QUEENSLAND GAMES DEVELOPMENT INDUSTRY GEARED UP
Published Thursday, 11 January, 2007 at 02:00 PM
Minister for State Development, Employment and Industrial Relations
The Honourable John Mickel
The Smart State is building on its reputation as one of Australia’s electronic games development hubs thanks to a new degree being offered the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in 2007.
Minister for State Development, Employment and Industrial Relations John Mickel visited Teneriffe-based company Auran – one of Australia’s largest electronic games developers – with high school graduate Douglas Cook who today was offered a place in QUT’s new Bachelor of Games and Interactive Entertainment course.
The course, offered for the first time in 2007, was created in response to the demand of the rapidly growing sector, which has seen jobs in Queensland’s game development industry grow by 60 per cent in the past two years alone.
Douglas, from Alexandra Hills, won a scholarship for the new electronic games development course in recognition of his academic excellence.
QUT has made offers to 165 students for the Bachelor of Games and Interactive Entertainment, giving them the chance to hone their skills in game design, software development, animation and other creative industry specialities.
Nearly 1000 people expressed their interest in the new games degree.
Mr Mickel said the introduction of a new, comprehensive university degree was further evidence of Queensland’s emergence as an electronic games development powerhouse.
“Smart State graduates and budding developers can build a world-class career right here in their own backyard working along side some of the most innovative companies and electronic games professionals in the world,” Mr Mickel said.
“Queensland boasts around 17 electronic game development companies including some of the largest in Australia,” Mr Mickel said.
“Around 600 people – more than a third of the total Australian electronic games-related jobs – are employed in the Smart State.”
Mr Mickel said job opportunities were going from strength to strength thanks to Queensland’s powerful combination of fresh local creative talent, relatively low production costs and leading education courses.
“Queensland developers like Auran are putting the Smart State right up there with the best in the world in terms of design, innovation and technical prowess. This in turn is creating employment and opening doors for our talented creative professionals and graduates.”
Auran develops and publishes electronic games for international markets including North America, Europe, Asia and India. The company also offers cinematic, music and sound effects, 3D simulations, technology, training and consultancy services.
More than 70 staff, including engineers, graphic artists, animators, game designers and producers work at Auran’s Brisbane base and Swedish office.
Auran chief executive officer Tony Hilliam said the company was currently completing work on Fury, the biggest game ever to be developed in Australia.
“As an online game projected to attract over a million worldwide players, Fury has involved a team of more than 40 programmers, animators and artists working over the past three years. The game will be launched in Australasia, the United States and Europe in late 2007 and then in Korea, China and other Asian countries shortly after,” Mr Hilliam said.
“We are constantly scouting for talented artists, animators and programmers and will be recruiting new staff in the upcoming months to help bring Fury to completion,” Fury producer Paul Whipp said.
Auran’s Trainz Railroad Simulator 2006 was one of several new games launched by Queensland developers in the past year. Others included:
• The Creative Assembly's Medieval 2 Total War;
• Krome Studios’ The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning;
• Pandemic Studios’ Destroy All Humans! 2 (named the Australian Game of the Year in 2006); and
• Halfbrick Studios’ Barnyard, Avatar the Last Air Bender and Nicktoons: Battle for Volcano Island.
Mr Mickel said these companies are taking advantage of the global interactive games market which is worth an estimated A$40 billion worldwide.
“In July 2003, the Queensland Government announced an Interactive Games Industry Package, committing $800,000 over four years to support and develop the sector.
“This package is ensuring Smart State companies have the skills and international exposure they need to increase their share of the rapidly growing global games market.
“The fact that the Game Developers’ Association of Australia (GDAA) hosted Australia’s first ever conference for Asia Pacific developers right here in Brisbane in November is evidence that Queensland is leading the way,” Mr Mickel said.
Media contact: Chris Brown 3224 7349
Auran contact: Chief Executive officer Tony Hilliam 3358 8888
11 January, 2006
Minister for State Development, Employment and Industrial Relations John Mickel visited Teneriffe-based company Auran – one of Australia’s largest electronic games developers – with high school graduate Douglas Cook who today was offered a place in QUT’s new Bachelor of Games and Interactive Entertainment course.
The course, offered for the first time in 2007, was created in response to the demand of the rapidly growing sector, which has seen jobs in Queensland’s game development industry grow by 60 per cent in the past two years alone.
Douglas, from Alexandra Hills, won a scholarship for the new electronic games development course in recognition of his academic excellence.
QUT has made offers to 165 students for the Bachelor of Games and Interactive Entertainment, giving them the chance to hone their skills in game design, software development, animation and other creative industry specialities.
Nearly 1000 people expressed their interest in the new games degree.
Mr Mickel said the introduction of a new, comprehensive university degree was further evidence of Queensland’s emergence as an electronic games development powerhouse.
“Smart State graduates and budding developers can build a world-class career right here in their own backyard working along side some of the most innovative companies and electronic games professionals in the world,” Mr Mickel said.
“Queensland boasts around 17 electronic game development companies including some of the largest in Australia,” Mr Mickel said.
“Around 600 people – more than a third of the total Australian electronic games-related jobs – are employed in the Smart State.”
Mr Mickel said job opportunities were going from strength to strength thanks to Queensland’s powerful combination of fresh local creative talent, relatively low production costs and leading education courses.
“Queensland developers like Auran are putting the Smart State right up there with the best in the world in terms of design, innovation and technical prowess. This in turn is creating employment and opening doors for our talented creative professionals and graduates.”
Auran develops and publishes electronic games for international markets including North America, Europe, Asia and India. The company also offers cinematic, music and sound effects, 3D simulations, technology, training and consultancy services.
More than 70 staff, including engineers, graphic artists, animators, game designers and producers work at Auran’s Brisbane base and Swedish office.
Auran chief executive officer Tony Hilliam said the company was currently completing work on Fury, the biggest game ever to be developed in Australia.
“As an online game projected to attract over a million worldwide players, Fury has involved a team of more than 40 programmers, animators and artists working over the past three years. The game will be launched in Australasia, the United States and Europe in late 2007 and then in Korea, China and other Asian countries shortly after,” Mr Hilliam said.
“We are constantly scouting for talented artists, animators and programmers and will be recruiting new staff in the upcoming months to help bring Fury to completion,” Fury producer Paul Whipp said.
Auran’s Trainz Railroad Simulator 2006 was one of several new games launched by Queensland developers in the past year. Others included:
• The Creative Assembly's Medieval 2 Total War;
• Krome Studios’ The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning;
• Pandemic Studios’ Destroy All Humans! 2 (named the Australian Game of the Year in 2006); and
• Halfbrick Studios’ Barnyard, Avatar the Last Air Bender and Nicktoons: Battle for Volcano Island.
Mr Mickel said these companies are taking advantage of the global interactive games market which is worth an estimated A$40 billion worldwide.
“In July 2003, the Queensland Government announced an Interactive Games Industry Package, committing $800,000 over four years to support and develop the sector.
“This package is ensuring Smart State companies have the skills and international exposure they need to increase their share of the rapidly growing global games market.
“The fact that the Game Developers’ Association of Australia (GDAA) hosted Australia’s first ever conference for Asia Pacific developers right here in Brisbane in November is evidence that Queensland is leading the way,” Mr Mickel said.
Media contact: Chris Brown 3224 7349
Auran contact: Chief Executive officer Tony Hilliam 3358 8888
11 January, 2006