Creating Great Games that are Played for Years & Remembered Forever

Summary

Mobile games dominate the market due to their widespread accessibility. Supercell, founded in 2010, aims to create memorable games for mass appeal, emphasizing team autonomy and diverse backgrounds for innovation. The company believes in involving game teams in crucial decisions, recognizing players' importance in the development process. With the European tech scene flourishing, Supercell is inspired by the potential to rival Silicon Valley, focusing on social gaming to enhance player interaction and create lasting experiences.

Takeaways

• 🎮 Mobile games dominate the market due to the widespread use of smartphones as gaming devices.
• 🚀 Creativity and innovation are central to game development, aiming to create fun and memorable experiences.
• 🌟 Supercell was founded in 2010 with a vision to make games that would be played and remembered for years.
• 💡 The company's culture emphasizes empowering teams with the best people to create games, fostering a sense of ownership and independence.
• 🌍 Diversity in team composition is valued for its contribution to the creative process and the goal of making games for everyone.
• 🗣️ Encouraging open communication within teams is vital for the development of innovative ideas.
• 🛠️ Teams are involved in critical decisions, such as launching or discontinuing a game, based on their belief and commitment to the project.
• 🎭 Initially, game development focuses on developers' insights, but as the game evolves, player feedback becomes increasingly important.
• 📈 The European tech scene has significantly grown, with companies like Spotify and Supercell emerging as global successes.
• 🤝 Collaboration within the industry is highlighted as a key factor for success, with a supportive community spirit among Finnish gaming companies.
• 🔮 The mobile gaming industry is still in its early stages with vast opportunities for growth and improvement.
• 🤝 Social aspects of gaming are seen as an area of great potential, with the mobile platform's networking capabilities offering new forms of gameplay.

Q & A

What is the significance of mobile games in the current gaming market?

Mobile games represent more than half of the entire games market due to the widespread accessibility of mobile phones as gaming devices, which are carried by almost everyone.

What is the core principle behind creating games according to the script?

The core principle is creativity and innovation, focusing on creating something from scratch that is inherently fun for people to play.

When was Supercell founded and what was its initial vision?

Supercell was founded in 2010 with the vision to create games that would be played by as many people as possible for years and be remembered forever.

What is the key to achieving Supercell's ambitious dream as mentioned in the script?

The key is to have the best people forming the best teams to create the games, and to be the best place for those teams to work.

Why is the culture at Supercell considered important for the company's success?

The culture at Supercell is important because it empowers teams with the independence to make decisions for their games, fostering an environment that encourages creativity and innovation.

How does Supercell ensure diversity in its creative process?

Supercell ensures diversity by having people from around the world with different backgrounds, which is crucial for bringing a wide range of ideas to the creative process.

What role do game teams play in the decision-making process regarding the launch or termination of a game?

Game teams are heavily involved in the decision to go live or kill a game, as their belief in the game is crucial for its success and they are the ones working on it.

How does the importance of players evolve throughout the game development cycle?

At the start of the game creation process, developers focus on what they think players might want. As the game gets released, the focus shifts to the players' feedback and preferences, making them central to the development as a service.

What has been the impact of the European Tech Community's growth on the tech industry?

The European Tech Community has developed massively, leading to more successes from Europe, such as Spotify, and positioning Europe and Finland as potential rivals to Silicon Valley in producing valuable tech companies.

How does collaboration within the Finnish gaming industry contribute to its success?

The Finnish gaming industry works well together, with companies cheering for each other's success and supporting one another, especially in unexpected situations.

What opportunities does the mobile gaming industry still hold, and what areas excite the speaker personally?

The mobile gaming industry is still young with much opportunity left, especially in creating more social games that leverage the network capabilities of mobile phones to enable new forms of gameplay.

What is Supercell's inspiration and long-term goal in creating games?

Supercell is inspired by companies like Nintendo and aims to create games that would be remembered forever, focusing on creating amazing games with their talented group of people.

Outlines

00:00

🎮 Mobile Gaming's Dominance and Creativity

The script opens with a discussion on the significance of mobile games in the gaming market, highlighting their widespread reach due to the ubiquity of mobile phones. It emphasizes the importance of creativity and innovation in game development, with the ultimate goal of creating fun and memorable games. The narrative then introduces Supercell, a company founded in 2010 with a vision to develop games that would be enjoyed by many for years to come.

🌟 Supercell's Founding Principles and Culture

This paragraph delves into Supercell's founding principles, focusing on assembling the best teams to create impactful games. The company's culture is underscored as pivotal, with a unique approach to green-lighting teams rather than just ideas, empowering them with independence and decision-making power. The diversity of team members from various backgrounds is highlighted as crucial for the creative process, and the importance of team involvement in the game's life cycle decisions is stressed.

