Studio Bolland's Journey into South Africa's Game Development Scene

In the midst of South Africa Games Week, we've been highlighting various game development studios, including Nyamakop, 24 Bit Games, Sea Monster Entertainment, and Free Lives. However, Studio Bolland represents a new wave in the industry, having transitioned from an animation studio to game development in 2023. Managing Director Richard Bolland, an animator and game designer, shared the studio's experience in its first year. Bolland began making games as a hobby at 16 but pursued animation due to the lack of game development courses at the time. With the onset of the lockdown in 2020, he reassessed his life and decided to return to game development. The studio hired a game developer and started creating prototypes, releasing them on itch.io to gather feedback and analyze metrics. Each prototype was designed to be playable in a browser, making it accessible to a wider audience. The team also participated in game jams, including one for idle games, which taught them valuable lessons. One of their prototypes, Idle Sands, gained thousands of players, but the metrics showed that this was not exceptional for an idle game. Bolland noted that the studio is still waiting for one of its games to gain significant traction. Studio Bolland also found success with Cabin Pressure, a point-and-click adventure game that garnered a few thousand plays. The studio took the game to Gamescom 2023 but did not secure a publishing deal. Bolland emphasized that the studio's approach is to create multiple prototypes and focus on a few genres to increase their chances of success. As a work-for-hire animation studio, Studio Bolland can afford to take risks in game development without immediate commercial pressure. Bolland described the South African game industry as incredibly supportive, with successes like Free Lives paving the way for others. However, he noted that there is a scarcity of senior talent and game designers with commercial experience. Despite these challenges, Bolland believes that South Africa is on the brink of becoming a significant player in the global game development market, with opportunities for funding emerging. He also highlighted the need for greater diversity in the industry, which is currently predominantly white and male. Efforts are being made to incentivize people of color to take on leadership roles and increase diversity in the South African game development scene.