The PocketGamer.biz RoundTable sessions kicked off last week with the very first discussion, in collaboration with Tamatem, focusing on the coronavirus pandemic and the ways in which the games industry is adapting to it, along with a deeper dive into the world of remote working.
For the uninitiated, the PocketGamer.biz RoundTable sessions are a chance to listen to some of the brightest minds in the games industry discuss a hot topic. Moderated by PGBiz Editor Ric Cowley, these discussions are streamed live to YouTube for anyone to watch, completely free.
Our next session, on Tuesday May 19th at 4PM BST, will focus on pitching your game in the current climate. You can register to be invited into the meeting itself, where you can ask your own questions directly to the panel, by signing up here.
You can also watch last week's session in the video below, or drop down a little further for a written round-up of some of the key issues mentioned by the panel.
Kicking things off with a discussion on whether the pandemic was really benefiting the games industry, Geogrify's Kate Edwards noted that while "we're seeing stories of games surging", there has been a "mental health cost for people who are not used to working from home."
Tilting Point's Asi Burak added that April had been the company's best month ever, but was aware that this was just a short-term boost, saying that "if there is a recession, people will spend less".
Around the world
As for what has been happening in different regions around the world, King's Sabrina Carmona talked about how the studio had heard from players in Italy and France saying that the developer's games had helped during lockdown.
With this feedback, the team decided to start creating specific live ops to cater to these players and help them out with free lives and other helpful boosts.
Meanwhile, in the Middle East, Tamatem's Hussam Hammo noted that there has been a "huge decline in CPIs", largely due to non-gaming competitors reducing their UA spend, making it cheaper for game developers to acquire users.
Staying home
On the topic of hiring during the pandemic, Voodoo's Sophie Vo said that the company was "still hiring everywhere", and had adapted the hiring process to involve more calls with different members of the team, with a focus on casual conversations to get a feel for the candidate's personality and not just their skillset.
Finally, Tim Cullings noted that while he's experienced in working from home, he has found that he needs to be more flexible with other people who are not used to it while "also trying to maintain my own routine" to avoid burning out.
