So, I've been thinking for many years now that there should be a game design &modding; hub, with the express purpose of supporting the smaller devs be they hobbyists or indie.
A centralized resource area, linking people from all over, who are skilled and motivated in a common area. Allowing & supporting their developments.
In addition to conducting research in the fields, such as what models of payment in games are effective & ethical.
The following are brief excerpts from my design documentation that I have so far:
"0. Overview:
This organization exists as a central moding & game design community hub, regardless of project/ site affiliation, genre, or time zone. This service can be thought of as an online talent agency, hybridized with the online dating format.
Purpose
-Connect game designers (all fields)& Communities together, (hobbyist or Indie) To each other on a global centralized scale.
-Foster a atmosphere of cooperation, rather than competition
-Conduct ongoing macro& micro cyber, social, organizational research.
-Apply & test above results ethically, honorably & respectfully.
-Educate individuals, teams, organizations, and communities of respective issues or processes.
-Promote and support the smaller hobbyist projects
-Retain respective team, project, site, organization sovereignty."
(I'm still working on a mission statement)
"1. Education & Research Department-Code name: The Archive
This department involves the logging of resources, educating in the respective field(s) , and further research & analysis of game design, respective individuals, communities, and model application effects.
Fields include, but not limited to: History of technology, Social psychology, Personality psychology, Organizational/ Industrial psychology, computer science, IT, Informatics, marketing"
"2. Logistics Department- Code name: The Gear Machine
This department will have the goal and provision of organizing individuals & projects into appropriate categories, and facilitate their connections.
Fields include, but not limited to: Management, I/O psychology, HR , Recruiting, Communications, Networking, Website hosting/ management/ creation, Business, Informatics, IT"
"3. News department- code name: The Spotlight
This department has the overall goal of assisting in promoting communities from an opt in basis. This specifically means creation of in game lore/ story content, such as first person perspective narratives done in audio, visual, and written formats in an effort to expand the reach of teams, mods & indie projects.
Fields include, but not limited to: Radio, TV, Youtube, Social networking, PR, Audio & Video editing, Streaming, Twitch, Creative writing, Narrative, FX, Wikis, Esports? "
I've been told I need to gauge the market for such a service, as well as develop a formal business model.
I'm in the process of fleshing out the documentation & initial feedback.
It would be a massive undertaking, and If done, I want to make sure it's done right.
Other hybrid analogies include:
-Libraries
-Traffic directors
-counselors/ consultants
I'd really appreciate any feedback & critical analysis on the proposal.
Thanks,
-Jist
Just wanted to say, that I believe it's a brilliant idea. While I'm familiar mostly with writing and marketing and would love to be a part of something such as this, I've got too much on my plate right now with starting my own independent company and game dev team.
Just wanted to drop some words of encouragement. It's a wonderful idea and it would be great to see it happen.
Hey! I just ran across this and was wondering how far you were able to progress this idea. I think it is a very worthwhile endeavor!