trained gradueted student. I love robotics, but my future is somewhere else. And to think that I studied 6 years for this job... But I still have a plan. Mwahaha...ha...eeeh. Ehem!
"A lot of foreign investors a are a little shocked when they come here and they don't find the dream cheap labour market they've heard about." I'm sorry "big shoot", Second Editor in Chief for the biggest romanian games magazine, Level, but that's not entirely true. If they come here and don't find that dream cheap labor market, they are going to move their interests somewhere else. And fast!
No offence, Locke, I like Level (that magazine rulz and I love those wacky editors with their silly names), but that's the fact. Also, you're better payed then I am, and you get to play the latest games on a machine that doesn't crash at every five minutes. And for a gamer like me, working as an editor for a gaming magazine it's a dream job. Imagine that! ...can you?
The point is we do NOT earn more compared to the 90's. Not all of us, compared to what we do. But it's true, Eastern Europe is STARTING to be a viable market for games, and pretty soon I hope to join it. One original 40 dollar game per month - that's my target. And that's something.
Nicely written Laura, but please, from now on... look in every direction when you try to analize the political and economical aspects of "the" problem. Look around you and then, only then, take a look at the statistics. You might see the difference. As for me, the gap between the avarage income in USA and Romania remains a problem. I love this country, but as soon as I'll have the necesary money, I'll go west. If it gets better, I'll come back and stay for ever. If it doesn't, I gues I'll try to make a diffrence.
I'm glad we got some GAMERS out there. The future is bright...
Yes we got coders. Excellent once, and I'd like to see romanian and eastern european gamers making their voices heard on-line.
But you're a liar
If you earn 800 - 900 US dollars per month, that doesn't mean we all do. I'm an engineer, I'm busting my ass for a better Mercedes that will please our wealthy customers and all I get for doing that is a couple of food coupons per day and 150 US dollars per month. I have a phone bill to pay and a "broadband" connection to the Internet that "sounds" like a dial-up one (20 US dollars per month for 20KB/s, if I'm lucky, and a so-coled dinamic IP... who the hell invented this crap?). Well, let me just say that my provider (yes, the allmighty RDS that doesn't giva a damn about his customers) sucks big time. And on top of that, I have to pay more bills, I have to eat, I have to take my girlfriend out for a spin every once in a while, and play games. But many games are hard to get (for me) here, in Romania. I want to play EVE or WoW, just like you do every day. But It's too damn expensive! I wanna play F.E.A.R. Well, gues what, not only that the game is expensive (about 40 dollars), but I don't have the hardware to run it! My PC is absolete, and there's nothing I can do about it in the near future. Not when I'm still trying to find a better job and an employe that respects a well trained gradueted student. I love robotics, but my future is somewhere else. And to think that I studied 6 years for this job... But I still have a plan. Mwahaha...ha...eeeh. Ehem!
"A lot of foreign investors a are a little shocked when they come here and they don't find the dream cheap labour market they've heard about." I'm sorry "big shoot", Second Editor in Chief for the biggest romanian games magazine, Level, but that's not entirely true. If they come here and don't find that dream cheap labor market, they are going to move their interests somewhere else. And fast!
No offence, Locke, I like Level (that magazine rulz and I love those wacky editors with their silly names), but that's the fact. Also, you're better payed then I am, and you get to play the latest games on a machine that doesn't crash at every five minutes. And for a gamer like me, working as an editor for a gaming magazine it's a dream job. Imagine that! ...can you?
The point is we do NOT earn more compared to the 90's. Not all of us, compared to what we do. But it's true, Eastern Europe is STARTING to be a viable market for games, and pretty soon I hope to join it. One original 40 dollar game per month - that's my target. And that's something.
Nicely written Laura, but please, from now on... look in every direction when you try to analize the political and economical aspects of "the" problem. Look around you and then, only then, take a look at the statistics. You might see the difference. As for me, the gap between the avarage income in USA and Romania remains a problem. I love this country, but as soon as I'll have the necesary money, I'll go west. If it gets better, I'll come back and stay for ever. If it doesn't, I gues I'll try to make a diffrence.
