Mapping The Serious Games Industry Within The UK

by on 21 December, 2007 - 22:36

West Midlands the most active region in terms of Serious Games

Via: SGI - Serious Games Institute Projects

The
West Midlands (UK) region is fast becoming recognized as one of the key
EU regions with regard to the development of Serious Games. Coventry University has taken the lead in two projects that are about:a) showcasing the innovative credentials of the West Midlands Serious Games industry, called Diversify the Games Industry and

b)
carrying out a mapping of the Serious Games Industry within the UK, and
take a global snap shot to map where the UK fits into the worldwide
perspective, called Serious Games Exposed.

Results so far have shown the West Midlands to be the most active in the UK in terms of Serious Games.

A
variety of new Serious Games products are currently in development
within the West Midlands region which will be available to purchase in
the near future.

David Wortley, Director, SGI
says the "Diversify the Games Industry" project is an initiative to
create opportunities for electronic games and related digital media
companies to develop their business by involvement in the Serious Games
sector.

The Serious Games Exposed project is funded by AWM (Advantage West Midlands) under the Interactive Digital Media Project. Digital 2.0 has partnered with the Serious Games Institute to carry out the project, and shall complete it by March 2008.

This
project has been defined and set up through the recognition of gaps in
the Serious Games market which required attention in order for the
industry to grow.

By investigating
companies defining themselves as serious Games companies, and those who
will compliment the sector, readily available products will be
sectioned out to create an on-line brochure, allowing ease of use for
prospective buyers.

The final part of this study is to carry out an effectiveness study on select games.About the Interactive Digital Media ProjectThe Interactive Digital Media project is managed by Birmingham City University and funded by Advantage West Midlands. The
project main objective is to establish the West Midlands as a key
player in the emerging industry of Serious Games. The partners,
Birmingham University, Coventry University and Warwick University, all
have strong links to the Serious Games industry. This coupled with a
strong group of games developers, puts the region in a position to
drive the industry and is fast become the centre of the emerging
industry in the UK, if not for Europe.The project
is actively pursuing organisations, both private and public, that wish
to partner with and benefit from the region’s wealth of talent,
resources and commitment to growing the Serious Games industry.About Advantage West MidlandsAdvantage
West Midlands is the Regional Development Agency (RDA) for the West
Midlands. They are one of nine RDAs in England that were established to
transform the English regions through sustainable economic development.Their
role is to lead the economic development of the West Midlands, working
alongside a wide range of public, private and voluntary sectors
partners to help our region to prosper - building upon their many
strengths and addressing their unique challenges.Advantage West
Midlands has an annual budget of more than £300 million to invest in
the economic development of the West Midlands and, at any one time, is
managing around 2,500 projects which are changing the lives of people
right across the region.

About Digital 2.0

Digital2.0 exists to help people understand games, and games technology, primarily for serious purposes.

Digital2.0
helps to make this less complicated: they understand how games, games
technology and virtual 3D environments, could be used to solve business
issues.

Digital 2.0 has worked with a range of
clients from public to private sector and have experience at all stages
of Serious Games development.