Ilari Kuittinen

Navigating Major Studio Strategic Decisions 

During the lifecycle of a game studio, there comes a time when the company is facing a crossroad. The market has changed; the current direction seems to lead to a dead end; and money is running out. Something has to be done! Indeed, necessity is the mother of all inventions! How do we identify those moments and how to take action?

Whether it is trying to find a new niche and market segment for your product or changing your business model, the path to the decision to change course can come from many different sources. Some decisions can be very natural and self-evident given the resources and people in the company. Should you pursue work-for-hire work, obtain a license for your next product, or create your own IPs from scratch? Is your tech team so capable that it's feasible to create your own technology base instead of licensing an existing technology? All of these decisions are made with a mixture of looking at the past, interpreting data, and going with your gut on the future you are thinking of for your studio. This roundtable aims to encourage discussion on how different studios have identified a need for a change in strategy and how these studios came to these different decisions.

Bio:

As the co-founder of the oldest Finnish game studio, Ilari has run Housemarque for the past 28 years. Recently, the company released the award-winning PlayStation 5 exclusive "Returnal" and joined PlayStation Studios.