I'm glad we got some GAMERS out there. The future is bright...
Original Comment by: Lockves
http://lockves.blogspot.com
Well, if you imagine that in press they pay so well, you are so very wrong. I wish I could earn 900 $ here... really. I wish that I wouldn't pay 1/4 of my salary every month for this computer that doesn't crash... I wish that my home to be bigger than 19 m2... And so on. I f you think that in West is better.. Well... depends alot. After one year of working in Italy at making boats, on some construction yards and cleaning hotels... well... I wish you all the luck there. I didn't had any.
Never think that we come from the romanian high society and we never look down. Because, like you, we are down too. The diffrence is that we have exactly what Laura said, enthusiasm, hope and ambition. I wish that to you too.
http://lockves.blogspot.com
Well, if you imagine that in press they pay so well, you are so very wrong. I wish I could earn 900 $ here... really. I wish that I wouldn't pay 1/4 of my salary every month for this computer that doesn't crash... I wish that my home to be bigger than 19 m2... And so on. I f you think that in West is better.. Well... depends alot. After one year of working in Italy at making boats, on some construction yards and cleaning hotels... well... I wish you all the luck there. I didn't had any.
Never think that we come from the romanian high society and we never look down. Because, like you, we are down too. The diffrence is that we have exactly what Laura said, enthusiasm, hope and ambition. I wish that to you too.
Original Comment by: Laura Bularca
I am so sorry, Staminal, for your experience. Never imagine for example, those Romanians that now live in US always lived a good life. Maybe they don't live it even now (although I truly hope they do). I deeply understand your bitterness, please believe me, and I know there are many in your situation. But I am forced to trust statistics more than just your word. And statistics clearly show that we do grow as a nation, that the Eastern Europe market does matter, and so on. If you are a programmer and earn USD150, then my best and very sincere suggestion is to find a better place of work. I guarantee you that you very much can. And yes, I am sorry, ask anybody in Bucharest or in the main Romanian cities and you will see that, indeed, salaries are of a minimum USD 500 per programmer. Yes, of course there are exceptions -I am sorry to hear you are one of tthem-, but I have programmer friends that earn even USD 2000 and indeed, many companies are now affraid of Eastern Europe's (or at least Romania's) growing paycheck demands. And this is why companies like Route 66 open new offices in Moldova. There is so much to talk about this, and what strikes me most is how come so many pople do not see it is up to them to change their life in better? I do not wish to intrude in your personal life, but why, oh why do you work for USD150? As for RDS, why shout that its connection sux, when first of all, it WAS the first to offer internet to all (so please give Caesar what is rightfully his) and second of all, you can choose, since now RDS is not the only internet provider anymore. You say you wish to play WoW. OK. Please don't tell me that USD 15 per month is much for a programmer in Bucharest, Iasi, Timisoara, Brasov etc., that earns about USD 500? We spend money for so many unimportant things, and no, even though I truly sympathise with your situation, I refuse to cry again in front of the world that we are poor, that our situation is not better compared to what it was in 2000. Even the Government raised the minimum wage... And yes, it is up to us to make it better. Enthusiasm, hope, ambition are indeed our best chances.
