Reko Ukko, co-founder and vice-president of game design at Seriously, admits that the company’s name is a great conversation starter. It denotes that they are serious about the work they do: games for mobile and for whatever will come next, such as wearables. They are also serious about free-to-play, a business model they are certain is here to stay.
Seriously is a company where they believe mobile entertainment is in the forefront of all the future brands. Back when movies were the most widespread and important form of media, developers rolled out games based on the movies. But now games capture a much larger audience than a movie premiere. So Seriously is focused on capturing those IPs and brands. The game is always foremost, but they make sure IP and brand development is an integral part of the process. So far, Ukko has found this helps the game development process and their experience so far has been a massive success.
Moving into Games
Ukko began his career in graphic design, building on his rich childhood involvement with visuals. He picked up 3D art as a hobby, but spent several years in IT and marketing before studying 3D and illustrations. Of all the class, he was the only one to move toward a career in games. In his first job with BugBear Entertainment, the way he visualized design was evident, and he was given the opportunity to become a designer.
He admits that he had no idea what this would entail with every game being so different. But he had made multiple RPG games when he was a child, and had formed definite opinions about such things as the issue of story-telling vs gameplay. He was also spurred onward by his interest in board games, which he had become heavily involved in five years before joining the games industry. He still considers that board games are enormously influential in this era of social gaming, emphasizing, “Board games are the true social game, and some of the learnings there apply to digital games as well.”
Between 2004 and 2007, Ukko worked on console games. At that time, as a result of his board game background, he realized players will play on any platform as long as the game is made for that platform. In 2007, when he joined Digital Chocolate, many people shunned the java games of the time, and there were many discussions about whether they were even games. But he believed if people find enjoyment in mobile gaming, what does it matter if you call it a game?
Time for a New Adventure
Ukko relates that co-founding Seriously was a golden opportunity in many ways. At the time, he had been working for NaturalMotion and living with his family in Oxford. His daughter was approaching the age of four, when she would be required to begin school in the UK, and the family would have to make a longer term commitment to living there. He found this an intimidating idea, since in Finland, children begin school at age seven.
He had also been in the games industry for long enough to see quite a lot and felt this was the time to do something adventurous. The opportunity to work with people such as Petri Järvilehto, founder of Remedy and creator of games such as Max Payne, and now creative director of Seriously, was something Ukko couldn’t pass up. With Järvilehto, he sensed an immediate rapport, and their approach seemed to gel. Other people joining the company were also on the same wavelength. Everyone in the company comes with a decade or more of experience in the games industry; they have seen the ups and downs, the pros and cons of just about everything. This gives them an extensive background they can draw on as they meet the challenges of setting up a new company.
Company culture is extremely important at Seriously, particularly because they have been involved with companies that have a poor culture, and the game is the only thing that matters. Such companies grind through dozens of employees as their game is being developed, and once the game is shipped, they lose even more. In contrast, Seriously believes trust and responsibility are key to maintaining a good company culture, allowing everyone to learn quickly. He says, “If there is a stumble, there is massive motivation to mend it.”
Finding the Breakthroughs
The most enjoyable aspect of game development, particularly for new designers, according to Ukko, is coming up with ideas. But he warns, “Everyone has ideas; it’s the execution that matters. You must always remember it is a marathon, not a sprint.” He recognizes there are many dead ends in the design process, but if you are agile, and the team is fully involved, playing the game and offering suggestions, there will be constant breakthroughs. Seeing the game evolve and build itself is incredibly motivating.
The major difficulty in this process arises from the necessity to work against a schedule. However, sticking to a schedule is essential, and in his experience, brings out the best in everyone. One of the major problems most of the team at Seriously has dealt with before is the never-ending project, where quality is the only consideration, and schedule and financial aspects of developing the game are neglected. So they are tremendously motivated to push for top quality without taking forever to ship the game. Ukko insists, “Shipping is good!”
He also believes it is vital to think about the platform itself. “Console and PC games are directly about immersion, board games are about social interaction, and mobile games are about snack-sized entertainment to fill your daily rituals.” Each is a different type of entertainment for a different situation. Ukko likes to make an analogy comparing games with wine. Some wines are perfect accompaniments to specific foods, others are suited to sipping while you chat with friends. Similarly, different games suit different people and situations. The massive variety of board games, for example, means that if he has friends visiting, there is always a game appropriate to those friends, the particular moment in time, and their schedule.
Looking at the Mobile Games Market
There are several issues he sees in the current mobile games market. Foremost is how well the developer communicates with his fan base - not just the avid players, but all of the customers. It is possible to do this with such things as forums and Facebook pages, but Ukko suggests an approach in which the player could tag a developer as a ‘favorite’ and follow him easily in the app store.
The second issue is the free-to-play model which works well in some genres and not in others. This results not only from the nature of free-to-play, but also from the places and moments where we play mobile games. He feels it might make sense to develop a new genre in the free-to-play space. This problem is difficult because it involves both your business model and the fickle nature of where people play mobile games.
Most important for Seriously is making the fun of games come first. They recently announced their first title, Best Fiends, a game where the fantasy of the familiar is present, but is mixed with a richer background and pool of characters. These are integrated with progression, story and humor to make something that has soul. The challenge of this process has been exhilarating for the company, and they are excited for their October launch date. They are now set to tackle expanding into meaningful and strong IPs.
Dealing with Harrassment
Ukko has found one of today’s problems in the games industry especially strange and unnerving: the harassment of game developers. In his home of Finland, game development has traditionally been open, hospitable, and generous, so he finds it difficult to understand where the harassment is coming from and why anyone would want to do that. During his 30 years of playing games, he has seen the industry go from victory to victory. We live in a wonderfully creative and playful time. So he suggests, “If you are a gamer and feel the need to harass the developers, maybe it’s a sign you need to go do something else for a couple of years and gain some perspective.”
He urges, “Get involved if you see any of the harassment happening. Don’t go along with the ‘I personally think it is wrong, but . . .’ argument; there is not a single redeeming point in that discussion.”
Advice to Game Studio Entrepreneurs
For those considering starting their own game studios, Ukko offers this advice:
- Get a really good and experienced group of people; this is essentially what people looking to provide funds for your enterprise have to go on.
- Determine your focus and make sure everyone is aligned with it. You can’t do everything, so make what you do the best. Typically, it is better to ship something quickly as the team gels together, rather than spending years on your first project.
- There has never been a better time to go for it. The game engines are out there and they are cheap. There is nothing to prevent you from executing your idea: all you need is like-minded individuals. At this point, the cost is probably as low as it will ever be.
Ukko will also be offering tips to understanding the mobile game audience during his presentation at Casual Connect Eastern Europe in Serbia. More information on his session can be found on the conference website.
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