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David & Benjamin’s “design, build and break” at TopGames

The gaming market is booming – The global video gaming market is projected to reach $473.7 billion by 2027, driven by technological advancements in graphics, cloud gaming, and virtual/augmented reality. Many developers, often “gamers” themselves, join the “universe” to profit; however, making games is hard, and many projects fail. A lot of attention is given to highly successful games that are making a lot of money, but in reality, many game studios and independent game developers are struggling to make a living, even established studios that developed games using a popular intellectual property. However, some independent developers are fortunate; by continuously focusing on the overall UX performance of their game projects, they have garnered a loyal customer base and achieved considerable revenue. For example, Top Games, Inc. (TPI), CEO David Guo, launched the famous mobile strategy game Evony: The King’s Return in 2016.

video-games-market-in-2024

Finding and solving the right problem

Solving problems is relatively easy. Finding and solving the right problems is what is difficult. relying on the gut feeling of different members of the game team, all having their own subjective perception, scarce attention, and fallible memory, can lead to costly setbacks. This is why it is important to rely on the scientific method to identify and prioritize issues.

Therefore, the independent development team is committed to fast verification with maximum efficiency, discovering core problems and solving them in time, which is a way of survival and a proven and effective development model.

Design, Build and Break Philosophy

Under the leadership of CEO David Guo, Top Games Inc. adopts a dynamic development approach that prioritizes user experience, innovative gameplay, and community engagement. This strategy is characterized by a “design, build, and break” philosophy, which enables rapid adaptation to industry trends and technological advancements. By launching updates and new features swiftly, Top Games Inc. efficiently gathers real-time feedback from players, facilitating quick iterations and improvements.

The CEO David Guo and VP Benjamin Gifford highlight the important role of UX in development progress, have repeatedly emphasized in interviews that the team’s focus is on user-oriented development, with the goal of building a long-lasting gaming community.

TPI focuses on rapid prototyping and deployment rather than perfecting each release, which allows for faster response to market demands and player preferences. This agile approach ensures that Top Games Inc. can quickly pivot if features do not meet expectations or further invest in successful elements to maximize their impact.

This method of continual development and adaptation, driven by player feedback, ensures that the games from Top Games Inc. remain relevant and engaging, solidifying the company’s position as a responsive and innovative game developer in a competitive market.

“At TGI, I believe that our employees should work quickly to implement solutions, and I’d give that advice to anyone in the gaming industry. When you see a problem, work fast to find a way to make it better. Don’t be afraid to look for issues–identifying areas that can be improved is the only way to create the best customer experience possible,” David Guo said.

Top Games VP Benjamin Gifford explains what sets Top Games apart from its game development peers: the focus is not on perfection or being everything to everyone, but on excellence. By using data science to break through personal bias, and OKRs to stretch ourselves, we choose to work on the things that can have the biggest impact on our players. The culture that David created is part of the uniqueness that Top Games offers to our industry.

“The team shouldn’t limit themselves to job protection mode. Instead, they should stretch their capabilities and constantly grow, never being satisfied with current success,” says Benjamin.

Evony: The King’s Return, is a real-time strategy war game that integrates rich city-building mechanics with historical and legendary battles. Players can engage in iconic confrontations such as the Battle of Constantinople, where empires clashed at the crossroads of continents, or the Battle of Gaugamela, famously known for Alexander the Great’s tactical brilliance. The game also features the Battle of Chalons, marking the turning point of European history, and the Battle of Austerlitz, where strategic prowess defined the Napoleonic wars.

“It is a fascinating Middle Ages-ish fantasy war game with opponents in the gaming environment who want to attack and loot your Keep for anything you have open, here are lots monsters to battle who give rewards of resources as well as mine tiles and relics to explore. The resources are necessary to build your city to higher levels. The higher your Keep level, the stronger you are, ” one of players said.

“Evony: The King’s Return” has demonstrated remarkable performance in the past two years. In 2022, Sensor Tower reported a significant growth in the game’s net revenue, which reached a staggering $385,751,902, marking a 1.5-fold increase from the 2021 revenue of $221,676,485. The game enjoyed over 62 million downloads in 2022 alone. The upward trend continued into 2023, with global net revenue exceeding $355,385,440 and the game achieving over 200 million cumulative downloads. Titles from TGI, the developer of “Evony,” have consistently ranked among the top downloaded and highest-grossing on both Apple and Google platforms, underscoring the game’s sustained appeal and success.

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