I am so sorry, Staminal, for your experience. Never imagine for example, those Romanians that now live in US always lived a good life. Maybe they don't live it even now (although I truly hope they do). I deeply understand your bitterness, please believe me, and I know there are many in your situation. But I am forced to trust statistics more than just your word. And statistics clearly show that we do grow as a nation, that the Eastern Europe market does matter, and so on. If you are a programmer and earn USD150, then my best and very sincere suggestion is to find a better place of work. I guarantee you that you very much can. And yes, I am sorry, ask anybody in Bucharest or in the main Romanian cities and you will see that, indeed, salaries are of a minimum USD 500 per programmer. Yes, of course there are exceptions -I am sorry to hear you are one of tthem-, but I have programmer friends that earn even USD 2000 and indeed, many companies are now affraid of Eastern Europe's (or at least Romania's) growing paycheck demands. And this is why companies like Route 66 open new offices in Moldova. There is so much to talk about this, and what strikes me most is how come so many pople do not see it is up to them to change their life in better? I do not wish to intrude in your personal life, but why, oh why do you work for USD150? As for RDS, why shout that its connection sux, when first of all, it WAS the first to offer internet to all (so please give Caesar what is rightfully his) and second of all, you can choose, since now RDS is not the only internet provider anymore. You say you wish to play WoW. OK. Please don't tell me that USD 15 per month is much for a programmer in Bucharest, Iasi, Timisoara, Brasov etc., that earns about USD 500? We spend money for so many unimportant things, and no, even though I truly sympathise with your situation, I refuse to cry again in front of the world that we are poor, that our situation is not better compared to what it was in 2000. Even the Government raised the minimum wage... And yes, it is up to us to make it better. Enthusiasm, hope, ambition are indeed our best chances.
Original Comment by: Staminal
I'm not a programmer, Laura. I didn't said that. And 15 dollars per month is too damn much for me. Enthusiasm, hope? I got them all but you really don't know who leads our destinyes right now. That's why I'm trying to gain some experience and money to get out, even for a while. And Lockve, please don't tell me that you earn less then 400 US dollars per month. That whould be a lie and I'm sure you won't lie to me. please note that I have nothing against you, your job or anything related to it. You guys are doing a great job there. But fore me, the future is not so bright in Romania. Not right now. Not in my domain, where everything is math and precision. I work for a german company, a big one that makes all kinds of stuff for Mercedes - a job like mine is hard to find here and they know it. 150 dollars per month! I'm staying only becouse I want to gain more experience and then get the hell out of here.
As for my provider you're right, RDS is not the only one. But changing it implies a new phone line, more bills and more headakes. I got them all tooI.
I'm not the only one in this position, I know that. But I'll survive and I'ill do just fine. Somehow, somewhere else or even right here in Romania (I hope).
I'm not a programmer, Laura. I didn't said that. And 15 dollars per month is too damn much for me. Enthusiasm, hope? I got them all but you really don't know who leads our destinyes right now. That's why I'm trying to gain some experience and money to get out, even for a while. And Lockve, please don't tell me that you earn less then 400 US dollars per month. That whould be a lie and I'm sure you won't lie to me. please note that I have nothing against you, your job or anything related to it. You guys are doing a great job there. But fore me, the future is not so bright in Romania. Not right now. Not in my domain, where everything is math and precision. I work for a german company, a big one that makes all kinds of stuff for Mercedes - a job like mine is hard to find here and they know it. 150 dollars per month! I'm staying only becouse I want to gain more experience and then get the hell out of here.
As for my provider you're right, RDS is not the only one. But changing it implies a new phone line, more bills and more headakes. I got them all tooI.
I'm not the only one in this position, I know that. But I'll survive and I'ill do just fine. Somehow, somewhere else or even right here in Romania (I hope).
Original Comment by: Mihnea Balta
And the marmot? What did the marmot say?
Yeah, the great Romanian game developers. I can think of about 3 games that were produced (from start to finish, not bits and pieces) in Romania and sold more than 15 copies in a Western market. Cabela's 4x4, Silent Hunter 3 [1] and Blazing Angels [2]. Or do you want to mention Secret Service: In Harm's Way [3], Revolution [4], the miriad Cabela hunting sims and - the best of them all - Realms of Torment/Krel/Mourning/Age of Mourning [5] [6]? Too bad that two of the 3 things that can be called games were made by Ubisoft, ain't it?
