gdaa
News
9:00AM David Wildgoose | That’s the view of Tom Crago, president of the Game Developers Association of Australia. Crago says it makes us the butt of a lot of jokes within the industry. More »
Australia’s Video Game Classification Is “A Joke”
9:00AM David Wildgoose | That’s the view of Tom Crago, president of the Game Developers Association of Australia. Crago says it makes us the butt of a lot of jokes within the industry. More » 
News
2:00PM David Wildgoose | Melbourne will be getting its own games development conference with the Game Connect: Asia Pacific 2009 Conference and Expo coming to the city in December. More »
Melbourne To Host Games Development Conference
2:00PM David Wildgoose | Melbourne will be getting its own games development conference with the Game Connect: Asia Pacific 2009 Conference and Expo coming to the city in December. More »
Features
10:00AM David Wildgoose | We gave you the chance to ask questions of Tom Crago, head of the Game Developers Association of Australia. After the jump, Tom chats about getting a job in game development, how Australia compares to the rest of the world, and the diea of “Made in Australia” stickers on locally developed games. More »
Question Time: Your Interview With Tom Crago
10:00AM David Wildgoose | We gave you the chance to ask questions of Tom Crago, head of the Game Developers Association of Australia. After the jump, Tom chats about getting a job in game development, how Australia compares to the rest of the world, and the diea of “Made in Australia” stickers on locally developed games. More »
Features
10:00AM David Wildgoose | Question Time is where YOU get to interview some of the games industry’s leading figures. This week, we put Game Developers’ Association of Australia president Tom Crago in the chair. What would you ask him? More »
Question Time! Your Chance To Interview Tom Crago
10:00AM David Wildgoose | Question Time is where YOU get to interview some of the games industry’s leading figures. This week, we put Game Developers’ Association of Australia president Tom Crago in the chair. What would you ask him? More »
Features
10:00AM David Wildgoose | Question Time is the post where you get to ask the questions. This week, we put Game Developers’ Association of Australia president Tom Crago in the chair. What would you ask him? More »
Question Time: Your Chance To Interview Tom Crago
10:00AM David Wildgoose | Question Time is the post where you get to ask the questions. This week, we put Game Developers’ Association of Australia president Tom Crago in the chair. What would you ask him? More »
News
3:30PM Logan Booker | Independent games need all the support they can get… as long as it’s not from a publisher. Kind of makes it dependent, really. But aside from publishers, you could always give your favourite indie game a leg-up, and nominate it for the GDAA’s 2008 Independent Game Awards. Heck, if you have a title on the boil, this could be your big chance.
Entries close on October 22, so you have over a month to get yourself sorted – just don’t leave it too long. The finalists will be announced and contacted in November, and must be prepared to make a trip to Brisbane for Game Connect 2008.
Press release with all the details, after the jump. More »
GDAA 2008 Independent Game Awards Open For Business
3:30PM Logan Booker | Independent games need all the support they can get… as long as it’s not from a publisher. Kind of makes it dependent, really. But aside from publishers, you could always give your favourite indie game a leg-up, and nominate it for the GDAA’s 2008 Independent Game Awards. Heck, if you have a title on the boil, this could be your big chance.
Entries close on October 22, so you have over a month to get yourself sorted – just don’t leave it too long. The finalists will be announced and contacted in November, and must be prepared to make a trip to Brisbane for Game Connect 2008.
Press release with all the details, after the jump. More »
News
12:00PM Logan Booker | When your industry has the financial support of the Federal Government behind it, I’m sure it’s easy as hell to throw around snarky comments about other industries seeking similar compensation. Well, if this wasn’t the case, it’s been proven to be now after iTWire attributed the following prose to a film industry “insider”, talking about the game industry’s desire for film industry-like tax breaks:
The insider’s dismissal of this goal was somewhat cold. “The problem with the games industry in this country,” the insider said “is that it is full of many small studios that should be left on their own to see who survives”.
Obviously, GDAA prez and Tantalus CEO Tom Crago wasn’t going to have any of it:
“I’m a big fan of Australian films, and absolutely believe that our film industry should be supported by the Australian Government. It’s important to understand, though, that without that support, the industry would not exist in anything like the form that it exists today. To that end, it’s a bit rich for the film industry to say that games should go it alone.
I could quote a load of other insightful morsels, but you’re better off reading the original piece… if you can stomach the the view of the film “insider”.
Film Industry to Games Industry; “Stop whinging” [iTWire, via Tsumea]
More »
Aussie Film Industry Insider Says Local Games Industry Can Shove It
12:00PM Logan Booker | When your industry has the financial support of the Federal Government behind it, I’m sure it’s easy as hell to throw around snarky comments about other industries seeking similar compensation. Well, if this wasn’t the case, it’s been proven to be now after iTWire attributed the following prose to a film industry “insider”, talking about the game industry’s desire for film industry-like tax breaks:
The insider’s dismissal of this goal was somewhat cold. “The problem with the games industry in this country,” the insider said “is that it is full of many small studios that should be left on their own to see who survives”.
Obviously, GDAA prez and Tantalus CEO Tom Crago wasn’t going to have any of it:
“I’m a big fan of Australian films, and absolutely believe that our film industry should be supported by the Australian Government. It’s important to understand, though, that without that support, the industry would not exist in anything like the form that it exists today. To that end, it’s a bit rich for the film industry to say that games should go it alone.
