Freedom!

What he said

As some of you are no doubt aware, I returned from the excellent Konsoll in Norway to find out that I no longer have a job at Boss Alien. The reasons for this are many and not for public consumption at this point. Doubtless the details will be revealed at a later date, but for now I am free.

World == My Oyster

I now have several options.

I could find another job

Far and away the most sensible of all the options entails me dusting off the CV, hitting up the Old Boys Network and getting straight back out there with another games company. I would bring to bear the full weight of my experience - both pre and post Boss Alien - and help this new company make fun and exciting games for people to play. In return, they would pay me a salary.

Of course, there's nothing stopping me getting a job stacking shelves or working behind the counter in Game for example. To many, this would seem like a strange step. Possibly even a backwards one. But what it would do is clearly delineate between 'work' and 'play' - something that has been very tricky to do for me in the past. I would work at work and be free to play with my own stuff afterwards.

I could go freelance

I know it sounds strange to some of you, but there are people out there who actually listen to the stuff I say about game design. It is a service I'm happy to provide. Is it a service that others would be prepared to pay for? That is to say, is it a service that enough people are prepared to pay for on a consistent enough basis?

I could become a professional poker player

...

Okay, maybe I couldn't do that.

I could start up another studio

Weirdwood's finest hour.

I could call up a few guys and we could get together and make awesome fun games again. We'd be bold, bright and ride the current bubble of up and coming indie game studios. We've got loads of cool ideas that could be turned into amazing games.

I guess one of the main reasons for even thinking this stems from a conversation at this year's Develop I had with Pete Smith, our old producer from Sony, who admitted that they may have canned Paperwings too soon and it would have been just the sort of title they were after.

Of course the main issue with this is getting paid. Drumming up funding for a venture such as this is no easy task, made even harder by one, really rather important, constraint.

A new adventure

Come January, Leanne and I will not be alone. Young Sproglet will be born then and, not knowing any better, will be looking to us to provide them with everything they need for a long and healthy life. Above all else, this is my priority. As such, it looks like option one might be the only one.

Well, that and a lottery ticket.