How can you actually write an article where you say that Romanians are to be feared for buying 1300 copies of Lineage 2? 1300?! In a country with 22 milion people? 1300 copies of a game that has 2 million subscribers? Oh my, NCSoft would be so bankrupt by now if it wasn't for the 1300 brave Romanians that bought their puny game... All hail Romania.
I don't get it. I can't see where the big achievement is. Hordes of Romanian patriots rallying to kill rats in some random MMORPG to brush up the image Romania has in the Western World?... come again? Also, next time you write about the average salary going up to 250 USD, from 200, you need to be a bit more convincing when you're saying that the extra 50 bucks will be spent on Internet connections and games. Because of course, 200 was just enough for food, rent, clothing and all that crap, so the extra 50 can go into entertainment. Hold on, I'm having a vision: Romanians making a common fund where they put their extra 50 bucks (you know, like CAR) and then they get an Xbox 360 and a home-theatre system in TIME SHARING! With ration cards! Like milk in the old days! Maybe I'll start this fund myself... alo, cuplajul? Mai lasa-ma dom'ne si pe mine sa fac un Fight Night!
Oh yes, and I can't understand how you forgot to mention another great Romanian accomplishment: Romero married Raluca, a Romanian!!!11 [7] Also, he visited the great Bucharest Mall and he went for a stroll on Magheru!!!!111 [8]
As a side note, even in Romania, a programmer makes only 150 USD per month in one of two cases: he's rubbish, or he's got no idea what the value of his work is. I haven't seen too many good programmers that don't know how much their work is worth...
References (something you're supposed to use when you pretend to be a journalist):
[1] http://www.gamespot.com/pc/sim/silenthunteriii/review.html - 8.9
[2] http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/sim/worldwariisquadron/review.html - 6.9
[3] http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/secretserviceinharmsway/review.html - 6.7
[4] http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/revolution/review.html - 2.7
[5] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mourning_(game) - the article doesn't actually use the words "credit card scam", but a lot of people did around the "launch" date
[6] http://www.somethingawful.com/articles.php?a=2706 - Dave threatens to sue somethingawful and makes it to the exclusive "legal threats" SA club
[7] http://romero.smugmug.com/gallery/138855/1/5076340
[8] http://romero.smugmug.com/gallery/273963/1/10863357
And the marmot? What did the marmot say?
Yeah, the great Romanian game developers. I can think of about 3 games that were produced (from start to finish, not bits and pieces) in Romania and sold more than 15 copies in a Western market. Cabela's 4x4, Silent Hunter 3 [1] and Blazing Angels [2]. Or do you want to mention Secret Service: In Harm's Way [3], Revolution [4], the miriad Cabela hunting sims and - the best of them all - Realms of Torment/Krel/Mourning/Age of Mourning [5] [6]? Too bad that two of the 3 things that can be called games were made by Ubisoft, ain't it?
How can you actually write an article where you say that Romanians are to be feared for buying 1300 copies of Lineage 2? 1300?! In a country with 22 milion people? 1300 copies of a game that has 2 million subscribers? Oh my, NCSoft would be so bankrupt by now if it wasn't for the 1300 brave Romanians that bought their puny game... All hail Romania.
I don't get it. I can't see where the big achievement is. Hordes of Romanian patriots rallying to kill rats in some random MMORPG to brush up the image Romania has in the Western World?... come again? Also, next time you write about the average salary going up to 250 USD, from 200, you need to be a bit more convincing when you're saying that the extra 50 bucks will be spent on Internet connections and games. Because of course, 200 was just enough for food, rent, clothing and all that crap, so the extra 50 can go into entertainment. Hold on, I'm having a vision: Romanians making a common fund where they put their extra 50 bucks (you know, like CAR) and then they get an Xbox 360 and a home-theatre system in TIME SHARING! With ration cards! Like milk in the old days! Maybe I'll start this fund myself... alo, cuplajul? Mai lasa-ma dom'ne si pe mine sa fac un Fight Night!
