Cam Shea has posted an in-depth feature on the state of the Australian development scene on IGN, painting a very positive portrait.
The undeniable transition the local development scene has undergone, argues Shea, isn't necessarily a bad thing, with the collapse of the majority of Australia's larger-scale dev studios paving the way for a full-scale embrace of new and emerging platforms and technologies.
Shea says: "The industry is now focused on new platforms that have experienced explosive growth – iOS, Android and to a lesser extent, Steam. And the barrier to entry on these emerging marketplaces is just so much lower: almost anyone with the drive can create and publish a game."
Outlining the key players in this new development landscape, Shea points to recent luminaries including Uppercut Games, The Voxel Agents, Halfbrick, Firemonkeys, Defiant Development, Robot Circus, Millipede and Initials Games, just to name a few.
Shea points to the rising Aussie dollar, lack of government support for development and increased competition from developing (no pun intended) countries for the initial collapse, but sees a promising potential for Australia's future.
Shea concludes: "Can the Australian industry truly make an impact on the world stage? It’s in a better position to do so than it has been in years. Just don’t expect it to happen on the next generation of consoles; expect it happen on that computer in your pocket, via your web browser or perhaps streamed to your TV."
Check out the full article on IGN here.
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