I could quote a load of other insightful morsels, but you’re better off reading the original piece… if you can stomach the the view of the film “insider”.
Film Industry to Games Industry; “Stop whinging” [iTWire, via Tsumea]
More »
News
10:30AM Logan Booker | I know many of you have tried to forget it ever happened, but try to recall that horrible Q&A panel on the ABC. Not wanting to leave the issue without some expert comment from the other side, GDAA prez and Tantalus CEO Tom Crago has offered his opinion on the ABC News website. In it, he criticises not only the panel, but the classification system and Michael Atkinson.
While Crago covers ground we’ve talked about before, he still makes a compelling argument, and provides something most of us cannot – the point of view of a developer. From the piece:
As game developers, we are trying to make games that provide entertainment to players of all ages. Video games are not going to turn your children into criminals. They are, in fact, the modern face of the entertainment industry, and something that we in Australia are very good at producing.
The focus of this debate should be upon how the Australian classification system can best give adults the information they need to chose video game content for themselves and their children, without burdening our country with unjustified and draconian censorship to the amusement and pity of the rest of the world.
I think the world alternates between pitying and mocking, but any attention is good attention, right?
Unlike a specialist blog such as Kotaku AU, the ABC site attracts a range of personalities. Even so, most of the comments to the piece are positive, though I couldn’t help but notice this rather, well, insane post: More »
GDAA Prez Tom Crago Weighs In On Classification, ABC Q&A Panel
10:30AM Logan Booker | I know many of you have tried to forget it ever happened, but try to recall that horrible Q&A panel on the ABC. Not wanting to leave the issue without some expert comment from the other side, GDAA prez and Tantalus CEO Tom Crago has offered his opinion on the ABC News website. In it, he criticises not only the panel, but the classification system and Michael Atkinson.
While Crago covers ground we’ve talked about before, he still makes a compelling argument, and provides something most of us cannot – the point of view of a developer. From the piece:
As game developers, we are trying to make games that provide entertainment to players of all ages. Video games are not going to turn your children into criminals. They are, in fact, the modern face of the entertainment industry, and something that we in Australia are very good at producing.
The focus of this debate should be upon how the Australian classification system can best give adults the information they need to chose video game content for themselves and their children, without burdening our country with unjustified and draconian censorship to the amusement and pity of the rest of the world.
I think the world alternates between pitying and mocking, but any attention is good attention, right?
Unlike a specialist blog such as Kotaku AU, the ABC site attracts a range of personalities. Even so, most of the comments to the piece are positive, though I couldn’t help but notice this rather, well, insane post: More »
News
2:00PM Logan Booker | Who’s the guy in the tiny picture on the left? It’s Tom Crago of course, president of the Game Developers’ Association of Australia and CEO of (the rather successful) Tantalus.
The GDAA has been very active of late, its most recent move an alliance with the Interactive Entertainment Association of Australia on the issues of classification and tax consessions.
But that’s not all the organisation has been up to, so I threw a few questions Crago’s way. He was more than happy to fill in the blanks, and on a few occasions, colour the blanks with green and pink highlighter. More »
GDAA Prez Tom Crago Speaks On Classification, Tax Rebates & Game Connect
2:00PM Logan Booker | Who’s the guy in the tiny picture on the left? It’s Tom Crago of course, president of the Game Developers’ Association of Australia and CEO of (the rather successful) Tantalus.
The GDAA has been very active of late, its most recent move an alliance with the Interactive Entertainment Association of Australia on the issues of classification and tax consessions.
But that’s not all the organisation has been up to, so I threw a few questions Crago’s way. He was more than happy to fill in the blanks, and on a few occasions, colour the blanks with green and pink highlighter. More »
News
4:00PM Logan Booker | I fired a couple of questions at (soon to be former) GDAA CEO Greg Bondar following his resignation from the organisation. Greg kindly provided a prompt reply.
For now, Bondar will be moving into consulting, which he says offers less reliable, but better, pay. It was this opportunity, and a desire to “focus his energies elsewhere”, that prompted Bondar’s decision, though he did acknowledge that recent events played a minor role. He’s also wrapping up a short-term project for a third-party.
While Bondar was unsure of who would replace him as CEO, he did confirm that president Tom Crago will handle his duties in the interim.
Finally, I asked Bondar to reflect on the changes the GDAA underwent and what it achieved during his 18-month stint. Here’s what he had to say: More »
Greg Bondar Speaks About Resignation, Potential Tax Rebate
4:00PM Logan Booker | I fired a couple of questions at (soon to be former) GDAA CEO Greg Bondar following his resignation from the organisation. Greg kindly provided a prompt reply.
For now, Bondar will be moving into consulting, which he says offers less reliable, but better, pay. It was this opportunity, and a desire to “focus his energies elsewhere”, that prompted Bondar’s decision, though he did acknowledge that recent events played a minor role. He’s also wrapping up a short-term project for a third-party.
While Bondar was unsure of who would replace him as CEO, he did confirm that president Tom Crago will handle his duties in the interim.
Finally, I asked Bondar to reflect on the changes the GDAA underwent and what it achieved during his 18-month stint. Here’s what he had to say: More » 