Oh yes, and I can't understand how you forgot to mention another great Romanian accomplishment: Romero married Raluca, a Romanian!!!11 [7] Also, he visited the great Bucharest Mall and he went for a stroll on Magheru!!!!111 [8]
As a side note, even in Romania, a programmer makes only 150 USD per month in one of two cases: he's rubbish, or he's got no idea what the value of his work is. I haven't seen too many good programmers that don't know how much their work is worth...
References (something you're supposed to use when you pretend to be a journalist):
[1] http://www.gamespot.com/pc/sim/silenthunteriii/review.html - 8.9
[2] http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/sim/worldwariisquadron/review.html - 6.9
[3] http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/secretserviceinharmsway/review.html - 6.7
[4] http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/revolution/review.html - 2.7
[5] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mourning_(game) - the article doesn't actually use the words "credit card scam", but a lot of people did around the "launch" date
[6] http://www.somethingawful.com/articles.php?a=2706 - Dave threatens to sue somethingawful and makes it to the exclusive "legal threats" SA club
[7] http://romero.smugmug.com/gallery/138855/1/5076340
[8] http://romero.smugmug.com/gallery/273963/1/10863357
Original Comment by: Laura Bularca
Mister Mihnea Balta, I appreciate your oppinion but here are some links maybe you should read before you offend someone:
http://www.insse.ro/anuar_2004/zip_e2004/chap12-income.pdf (and generally http://www.insse.ro/index_eng.htm, the National Insitute of Statistics)
http://www.businessromania.com/ and as a more appropriate example, http://www.businessromania.com/index.php?x=read)
http://www.efinance.ro/articol.php?id_revista=200602&id_sectiune=eitc&ordine_sectiune=7 (in Romanian only)
An interesting interview with mister Guenter Cohnen from Vivendi, who came here this year: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Vivendi-Universal-Games-Interview-on-Softpedia-com-20752.shtml
Something about Gameloft: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Vivendi-Universal-Games-Interview-on-Softpedia-com-20752.shtml
I don't understand how do you define better and with what do you want Romania compared. I assure you there are many more examples that Eastern Europe IS an emerging market, Romania included (even if you don't believe me, I am happy still that NCSoft and Vivendi share my oppinion and not yours). I don't understant why every Romanian always complains that the international press only talks about the bad things here, but when someone talks about something good, they... oh well. Rest assured I have noted the idea that we're poor, opressed and have absolutely nothing good to talk about except corruption, piracy, theft, and such things. I keep my hope that still, someone who is not Romanian will maybe have a better oppinion about us as gamers by reading this article written by someone who pretends to be a journalist. I didn't want to show the classical examples you just did, because I thought there are enough of them... but maybe I was wrong.
I am sad...
Mister Mihnea Balta, I appreciate your oppinion but here are some links maybe you should read before you offend someone:
http://www.insse.ro/anuar_2004/zip_e2004/chap12-income.pdf (and generally http://www.insse.ro/index_eng.htm, the National Insitute of Statistics)
http://www.businessromania.com/ and as a more appropriate example, http://www.businessromania.com/index.php?x=read)
http://www.efinance.ro/articol.php?id_revista=200602&id_sectiune=eitc&ordine_sectiune=7 (in Romanian only)
An interesting interview with mister Guenter Cohnen from Vivendi, who came here this year: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Vivendi-Universal-Games-Interview-on-Softpedia-com-20752.shtml
Something about Gameloft: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Vivendi-Universal-Games-Interview-on-Softpedia-com-20752.shtml
I don't understand how do you define better and with what do you want Romania compared. I assure you there are many more examples that Eastern Europe IS an emerging market, Romania included (even if you don't believe me, I am happy still that NCSoft and Vivendi share my oppinion and not yours). I don't understant why every Romanian always complains that the international press only talks about the bad things here, but when someone talks about something good, they... oh well. Rest assured I have noted the idea that we're poor, opressed and have absolutely nothing good to talk about except corruption, piracy, theft, and such things. I keep my hope that still, someone who is not Romanian will maybe have a better oppinion about us as gamers by reading this article written by someone who pretends to be a journalist. I didn't want to show the classical examples you just did, because I thought there are enough of them... but maybe I was wrong.
