A NEW HOPE FOR THE UK GAMES INDUSTRY
Looking towards a bright future for UK games companies
Last week, Wired Productions was pleased to announce its membership of TIGA, the trade association representing the UK games industry.
This comes at an exciting point for Wired, for TIGA, and for the industry. Two months ago, previously shelved plans to offer tax breaks to UK games companies were finally announced in Parliament by the Chancellor. TIGA deserves no small amount of credit for this result- it has been lobbying tirelessly on behalf of game creators ever since the plans were dropped after the last general election. For an industry trying to establish itself as a major player in a global marketplace, the earlier withdrawal of the plans was an undeniable setback and seemed bafflingly counterproductive.
When it comes to hardware sales and developer success, the UK is already the third biggest producer of games in the world. However, Canada has recently surpassed it in terms of the number of people employed in the industry. It’s clear that the delay of these measures has left the UK with some catching up to do, both in growing its games industry and finding a unique voice and identity in its output.
So we must hope that this announcement is followed by action. If it is, it’s predicted that thousands of games jobs could be created and protected, and that the UK will find it much easier to hold on to home-grown talent.
This becomes even more exciting when you consider plans by the Department of Education to revolutionise the teaching of technology subjects in schools. With a new generation of technologically literate young people and a fertile environment for innovation, the UK’s games industry (and its tech industry in general) might have all it needs to blossom.
Are we standing on the frontier of a new Golden Age of Games? We at Wired Productions certainly hope so. Whatever the case, just as we’re proud to be a part of TIGA, we look forward to being a part of whatever the future holds for UK gaming.
