They have enough talent and quality, but the game makers in the Netherlands lack the business instinct to sell their games well. The question now is whether the government should come up with a fund, as it has done in other countries, to give the sector a lift....

The Gamescom trade fair in Cologne attracted 350,000 visitors this year

Game developers struggle to market their own video games. The call for a new investment fund is getting louder from the sector, while it continues to grow independently.
At the Gamecom fair, the Netherlands presents itself as a country with special 'indie-games'. Countries like Finland, Germany and Poland are actively investing in the games sector.
Meet Us' screams a banner of the Holland Pavilion in the Koelnmesse exhibition complex in Cologne. The pavilion - a kind of Holland Heineken House 2.0 with orange shades and a logo with a lion - is located at Gamescom, Europe's largest games fair. With 350,000 visitors, the trade fair now rivals the leading Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles.
While game enthusiasts have free rein in the other ten halls, you won't hear a sound of video games in hall four of the pavilion. Nor knights in chain mail or other 'geeks' noisily playing games. No, here gamemakers and companies are constantly exchanging business cards. It is the Dutch game makers who want to get their money's worth.
The global video game industry is a billion-dollar business, the potential is enormous according to experts. In 2018, some $137.9 billion was involved, an increase of 10.9% compared to a year earlier, according to market analyst Newzoo. Of course, big tech is getting a piece of the pie in this industry. Microsoft, the maker of the XBox, launched 'a Netflix for games' this year. Competitor Google came up with Stadia: its own platform to stream video games.
The games sector now even surpasses Hollywood's film business. At the same time, the two sectors reinforce each other. They form a common entertainment industry. If you see how film, music and gaming are increasingly converging, you can conclude that the global industry has really matured and is getting bigger and bigger', says game entrepreneur Reinout te Brake.

Bit lazy

With six indie games - video games without the backing of a major financier - the Netherlands is happy to present itself as an independent game country at the Gamescom fair. But optimism is accompanied by scepticism. Game developers, business developers and PR people from the Netherlands seem to agree unanimously: the own game sector is still in its infancy. If no action is taken, the sector threatens to lose further ground.
Few developers can really market their own game well', Horst Streck, chairman of the branch organisation Dutch Games Association (DGA), puts his finger on the sore spot. It's about the masses, more than 100,000 downloads. Only then do you count. This mindset is often lacking among developers.

Game developer Koen Deetman worked for four years on the video game Deliver us to Moon

Game developer Koen Deetman also often misses business instincts among peers. You should not only be developing your own game, but also selling it. According to Deetman, the time is past when video games sold themselves on Steam - the iTunes for games. 'That thinking is a bit lazy,' he says. On the other hand, he does understand it. Developing a video game involves trial and error. A game has to be adapted a hundred thousand times,' says Deetman, who himself worked for four years on the apocalyptic video game Deliver us to Moon, one of those indie games. It is sometimes so hard that you don't really think about the next step.

Game developer Koen Deetman worked for four years on the video game Deliver us to Moon.
Photo: Keoken Interactive

Investments

At the end of 2018 year, the Dutch games sector recorded sales of €225 mln to €300 mln, over 11.5% more than in 2015. That's according to the Game Monitor 2018, which comes out with figures every three years. That money was made by 575 game studios, most of which employed fewer than 10 people.
Although the sector is doing well on many fronts, director Jan Pieter van Seventer of accelerator Dutch Game Garden sees a shortage of growth money. In terms of innovation, talent and quality of games it is going well, but investments are lagging behind. According to Van Seventer this has to do with the type of investors. We miss an investment climate like in Finland or Sweden, where the government actively participates,' he claims. All subsidies that the Dutch gaming world receives, go directly to the pavilion, according to those involved.

Finland

The resounding successes of Angry Birds (by developer Rovio) and Clash of Clans (by Supercell), among others, have made Finland a mecca for gamers. The Business Finland agency, formerly known as Tekes, played a major role in this, initially putting a lot of money into Nokia. Later, it made almost €1 million available for the marketing of games. Partly at the government's expense, the Finnish games sector was able to grow rapidly,' says Van Seventer. As a result, both investment and return flowed back into Finnish coffers. Rovio eventually went public in 2017 for €1 billion.
According to Streck, other countries are also ahead of the Netherlands thanks to government support. The German government invests €50m annually in the games industry,' he says. Not only fresh capital plays a role, according to the DGA chairman, but also knowledge and special programmes help the German sector to move forward. We should follow that route too,' says Streck.

Game Fund

Incidentally, the Netherlands does have a success story. Guerrilla Games is often quoted at Gamescom. The Amsterdam-based company, which originated from media company Lost Boys, achieved big hits with shooting games such as Killzone and, more recently, Horizon Zero Dawn. It had a wealthy partner: fifteen years ago, Guerrilla was incorporated as a studio by electronics giant Sony.
But Guerrilla is an exception and that will remain so, experts fear. Again, they point to the lack of government support. Asked why the sector cannot support itself, Te Brake replies: 'There is also a film fund, right? So why not a game fund as well? Such a fund, defends the entrepreneur, pays for itself more than once. A studio can expand its staff faster with extra investments and grow turnover,' he says. Between 2015 and 2018, the sector showed a 10% growth in jobs, up to 3,850 employees.

Investment fund

Five years ago, a game fund was almost established. With the GameOn project, the national government was going to invest €10 million in the industry. Te Brake, one of the initiators, saw the plan fail. Maybe we were too early', he says. In the meantime, all kinds of other countries have come up with investment funds. In terms of timing, it would have been better, look at other European countries. Poland, for example, has pumped at least €26.5 million into the games sector in recent years.
If a game studio wants to get a government investment, it has to meet certain conditions, Te Brake knows. First find a private investor who will invest at least half a million Euros,' he says. In exchange, he receives shares, the government provides a subordinated loan and, if there is a profit, you pay off the loan.

Pampers

Nevertheless, the sector could take a look in the mirror more often. You can also pamper too much', says Deetman. According to the developer, young gamers should be better trained for the big work. If you fail at school it's no big deal, but later it will cost you a lot of money', he says, speaking from experience.
The game courses at higher vocational education level in Breda and Utrecht are widely praised, and Van Seventer finds it strange that the universities lag behind. I miss a Nyenrode or Erasmus', says the director of Dutch Game Garden. On the entertainment side there is a lot to gain in the field of business to consumer.
Streck takes a look at his own conscience. We can still work better together', he concludes. A football metaphor is never far away in the world of games. Ajax has shown that with less money you can keep up with the big boys'. The Dutch Angry Birds also seems to be a matter of time.

The rise of esports

Electronic sports, or esports, is one of the showpieces of the global game industry. The best-known example is Fortnite, a kind of cartoon-like shooting game in which young people and the masses are active in order to meet each other virtually. The game, developed by the American company Epic Games and People Can Fly from Poland, has only been out for a little over two years, but is extremely popular. So popular, in fact, that world championships are being organised for Fortnite. There, young people play against each other for staggering sums of money. For example, 21-year-old Dutchman Dave Jong, known online as Rojo, finished second at the World Championships last month. A place that is good for €1 million in prize money. He has to share that money with his British teammate, the six years younger Jaden Ashman.
Source: FD.nl