Tiga: 83 Percent Of U.K. Developers Outsource

U.K. game industry trade group Tiga said in a report released Monday that 83 percent of U.K. game developers outsource "at least one business process" in order to help maximize efficiency. A report from Tiga cited Blitz Games, Monumental Games, Ubisoft Reflections, and Zoe Mode as leading U.K. game makers who currently practice outsourcing. Ubisoft Reflections associate producer William Brown said, "As we begin to see the impact of the recent financial crisis along with the ever-increasing scale and expectations of current and next generation games, we are embracing outsourcing as one of the ways we can stay competitive in the global market." While Tiga's study focused on U.K.-based companies, a recent study by Gamasutra affiliate Game Developer Research found that worldwide, outsourcing is on the rise. The study found comparable results to Tiga's U.K. study, with 86 percent of companies polled saying they outsourced game development between 2007 and 2008, up 10 percent from a year prior. "For now, the key question is not should you do it, or even is this the right time to do it, but how you can outsource while maintaining cost and quality control," stated Quickstart Global, an outsourcing management company that contributed to Tiga's report. Monumental Games outsourcing manager David Tolley added, "A few short years ago, outsourcing was almost taboo. Now it is a necessity."