A TOP gaming director has said that he “can’t say enough good things” about the industry in Scotland after delivering the keynote speech at the Scottish Gaming Week conference.
Rob Elsworthy has worked in the gaming industry for more than 15 years on a variety of some of the world’s most commercially successful and critically acclaimed projects.
This has included the likes of Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead Redemption and Metal Gear Solid.
He fondly remembers his time working in Scotland, where he was brought over to work on Grand Theft Auto IV in Edinburgh.
“You’re [Scotland] working on some of the biggest games going. You guys have a huge place on the international stage,” he told The National.
He echoed the thoughts of Scottish Government minister Richard Lochhead who told the conference he regularly sees how well thought of Scotland is on the international stage when it comes to gaming.
Elsworthy added: “Scotland has a very high status in the games industry. Some big games come out of Edinburgh specifically.
“I can’t say enough good things about it. My experience here was fantastic. I got to see a lot of the culture of Scotland while I was here, I got to travel. It’s very easy and cheap to travel to the rest of Europe.
“I would highly recommend people come here to work and to experience it all.”
Elsworthy has founded his own video game company Resistr Interactive and also serves as the programme director for video game design and animation at the Toronto Film School.
Scots have found success across the globe in the gaming industry but, significantly, the country is also attractive to talent as much as it serves as the launchpad for many people.
We previously told how top game developer Jonathan Cooper moved back to Dundee having worked on major video game franchises including Assassin’s Creed, The Last of Us and Uncharted in North America.
The same goes for Eliza Ralph, a backend engineer with Edinburgh-based Glitchers.
Originally from Australia, she started her gaming career in Helsinki but was attracted to Scotland given the opportunities provided by the industry.
It’s a company which works on “games for good” – including one project which creates data to send to scientists working on treatment for dementia.
Asked about the specifics of her work, she said: “What I’ve been trying to do is look how games can be used as a medium to inspire, educate and have social impact by teaching people essentially about specific causes.
“The causes I am most personally interested in are in the realms of biodiversity and conservation. There are many aspects but that’s the niche I’ve decided to focus on.”