🤝 The Evolution of the European Tech Community

The script shifts focus to the growth of the European tech community over the past decade, noting the change from a lack of significant tech successes to the emergence of influential companies like Spotify. The speaker expresses excitement for upcoming European, particularly Finnish, tech companies and believes that Europe and Finland have the potential to rival Silicon Valley as a hub for valuable tech companies.

🤔 The Role of Developers and Players in Game Development

The paragraph discusses the dynamic between developers and players in the game creation process. Initially, developers rely on their understanding of what players might want, but as the game evolves and reaches the audience, the focus shifts to player feedback and preferences. The concept of developing a game as a service is introduced, emphasizing the need for developers to listen and adapt to the players' needs.

🤝 Collaboration in the Gaming Industry

The script highlights the importance of collaboration within the gaming industry, particularly in Finland, where success is celebrated collectively, and support is given to those who face challenges. This collaborative spirit is presented as a key factor in the industry's growth and success.

🚀 The Future of Mobile Gaming and Social Interaction

The final paragraph of the script is forward-looking, exploring the potential for mobile gaming to become even more social, given the network capabilities of mobile devices. The speaker expresses excitement about the untapped opportunities in mobile gaming and the prospect of discovering new forms of gameplay that leverage social connections.

🌈 Supercell's Aspirations and Inspirations

The script concludes with Supercell's aspirations to create games that will be remembered forever, drawing inspiration from companies like Nintendo. The speaker reflects on the early days of Supercell and the excitement of the potential to create legendary games with the current talented team.

Keywords

💡Mobile games

Mobile games refer to video games played on mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. They are a significant part of the gaming industry, with the script noting that they represent over half of the entire market. This is attributed to the widespread use of mobile phones, making gaming accessible to a broad audience. The script emphasizes the importance of mobile games in the current gaming landscape.

💡Platform

In the context of the script, a platform refers to the hardware or software environment on which a game operates, such as a mobile phone. The mobile phone as a platform is highlighted for its reach, as almost everyone carries a potential gaming device in their pocket, contributing to the dominance of mobile games in the market.

💡Creativity

Creativity in the script is associated with the process of developing new and original games. It is a core aspect of game development, where developers aim to create something from scratch that is enjoyable for players. The script mentions that the most important thing is to have creative people to drive this process, which is crucial for the success of a game.

💡Innovation

Innovation is the introduction of new ideas or methods, and in the script, it is linked to the creation of games that are both novel and engaging. The mention of innovation underscores the need for game developers to constantly push boundaries and come up with unique gaming experiences to attract and retain players.

💡Supercell

Supercell is a Finnish mobile game development company founded in 2010, as mentioned in the script. The company is known for creating popular and long-lasting games, aiming to make games that are played by as many people as possible and remembered forever. The script discusses the company's founding principles and its culture, emphasizing the importance of team independence and creative freedom.

💡Green light

In the script, 'green light' refers to the approval given to game teams to proceed with the development of their games. Supercell's approach is to green light teams rather than just ideas, empowering them with the autonomy to make decisions for their games. This concept is central to the company's culture and its belief in the importance of team empowerment.

💡Diversity

Diversity in the script is highlighted as a strength, particularly in the context of having team members from different backgrounds. It is considered important for the creative process in game development, as it brings a variety of ideas and perspectives to the table, which is essential for creating games that appeal to a global audience.

💡Decision-making

The script discusses the importance of game teams being involved in key decision-making processes, such as whether to launch or terminate a game. This is crucial because the team members are the ones who will be working on the game, and their belief in the game's potential is vital for its success.

💡Player-centric

The script mentions that while developers are central to the initial stages of game creation, as the game development progresses, the focus shifts to the players. The importance of listening to and understanding player feedback is emphasized, as it is crucial for developing a game as a service that meets player needs and expectations.

💡European Tech Community

The European Tech Community is referred to in the script as having grown significantly over the past decade. The script mentions that while there were not many tech successes from Europe when Supercell was founded, the situation has changed, with companies like Spotify emerging from the region. The script also expresses optimism about the potential of European, and specifically Finnish, tech companies to rival Silicon Valley.

💡Collaboration

Collaboration in the script is presented as a key aspect of the gaming industry, particularly within the Finnish industry. It is described as a supportive environment where companies cheer for each other's successes and offer help when needed. This collaborative spirit is seen as beneficial for the overall growth and development of the industry.

💡Social gaming

Social gaming is a concept discussed in the script, focusing on the potential for games to become more interactive and connected through social networks. Given that mobile phones are network devices, the script explores the idea of new forms of gameplay that this connectivity can enable, indicating that there is still much potential for growth in this area.

