Day in the life: Computer game designer

00:05:29
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcdK6WdqIao

Summary

TLDRSteven Bennett, a lead designer at Monumental Games, describes his dream job in game development, highlighting his work on 'Football Superstars', the first football MMO game. He shares insights about his role in overseeing design work, promoting teamwork, and managing innovation seamlessly. With a unique background in the music industry, Steven transitioned into computer science and found a better fit in game design. The daily operations include creative brainstorming, problem-solving within the team, and maintaining effective communication. Truly rewarding is observing players enjoy the games developed by their team.

Takeaways

  • 🎮 Steven Bennett loves his job in game design.
  • 👾 Football Superstars is the first football MMO.
  • 🛠️ Steven oversees the design team effectively.
  • 🤝 Team bondings enhance workplace culture.
  • 📚 Steven transitioned from music to game design.
  • 📅 Weekly meetings help maintain communication.
  • 🌟 It's fulfilling to see players enjoy the game.
  • 📈 Combining creativity and technology is key.
  • 🍔 Lunchtime is for bonding, not just work.
  • 🌍 Players experience a unique game journey.

Timeline

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:29

    Steven Bennett describes his role as lead designer for Football Superstars, the first proper football MMO. He emphasizes the thrill of working with a talented team to develop and refine game concepts and ultimately create a playable game for fans. His responsibilities include managing designers, overseeing project direction, and leading weekly meetings with department heads to address challenges and strategies. Bennett shares his unconventional career path, transitioning from music production to game design after studying computer science, which allowed him to merge his creative and scientific interests. He highlights the importance of communication within their large team and the satisfaction derived from watching players enjoy the game they've created.

Mind Map

Video Q&A

  • What is Football Superstars?

    Football Superstars is the world's first proper football MMO, allowing players to develop a character's career from a football Academy to a world club.

  • What is Steven Bennett's role at Monumental Games?

    Steven Bennett is the lead designer overseeing the design team and ensuring concepts are on the right track.

  • What background does Steven have before joining the gaming industry?

    Steven originally worked in the music business for about eight years before studying computer science and moving into game design.

  • How does the team manage communication?

    The team holds weekly leads meetings to discuss issues, plans, and encourage communication among team members.

  • Does working in game design involve playing games all day?

    No, while game developers are interested in games, most of their time is spent on design and development work.

  • What is the fulfillment of producing a game?

    Seeing players enjoy and love the game created is very fulfilling.

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  • 00:00:00
    oh absolutely it's absolutely the dream
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    job yeah I couldn't have asked for
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    anything uh better you come to work
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    every day uh you're working with a great
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    group of guys uh you're thinking of wild
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    and crazy ideas and putting them into in
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    in place uh you know in a few months
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    down the line you have a game in front
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    of you that you're able to play and many
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    many other people are able to play so
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    um it doesn't get much better than that
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    [Music]
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    so uh I'm Steven Bennett and I'm lead
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    designer at Monumental games on a game
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    called football Superstars okay so
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    football superstars it's the world first
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    proper football MMO which is a massively
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    multiplayer online game uh you take the
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    part of a single character uh and you
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    work at his career from arriving in uh a
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    football Academy to playing kickabout
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    games with your friends in the sports
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    halls and the parks to joining um a
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    football Superstars uh World Club so uh
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    as a lead designer uh my role really is
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    to uh oversee all the work that the
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    designers are doing make sure that the
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    concepts in the right direction make
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    sure people have got enough work to do
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    uh and really advise them on on any work
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    that they're doing uh from day to day
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    you and titch are in in charge of these
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    automated scripts so any kind of changes
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    that happen you guys have to be on it
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    this one of the new shops yeah this is
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    new shop do on it nice is it so uh yes
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    on Tuesdays every week we have a a leads
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    meeting the idea of which is to bring
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    together the heads of all the
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    Departments um to discuss any problems
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    uh plans going
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    forward um and all the kind of issues
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    that go together with uh design and
  • 00:02:07
    development T typically um when you say
  • 00:02:09
    you work in the computer games industry
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    they naturally assume that uh a lot of
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    your time is spent playing computer
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    games uh and not doing much work at all
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    uh this is obviously not the case uh we
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    obviously are very interested in the
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    computer games uh market and do play
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    them but generally in our own time what
  • 00:02:29
    have we got in the bag uh o lovely tuna
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    sandwiches some
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    crisps some
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    rybina this is not work this is
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    lunchtime um and uh we're team
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    bonding like killing each
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    [Music]
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    [Applause]
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    [Music]
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    other uh yeah my kind of history is is
  • 00:02:57
    slightly unconventional really um um I
  • 00:03:00
    worked in the uh music business for
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    about eight or nine years um as a music
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    producer so I used to write songs and
  • 00:03:11
    work in recording
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    [Applause]
  • 00:03:13
    [Music]
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    studios then in my late 20s I decided
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    that uh I wanted to do something
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    different and so I went to study
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    computer science at Nottingham Trent
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    University uh
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    did pretty well there and uh applied for
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    a couple of jobs in the computer games
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    industry as a programmer but uh I got
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    exposure to uh uh kind of what design uh
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    was doing uh and felt like it was a
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    better fit for my kind of creative and
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    uh more kind of scientific brain the
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    combination of the two things was uh uh
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    a better fit for
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    [Music]
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    me don't film
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    this uh just preparing for another
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    meeting um so we need the refreshments
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    obviously uh we do a lot of
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    talking I mean when we've got a team of
  • 00:04:12
    uh 30 40 people like we've got now uh
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    obviously communication between the
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    teams and between the staff is really
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    important it is on The Cutting Edge of
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    Technology uh so um you're able to uh
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    deal with a lot of very intelligent uh
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    and very clever people in the industry
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    where did I put my phone
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    here where's my phone you're producing a
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    product that people go and buy you can
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    watch them uh playing it and loving it
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    long ball up to you you crossed it over
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    boun off the keeper and as the keeper
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    was uh out of
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    position there we are winning goal 4-3
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    and it's it's it's very fulfilling
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    across the board so for uh creative
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    ideas and and of scientific ideas really
  • 00:05:02
    uh it brings those both those fields
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    together
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    [Music]
Tags
  • game design
  • Football Superstars
  • MMO
  • teamwork
  • creativity
  • career development
  • Monumental Games
  • lead designer
  • communication
  • product development