The world of gaming is huge, and it gets bigger every day. And Co-development is quickly becoming the answer to that growth.
With the growth, there are great expectations from players for a satisfying and fulfilling gaming journey. These expectations only grow alongside the world of gaming as huge studios release sprawling experiences that can fill hundreds of hours. And if not massive games, other developers deliver dense, polished, and entertaining ones that challenge players in any number of ways.
With all of this expansion and growth, it’s becoming more likely that any AAA game you’ve picked up in the past five or more years had more than a single studio at work. Co-development is becoming a mainstay in the game development pipeline. And thanks to our place in the Magic Media group alongside our partners at Starloop Studios, we now have the capacity to offer that aid to any company in need.
What is Co-Development?
Co-development is the collaboration and cooperation between the core studio creating the game and one or more other assisting companies. These companies could cover any aspect of the development in any level of depth.
Unlike outsourcing, which is the offloading of a project entirely to a third party, co-development is a meeting of the minds. It’s the combined contribution of several studios delivering a tremendous final product. Magic Media, Starloop Studios, and Ringtail have contributed to several co-development projects such as Hunter Classic and GRIP.
The Magic Media group and Ringtail have a vast array of experiences in the game development sphere from full-cycle development, creation of art and modeling assets, outsourcing, and game porting. And as the group expands, so does our wealth of expertise and ability to co-develop.
A True Collaboration
The strength of co-development is buried in its nature. As mentioned, it’s not like outsourcing. There’s no handoff of projects and a delivery in the time after. Co-development is where creativity and innovation from two sides meet in the middle. The core development team is expanded with the teams they bring on for the co-development project. And from our experience, the real benefit is in a direct stream of communication between all involved. Knowing your teams is integral in the process. Game development is a hugely complicated process and any bumps in communication or collaboration can spill over into a potential disaster.
Who Cares About Co-Development?
A lot of people surprisingly! Co-development is getting more and more common and there’s no wonder why. Players want the best quality that’s out there. They want the huge sprawling games with plenty to do. And if not, they want a hyper polished and challenging experience. These aspects, with the growing technology requirements and capabilities, are getting harder to tackle alone.
Co-development offers the potential for one core team to grow exponentially with proven experts who each know the tricks of the trade. All in one fell swoop, your studio can be filled with teams of professionals who you don’t have to worry about. They’ll be on hand to deliver the quality you want.
Interested in co-development, game porting, art services, and more? Get in touch with us and our partners at Magic Media!