I am sad...
Original Comment by: Laura Bularca
I appologise, the link for Gameloft is this:
http://www.gameloft.com/corpo_press.php?date=2002&press1=15
I appologise, the link for Gameloft is this:
http://www.gameloft.com/corpo_press.php?date=2002&press1=15
Original Comment by: Florin Boitor
The article is quite accurate. Maybe it is a little bit optimistic concerning the market evolution but, really accurate concerning the game development industry. I can vouch concerning Silent Hunter III development that it is 100% Romanian development concerning both the code and people involved. It is the most successful game developed in Romania from the critical point of view and probably one of the most successful in terms of sales. And yes, sold more then 15 copies and I’m sure that if any of the skeptics on this board could have been part of this great dev team he was probably more relaxed and confident in Romanian game development.
In my opinion, in vehicle simulation games Romania can be very competitive. That’s why I think it’s not a coincidence the most successful titles are in this domain.
Concerning the market estimation it’s true that the average Romanian don’t care too much about spending his salary on videogames and internet connections. However, what is maybe interesting is that, once they reach a certain income they have no problem to spend on videogames and internet. What is this limit? I don’t know, maybe between 500 and 1000 USD/month. And if this trend will continue in the next years, corroborated with the trend that the number of those people will grow, maybe in 3-6 years Romania will be a more important market then Greece, Slovenia or Croatia. Despite the fact that, for sure, we’ll not have the same average salary.
So, I guess that finally the article is really good in promoting Romanian game development and videogames market evolution.
In fact this was the point.
The article is quite accurate. Maybe it is a little bit optimistic concerning the market evolution but, really accurate concerning the game development industry. I can vouch concerning Silent Hunter III development that it is 100% Romanian development concerning both the code and people involved. It is the most successful game developed in Romania from the critical point of view and probably one of the most successful in terms of sales. And yes, sold more then 15 copies and I’m sure that if any of the skeptics on this board could have been part of this great dev team he was probably more relaxed and confident in Romanian game development.
In my opinion, in vehicle simulation games Romania can be very competitive. That’s why I think it’s not a coincidence the most successful titles are in this domain.
Concerning the market estimation it’s true that the average Romanian don’t care too much about spending his salary on videogames and internet connections. However, what is maybe interesting is that, once they reach a certain income they have no problem to spend on videogames and internet. What is this limit? I don’t know, maybe between 500 and 1000 USD/month. And if this trend will continue in the next years, corroborated with the trend that the number of those people will grow, maybe in 3-6 years Romania will be a more important market then Greece, Slovenia or Croatia. Despite the fact that, for sure, we’ll not have the same average salary.
So, I guess that finally the article is really good in promoting Romanian game development and videogames market evolution.
In fact this was the point.
Original Comment by: Mihnea Balta
I still don't see what's there to talk about, let alone write an article on. So there are 2 game companies in Bucharest (well, 3 if you count Gameloft separately from Ubisoft). So they have made a grand total of 3 successful non-handheld games so far (I'm not counting Chess Master until a Romanian programmer puts a line of code into the actual chess engine; if that's happened already, please correct me). There are also a bunch of startups (3? 5?) that are trying to get things going, but haven't produced anything so far. How can this make you say that game development is taking off in Romania? I say there's no need to get overly excited about something that hasn't happened yet. Take a look a bit North, in Kiev, or a bit to the West, in Budapest. That's what you usually call small, but promising.
Two companies with three games is a start, but nothing to write home about. I guess you can write about it in this... erm... thing, The Escapist, which sounds a bit like high level wank: everybody's giving their expert opinion on the art and craft of making games, crying that development costs skyrocket, frowning on publishers for milking licenses to hell and back... you know, "FOTM" for MMORPG players, "trendy stuff" for people with social skills. Too bad games are supposed to be fun first, and art maybe afterwards, and that the opinions expressed in here (mine included, I guess) have about 0 practical impact.
