Pocket Gamer Connects Digital #6takes place from April 19th to 23rd, so to give you a taste of what to expect, we'll bring you interviews with some of our esteemed speakers at the show.
The conference spans five days and will feature a broad selection of tracks, talks and speakers, as well as various fringe events and the return of our meeting system. For more details on the event and to book a ticket, head to the website.
For today's spotlight, we spoke with Visible Realms CEO Eliza Jäppinen who has been developing IPs for 15-plus years independently, with studios and in Hollywood.
During PGC Digital #6, Jäppinen will speak on 'Studio Killers project: The 'clash' of games, music and entertainment.
PocketGamer.biz: Tell us a bit about your company?
Eliza Jäppinen: Visible Realms is a game company changing the way franchise IPs are built for a more inclusive entertainment industry.
We champion representation on and off the screen, using KPIs to build better sales cases and align opportunities across the entertainment industry.
What does your role entail?
The role is made up of business development and creative direction. I try my best to hold on to the 'big vision' while navigating opportunities.
Why did you want to work in the games industry?
It's a business that has an incredibly unique connection with its audience and customers. In the other parts of the entertainment business, there's not the same opportunity to iterate on products quite the way we get to with mobile games.
We champion representation on and off the screen, using KPIs to build better sales cases.Eliza Jäppinen
I also love that community aspect of the creative process. I am quite allergic to the notion of the lone creative genius, it's a bit toxic.
What advice would you give to anyone looking to get into it?
Definitely go for it, however, always do your research. Study and learn as much as you can about game design, trends and most of all the business side. Understand where your next paycheck will come from if you decide to go indie.
What are your thoughts on the industry in the last 12 months?
Again, I would say the way the complexity of the story and visuals are developing is exciting and then the opposite trend of hypercasual makes for a very interesting market both for developers and for the audience.
You can go deep or just pick something up for a little while. The demand for games, community and entertainment has of course risen as people have been isolated from other forms of entertainment and that will no doubt reflect on the offerings, we'll see in the next year.
What major trends do you predict in the next 12 months?
My guess is we'll see more triple-A type games that use free-to-play model and community. A greater diversity of executive roles will pave the way for some genre-breaking in ways that will excite the community.
How has the games industry changed since you first started?
Mobile is now closer to matching console in terms of complexity with art and story.
Art was very underdeveloped and the visual culture around genres was not defined and very generic, which I also think was a feature and not a bug of the times. It made it a low threshold for people to pick up, as you didn't have to define your personal tastes based on mobile.
Which part of the Connects event are you most looking forward to and why?
The industry insights and networking. I always feel I come back with some big new piece of the puzzle from the talks and with great new connections.
Want more?
The full conference schedule is now live on the website. In the meantime, you can also check out our other track rundowns and coverage of previous Pocket Gamer Connects conferences ahead of the event itself.
Register for Pocket Gamer Connects Digital #6 today!
