Justin Williams is X-Team's Gaming Growth Director. He previously worked at Blizzard, is an avid gamer, and has nearly 70,000 people following him on LinkedIn, where he talks about everything gaming. In this interview, we discuss GamesBeat 2024, a gaming conference he recently attended, as well as his thoughts on state of the gaming industry.
About GamesBeat 2024
Can you tell us about your experience at GamesBeat 2024?
I went just for a day, but in that one day I connected with a bunch of gaming industry experts and professionals. It was pretty full-on, from the moment I walked into the hotel lobby through to the various breakout sessions I attended.
GamesBeat is different from other events because of its focus on media, news, and industry experts in the gaming industry. People talk about industry wins, industry challenges, and how the industry can improve. The speakers come from all walks of life: recruiters, game developers, diversity experts, celebrities, et cetera.
What were your key highlights or standout moments from the conference?
For me, the key highlight was the respect that the gaming industry pays to the many different opinions of people. For example, there were some great discussions about AI, and people had very different opinions about it, but they could discuss their differences respectfully. That's not a given.
Another standout moment was the GamesBeat app, which has the conference's agenda along with a list of the attendees and the speakers. But what was fun about it was that it was gamified. The developers of the app had made networking fun and easy by giving you points for the most contacts and meetups, as well as by showing you who to connect with where.
Were there any particular sessions or speakers that you found especially insightful?
I was busy networking for most of the day, but I did attend a roundtable discussion that I was invited to. We covered some great topics:
- How to build company culture and how to maintain it.
- How to build transparency into the workplace.
- How to ensure that employees know what they need to know for their jobs.
- How to invest in diversity (key to increasing your bottom line).
- How to build a feedback-driven culture so it allows for direct conversations.
- How to lead with vulnerability and be direct about difficult topics.
What was the general sentiment at the conference about the future of the industry?
It's been quite a hard year. Not just for gaming, but for every industry. So the overall mood was mostly about keeping hope alive. As long as we can find new thought leaders who keep pushing the envelope to build better games, who can push for more diversity and inclusion in the industry, and who can build with passion, everything will be okay.
About the Gaming Industry
What do you see as the biggest trends currently shaping the gaming industry?
I see more and more executives, leaders, and game developers breaking away from huge AAA companies. Even if they're laid off, they don't return to AAA but instead build their own studios. Sometimes with others, sometimes on their own.
The best example of this is Ben Brode, who broke away from Blizzard to form Second Dinner. Now he has built one of the biggest mobile card games competing with Hearthstone, the game he worked at while at Blizzard.
What challenges do you think the gaming industry needs to address in the next few years?
Greed from executives. This is quite personal to me, as I was part of a team that had over three hundred people building an unannounced game at Blizzard before we were all let go. I appreciate that the quickest way to save money is to cut budgets and lay off people, but that destroys employee loyalty and confidence.
Companies need to focus on building great games while keeping their employees happy. Profits will come from that.
In your opinion, what makes a game truly stand out in a crowded market?
I've been seeing a lot of success from indie games: Another Crab's Treasure, Stardew Valley, Hollow Knight, and Palworld didn't have AAA budgets but became extremely successful. Mostly because they were just fun.
So focus on making your game fun. That's the secret sauce.
How do you envision the future of gaming in the next five to ten years?
I think we'll see a shift toward different skillsets, with lots of automation and job roles like Data Analysts and Data Engineers to handle such automations. Also more of a focus on the human side of things. Think HR, Recruiting, Sales, because human interaction can't be automated away easily.
What advice would you give to aspiring game developers looking to break into the industry?
Start building your portfolio. The sooner you begin, the better. And keep learning, because the landscape is everchanging, with new technology coming out all the time. Use personal projects to keep your skills sharp.
Are you a gaming company looking for experienced software engineers? X-Team works with some of the biggest companies in the industry, like Riot Games and Epic Games. Send us a message today.