What really upsets me about the article is the gratuitous way in which some grand statements are made. "But what the Eastern Europeans lack in numbers is compensated with quality, passion and unity." What the hell? What's this based on? What quality are you referring to exactly? If you're talking about the quality of the produced games, I'd say that first, your sample population is kind of irrelevant (3, if I may remind you) and second that (8.9 + 6.7 + 6.9) / 3 = 7.5. It can look like passion to outsiders, but I'm pretty sure nobody's seen the Quality yet (note the capital Q).
I don't know if you can quantize the quality of somebody's gameplay. I play games to have fun. I think it's pointless to compare people's results in games as long as they're having fun. You know, games being about entertainment and all that. I've also got some gripes with people that play current-day MMORPGs at all, but that's a different discussion and we can save it for another time, which will never come.
Another example is "advantage" 4: money. Hello? Romanian gamers have the financial advantage over American gamers because the average salary is now 250 USD? I can't wrap my mind around that one, sorry.
And then, there's the grand finale of all gratuitous finales. Can't we not make big patriotic statements in inappropriate places? Or maybe I just have some sort of hypersensibility to this kind of article endings mostly seen in 4th grade homework or communist odes (or interviews with redneck mobile home owners, but those have a slightly different flavour).
To wrap things up: 300 preorders for Guildwars in a country with 5.5 million PC users is not an achievement. Having an Ubisoft branch is something, but I fail to see it as a big thing. The fact that the only other game developer in town is a company that's whipped into making budget games by Activison Value (I see that people keep forgetting the second part of the name of the company that Funlabs does business with, I wonder why?) is by no means anything to get excited over. So, what's with the patriotic outburst? Don't get me wrong, I don't like it when the international press talks about kids with AIDS, gipsies that kidnap Spanish babies and run big ATM fraud networks in the UK and all that, but it doesn't mean that we have to try to balance this by falling into the other, positivistic extreme.
I don't mean to ruin anybody's business, and I wish to see retailers selling games at lower prices in Romania, because of it being a poorer market. On the other hand, I'd like to see localized games pretty much as much as I'd like to see dubbed movies in theatres, i.e. not at all. For my little moment of nationalistic pride, I can say that we can appreciate a work in its original form, without the need to have some semi-talented translator screwing up the meaning of the text, or some semi-talented actor sounding really, really stupid when I'm trying to enjoy the game.
PS: Mr. Boitor, I've already listed your game as a success and acknowledged it for being developed entirely in Ubisoft Bucharest. In fact, the little reference part of my previous post shows that it has seen the warmest critical reception out of the 3 titles that I listed as worthy of being called games. As for the part about being relaxed and confident after taking part in its development, you will surely understand if I don't wholeheartedly agree with you. Also, when you so elegantly start a statement with "the skeptics on this board could this and that", it's not nice to change your mind about being impersonal halfway through, going like "if he was that or the other"...
I still don't see what's there to talk about, let alone write an article on. So there are 2 game companies in Bucharest (well, 3 if you count Gameloft separately from Ubisoft). So they have made a grand total of 3 successful non-handheld games so far (I'm not counting Chess Master until a Romanian programmer puts a line of code into the actual chess engine; if that's happened already, please correct me). There are also a bunch of startups (3? 5?) that are trying to get things going, but haven't produced anything so far. How can this make you say that game development is taking off in Romania? I say there's no need to get overly excited about something that hasn't happened yet. Take a look a bit North, in Kiev, or a bit to the West, in Budapest. That's what you usually call small, but promising.
Two companies with three games is a start, but nothing to write home about. I guess you can write about it in this... erm... thing, The Escapist, which sounds a bit like high level wank: everybody's giving their expert opinion on the art and craft of making games, crying that development costs skyrocket, frowning on publishers for milking licenses to hell and back... you know, "FOTM" for MMORPG players, "trendy stuff" for people with social skills. Too bad games are supposed to be fun first, and art maybe afterwards, and that the opinions expressed in here (mine included, I guess) have about 0 practical impact.