💡Nintendo

Nintendo is mentioned in the script as an inspiration for Supercell, particularly in the company's aspiration to create games that will be remembered forever. Nintendo is known for its iconic and long-lasting games, and the script suggests that Supercell looks up to this legacy as it strives to create similarly impactful gaming experiences.

Highlights

Mobile games represent more than half of the entire games market due to the widespread use of mobile phones as gaming devices.

Games are all about creativity and innovation, aiming to create something fun from scratch.

Supercell was founded in 2010 with the goal of creating games that would be played by many and remembered forever.

Supercell's culture emphasizes empowering teams with the best people to make independent decisions for their games.

Diversity in team backgrounds is important for the creative process in game development.

Game teams should be involved in the decision to launch or kill a game, as they are the ones working on it and need to believe in it.

At the start of game creation, developers focus on what they think players might want, but later it becomes all about the players' feedback.

The European tech community has grown significantly over the past decade, with companies like Spotify leading the way.

There is a strong sense of collaboration in the Finnish gaming industry, with companies supporting each other's successes and struggles.

The mobile gaming industry is still young with much opportunity for growth and improvement.

Games have the potential to become even more social, leveraging the network capabilities of mobile devices.

Supercell aspires to create games that will be remembered, inspired by companies like Nintendo.

Supercell believes it is still early days for the company and is excited about the potential to create amazing games with its talented team.

The importance of listening to and watching players as the game development progresses to adapt and improve the gaming experience.

The potential for the European tech scene, including Finland, to rival Silicon Valley as a hub for valuable tech companies.

The excitement around upcoming companies from Finland and the belief in the region's ability to produce innovative tech solutions.

Transcripts

[Music]

mobile games represent more than half of

the entire games market and that is

because mobile phones as a platform they

have the widest possible reach I mean

basically everybody carries a gaming

device these days in their pockets games

obviously are all about creativity

Innovation you're trying to create

something from scratch which is

inheritant fun for people to play and

you know that's the most important thing

of course and to get there you need the

best possible like creative people and

the teams once you've created something

that is fun then the business outcomes

will

[Music]

follow supercell was founded back in uh

2010 we founded the company first of all

we wanted to create games that as many

people as possible would play for years

and games that would be remembered

forever and how we would then get there

and and get to that kind of a ambitious

dream of ours was that they simply

wanted to have the best people forming

the best teams who would create those

those games and we wanted to be the best

place for those those

teams the culture here at supercell is

really important we don't green light

games or ideas we green light teams

which gives all the power and

Independence to those teams to make

decisions for their

games because we have people from around

the world that come from different

backgrounds I think it's very important

because we want to make games for

everyone having people with different

ideas is is just super important for the

creative process making sure that people

feel comfortable expressing if they have

an idea or something that's what makes

what we do

important

it's really important that the game

teams are involved in the decision to go

live or kill the game because it's these

people who are going to be working on

the game it's absolutely crucial that

these people believe in the game so

that's why it's important that they are

part of the decision to decide whether

this game goes live or

not the player becomes more important

later in the cycle of making the game at

the start you don't have players and

players may not even know what they want

when you're when you're making a new

game so I think at the start of the game

creation process it's a lot about the

developers and what they think a player

might want but then as time goes on and

and the game gets out there it's all

about the players and that's where you

really have to be listening and watching

and uh developing uh the game as a

service

European Tech Community has developed

massively over the past decade back you

know when they were starting with super

cell there weren't that many successes

coming from Europe but these days of

course it's completely different the

companies like Spotify for example

coming from this place of the world and

of course I'm also very very excited

about all the upand cominging companies

that are coming from Finland and I

personally believe that Europe and also

Finland can actually rival Silicon

Valley as this place where the most

valuable tech companies will come

from collaboration in the industry is

very important I feel like the Finnish

industry works very well together and if

there's one gaming company that does

well I think everyone's cheering for

them if something you know unexpected

happens I think everyone's always you

know listening in and and giving support

and and supporting those who who

struggle Maybe

Mobile gaming industry is still very

young as an industry and there's like so

much more opportunity left and most of

all of course the games can be so much

better and area that I'm personally very

excited about is that how can games

become even more social because

obviously mobile phone is a network

device and and they're all connected to

each other so what type of new forms of

gameplay does f enable and I believe

that on the social side we're still like

scratching the

surface we founded supercell to create

games that would be remembered forever

and they are inspired by companies like

Nintendo so from that perspective you

know it's there it's still very early

days for for supercell and what I'm

excited about that they have a shot at

creating these amazing games together in

this amazing group of people that they

have at Super

so