RockAByte could easily be described as two different studios in one.
This small team based in Cologne has adopted a two fold strategy: as well as working on client projects and in-house games for its userbase across Germany and the rest of mainland Europe, it also develops games with a more worldwide agenda.
Chances are, then, that if you're reading this from within Germany, you're most likely to know RockAByte for the mobile experiences the studio designed to tie in with the likes of Oktoberfest, Currywurst sausages, a major German bank and the German Ministry of Education and Research, amongst others.
Has it always been RockAByte's plan to specifically focus on the German market before expanding to create games and apps with a more universal appeal?
Breaking out
"That was not a deliberate strategy," CEO Stefan Zingel tells us, "although it is easier to establish a startup on a national level first and then go international.
"It just happened that most of our clients during the first years of our duty were German ones. My feeling is that a lot of German game developers are struggling with building up an international client base, although I am not able to nail down concretely why."
Stefan Zingel
Zingel expands, suggesting to us that problems expanding to a global userbase may be specifically restricted to mobile studios operating within the country.
Console and PC-based German developers, he acknowledges, don't appear to have encountered such difficulties.
"This is a personal feeling which arises out of my observation of the business activities of my colleagues, especially smaller studios with team sizes of less than twenty people," Zingel claims.
"Still, I have to stress that there are exceptions, of course. For example, Yager in Berlin is working on triple-A games for international clients. There is also Crytek, Keen Games, Related Designs, Daedalic and other examples of German developers who are working on an international scale."
Cologne versus Berlin
Despite supposed breakout issues, RockAByte feels at home in Germany - especially in Cologne.
Zingel was born in city and never really considered starting his own company anywhere else.
RockAByte was formed while Zingel was employed at an R&D Institute in Cologne. He poached two of his best colleagues from there and started to make games.
"In Germany, there are only a few cities worth starting an entrepreneurship in the new media or games business," Zingel argues.
"Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Frankfurt and Cologne are among them, but as my roots are totally Rhine-ish, I never considered to start elsewhere. If I had to choose another location, I most likely would go for Berlin."
RockAByte's The Energy Game,
Zingel's desire to stay in his hometown stopped him from moving to Germany's capital, but he concedes that he missed out on many benefits by not taking his business to Berlin - especially when it comes to finance and investment.
"Berlin is buzzing. The startup culture and community is superior to all other areas in Germany, therefore the possibilities regarding collaboration, co-production and networking are excellent," Zingel says.
"It is the beehive for investors and venture capital nowadays. The local government provides financial support in a much more diversified way than in North Rhine-Westphalia [where Cologne is located]. So Berlin provides a good access to various financing streams."
Opportunities
After choosing not to pursue the financial rewards of doing business in Berlin, Zingel is critical of the games community in Cologne. It seems that his passion for his hometown may have limited his business in some ways.
"Cologne's games dev industry is neither the biggest in Germany nor the most well-connected and organised one, but in interweaving with Cologne's broad film and TV community arise new exciting opportunities in the field of transmedia," Zingel argues.
The interest in transmedia branding is something that every developer in Cologne appears passionate about.
RockAByte's Currywurst app
With such a variety of media on the studios' doorsteps, it's pitched as a great way for those operating within Cologne to gain a unique advantage over developers elsewhere in Germany. However, Zingel is concerned that not enough is being done to maximise these opportunities.
"The success stories regarding transmedia projects I have encountered so far are usually not from Cologne," he adds.
"Taking into account that there is a high density of successful TV and movie producers in Cologne, there is a lot of potential to be commercialised."
Hello Gamescom
Arguably, the biggest benefit of running a games business in Cologne only comes around once a year. Gamescom is back in town and RockAByte is thrilled to have the world's largest games expo in its backyard.
"Gamescom started in Cologne at a time when games were already accepted in the middle of society," says Zingel.
"So in contrast to Leipzig's games convention it has been a mature start from day one and the buzz is tangible. Of course, local restaurants, pubs and clubs adapt their agenda to fit the gamers' taste."
From a business point of view, Zingel believes that the potential for meeting and doing deals with new partners is more important that speaking to the consumers at Gamescom.
"We really enjoy and appreciate the fact of only having to enter the train for 10 minutes in order to visit the Gamescom, it is a certain advantage of flexibility in terms of business development," Zingel tells us.
"As a small indie, we rather focus on networking and business talks with publishers, distributors or other potential partners instead of exhibiting on the consumer area."
