Enter Africa Lagos Interviews: Oluwaseye Ayinla, Video Game Developer
The video game development expert tells Adefoyeke Ajao how his childhood passion evolved into his profession and why there’s a need for deeper conversations about gaming and consumer psychology.
Tell us a little about yourself… When, how and why did you get into games/gaming?
I’m Oluwaseye Ayinla, a video game development expert with over six years of experience. I have worked for a few indie studios and start-ups, including Kuluya, Gamsole and Maliyo, respectively. I have also trained and mentored gaming enthusiasts, particularly those that are keen to break into the games industry. I spend my spare time blogging about the Nigerian gaming scene at GameDev.ng.
Even though I got into the industry in early 2013, I have been gaming (playing tabletop or video games) for over 20 years. The most memorable was during my time as a child.
There was a Windows 95 desktop with 3GB of storage sitting in my dad’s room. The PC had the usual games like Minesweeper, Solitaire, Hearts and Freecell, including Prince of Persia (the original one developed by Jordan Mechner), Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? and Dangerous Dave (installed Commander Keen and Wolfenstein 3D later on).
My favourite, Prince of Persia, inspired me to get into game development. My knowledge of geography peaked thanks to Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego, because I ran around the world as an Interpol agent trying to capture the most notorious and wanted criminals. My interaction with those games at an early age captivated me in ways I cannot imagine.
What was it like to develop your first game and which games have you developed since then?
I have developed over 20 games. The ones I’m most known for are Gidi Run, Anointed and Naija Defense, but my favourite is still Masai (that may change in a few months though).
The games outlined are on mobile platforms, but my very first game was made in Flash while at Kuluya. I can’t remember the emotion I felt, but I got a sense of completion when I finished it.
What is it like working with video games and how do people react when you tell them that you work in gaming?
The thing with games is playing them is so much easier than developing them. Creating games can be an amazing, frustrating and rewarding experience. I have worked mostly as a developer when creating video games. It warms my heart when you see art come to life. The process of taking an idea to a fully playable, interactive experience is a wonderful journey. The journey is a lot of work and a lot of fun, but it does not come easy. Having a passion to create games will help along the way.
In terms of how people react, well [sigh] let’s say the people I have met in Nigeria do not think it is a profession. The older generation still believes it is a leisure activity or a side gig, including developers. Even though it takes the level of skill, there is a slight segmentation between developers that build games and the ones that build other apps.
What are the biggest challenges you’ve faced in the industry and how did you overcome them?
Skill acquisition and improvement was a big challenge during my early days. There were not a lot of learning materials available online, and the available books and videos were expensive. Most of the content was tailored to AAA C++ developers. Trying to translate that to your preferred choice of language can be difficult. Also, understanding the components and methodologies involved in making some types of games like fighting games was a big deal.
Luckily I had a mentor (Olaide Okeorele: the Java Demon) and a team of talented artists around to help. I learnt and honed my skills as I increased my repertoire of games.
Nowadays, discoverability and monetization are the biggest challenges we face. We still need to improve the quality of our games, but that will grow with time. Generating revenue and staying in the game (longevity) cannot be overemphasised in this market.
You’ve overseen game design and development at several Nigerian studios, and you also aggregate game-related news at gamedev.ng, how would you describe local engagement with Nigerian-made games?
Better! Way better than it was some five years ago. Back then, you could hardly generate a thousand downloads; which we can attribute to the low penetration of smartphones and data at the time. Now, we are seeing games hitting the million download mark (Naija Whot, Naija Ludo) and games hitting 20k within the first three months after launch.
While these numbers are impressive, they are still low when compared to European, Western or Asian markets.
The percentage of Nigerians playing Nigerian-made games is still small (approx. 11% for an averagely popular game), though we have seen a few locally relevant games do much better. I do not have the figures, but the games that offer some kind of monetary reward look to be doing well and have a much better retention rate.
What I would like to see in future is games being developed in our local languages and possibly even in pidgin considering there is BBC pidgin. I think that would improve the level of engagement but only time will tell.
What are the common pitfalls to avoid when making games and which resources would you recommend to aspiring game designers who want to improve their craft?
It depends on various factors: what platform, your target audience, the market and your budget? Off the top of my head, I would say feature creep. Which is the tendency to want to add more and more features into the game as development goes on.
As for resources; books, podcasts and videos (especially on YouTube) can help aspiring developers a lot. For podcasts, I recommend the debug lounge. Even something as little as following prominent personalities in game development and learning their history is pretty useful. John Romero is my favourite game developer. I look for videos of his talks online.
If you are a developer, then GitHub is a fantastic place. You can also get a lot of inspiration from Twitter by following independent developers and studios. I recommend following MixAndJam if you are an intermediate Unity developer.
How would you describe Nigeria’s gaming industry and its relationship with other sectors within and outside the creative industry? Do you think the potentials for collaboration/partnerships are being maximised?
I think the most prominent in terms of hosting events is with the comic industry. We have seen multiple examples of these with the West African Gaming Expo (WAGE) and Lagos Comic Con. I think more can be done to fully maximise the opportunities on a larger scale.
I am excited to see that some local games have been considered in some eSports tournaments, so that’s a plus. Licensing foreign content seems to be the major driver. If it does continue, then I guess we would start to see more competitive and quality games.
As for relationships outside the creative industry, these have been steadily growing. Some banks and brands have already used local games to connect with their younger customers.
I think there needs to be a deeper conversation and increased sensitivity about what gaming can do to the psychology of a consumer. A truly inspiring gaming moment can leave a lasting mark on the eyes of customers in the same way advertisements do. There are various benefits to this: increased revenue, brand awareness and brand recall. Games can help you achieve all of these.
How do you think Nigeria’s gaming industry should be empowered and what kind of advancements would you like to see in the local gaming industry?
Increasing awareness of the various professions in gaming (tabletop, video and eSports). Government funding or grants that recognise gaming a career just like doctors and lawyers can also assist.
One idea I have always had in my mind is for us to have games hubs in major cities in the country. Lagos seems to be the hub of gaming in the country and that would be a good place to start. Imagine an integrative and creative platform that provides co-working, networking, skill acquisition and skill enhancement capabilities across the gaming industry. A space where start-ups and creatives from the tabletop, video game and eSport industries can meet, work and play.
If you could give one piece of advice to anyone seeking to pursue a career in gaming, what would it be?
Developing games is like playing games, you level up as you go. The more you do it and the more time you put in, the better you become.
What are you currently working on and what should we expect from you in the nearest future?
I am currently working on an endless runner game for a local eSports company. In future, I hope to create a sustainable business around my skills and experience in the gaming industry.
To know more about Oluwaseye Ayinla’s work, follow him on Facebook, GitHub or LinkedIn
This interview series is part of Nigeria’s Gaming Industry: Opportunities, Challenges and Practices, an Enter Africa Lagos project supported by Goethe-Institut Nigeria.
