Sir James Dyson (of brilliantly effective but staggeringly expensive vacuum cleaner and fan fame) is worried that the UK physical engineering scene is dying, thanks to the “glamour” of video games development.
The Radio Times (the UK publication, and yes, for historical reasons it’s still called The Radio Times) reports on an interview with Dyson in which he warns of a shortfall within the UK of around 60,000 engineering graduates. The reason why the UK engineering scene is lagging? According to Dyson, it’s because
“the glamour of web fads and video gaming” was being put ahead of “tangible technology that we can export”.
Dyson’s an intelligent chap who does a reasonable amount to foster engineering innovation — the most obvious example being the James Dyson award, which has been won two years running by Aussie inventors.
Still, I’m having a hard time equating “video games development” with “glamorous” in most real senses; it’s hard to know if he’s talking about the initial lure — getting into games development because you love games — or the often hard reality of actual code manipulation or art design. [BBC via GamesIndustry]
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