What really upsets me about the article is the gratuitous way in which some grand statements are made. "But what the Eastern Europeans lack in numbers is compensated with quality, passion and unity." What the hell? What's this based on? What quality are you referring to exactly? If you're talking about the quality of the produced games, I'd say that first, your sample population is kind of irrelevant (3, if I may remind you) and second that (8.9 + 6.7 + 6.9) / 3 = 7.5. It can look like passion to outsiders, but I'm pretty sure nobody's seen the Quality yet (note the capital Q).
I don't know if you can quantize the quality of somebody's gameplay. I play games to have fun. I think it's pointless to compare people's results in games as long as they're having fun. You know, games being about entertainment and all that. I've also got some gripes with people that play current-day MMORPGs at all, but that's a different discussion and we can save it for another time, which will never come.
Another example is "advantage" 4: money. Hello? Romanian gamers have the financial advantage over American gamers because the average salary is now 250 USD? I can't wrap my mind around that one, sorry.
And then, there's the grand finale of all gratuitous finales. Can't we not make big patriotic statements in inappropriate places? Or maybe I just have some sort of hypersensibility to this kind of article endings mostly seen in 4th grade homework or communist odes (or interviews with redneck mobile home owners, but those have a slightly different flavour).
To wrap things up: 300 preorders for Guildwars in a country with 5.5 million PC users is not an achievement. Having an Ubisoft branch is something, but I fail to see it as a big thing. The fact that the only other game developer in town is a company that's whipped into making budget games by Activison Value (I see that people keep forgetting the second part of the name of the company that Funlabs does business with, I wonder why?) is by no means anything to get excited over. So, what's with the patriotic outburst? Don't get me wrong, I don't like it when the international press talks about kids with AIDS, gipsies that kidnap Spanish babies and run big ATM fraud networks in the UK and all that, but it doesn't mean that we have to try to balance this by falling into the other, positivistic extreme.
I don't mean to ruin anybody's business, and I wish to see retailers selling games at lower prices in Romania, because of it being a poorer market. On the other hand, I'd like to see localized games pretty much as much as I'd like to see dubbed movies in theatres, i.e. not at all. For my little moment of nationalistic pride, I can say that we can appreciate a work in its original form, without the need to have some semi-talented translator screwing up the meaning of the text, or some semi-talented actor sounding really, really stupid when I'm trying to enjoy the game.
PS: Mr. Boitor, I've already listed your game as a success and acknowledged it for being developed entirely in Ubisoft Bucharest. In fact, the little reference part of my previous post shows that it has seen the warmest critical reception out of the 3 titles that I listed as worthy of being called games. As for the part about being relaxed and confident after taking part in its development, you will surely understand if I don't wholeheartedly agree with you. Also, when you so elegantly start a statement with "the skeptics on this board could this and that", it's not nice to change your mind about being impersonal halfway through, going like "if he was that or the other"...
Original Comment by: Lockves
http://lockves.blogspot.com
All I can say is - Mr. Mihnea, you should go work for the French television. They have a great ttalent in showing the worst parts of living in Eastern Europe. They will love you. You may even get a statue.
Thank God there aren't too many of you. We may even get the chance to actually get somewhere as proud people, not as beggars. Oh, and keep in mind that patriotism is a virtue, which, unfortunately, I can't see it in you.
http://lockves.blogspot.com
All I can say is - Mr. Mihnea, you should go work for the French television. They have a great ttalent in showing the worst parts of living in Eastern Europe. They will love you. You may even get a statue.
Thank God there aren't too many of you. We may even get the chance to actually get somewhere as proud people, not as beggars. Oh, and keep in mind that patriotism is a virtue, which, unfortunately, I can't see it in you.