Brighton recognised as “creative hub” for the video games industry
The BBC has published an article describing Brighton as the “perfect fit” for the booming video games industry. This will come as no surprise to anyone who’s ever visited our creative and diverse city by the sea.
Nathan Gouveia, studio head for Electric Square, told the BBC that “games and Brighton are kind of a natural fit for each other” and that the investment that’s happening here is “going to be brilliant for the future”.
Why Brighton is attracting leading games studios
Brighton has long been known for its inclusive and highly innovative spirit. Creatives from a vast array of disciplines flock to Brighton to live and work, drawn by the strong artistic community and the open, welcoming atmosphere the city provides. Career opportunities for new entrants to the games industry are plentiful, and are set to become even more so as investment pours in for the studios situated here – and more big names continue to set up shop.
One of these big names is IO Interactive, best known for the Hitman series of games, which opened its first UK studio in Brighton in 2023. The new Brighton studio joins IO Interactive’s international presence in Copenhagen, Malmö, Barcelona, and Istanbul. “We have had this strategy a while,” CEO Hakan Abrak told GamesIndustry.biz, “to meet talent where they are … opening studios where we think the ideal conditions are there, in terms of an attractive location, with lots of talent and lots of potential.”
Abrak went on to explain that “Brighton has a bright future in the video games industry. It’s something that will continue to expand. But it does already have a deep existing ecosystem of developers. There are over 22 studios in Brighton, and Creative Assembly is just north of it, and that’s a huge developer.”
Electric Square and IO Interactive’s fellow Brighton studios include Studio Gobo, Team 17, Hangar 13, Boss Alien, Natural Motion and The Chinese Room. Creative Assembly is based in nearby Horsham, just half an hour outside of Brighton itself.
Loading… games degrees at Screen and Film School
Screen and Film School is all set to meet this growing demand for talent in the games industry, with the launch of our three new undergraduate degrees in Creative Technology starting in September 2024. These will run at our Brighton and Berlin campuses.
Dean of Creative Technology, Nick Rodriguez, has over 20 years of games development experience. From AAA racing games to mobile apps, Nick has worked internationally for some of the world’s biggest brands. Of the new courses at Screen and Film School, Nick says, “We’ve got the heft of a big university, but we keep things relatively small. We’ve got a long history of real industry integration, helping students get jobs in serious industry roles.”
Screen and Film School also equips our students with practical knowledge on the value of multi-disciplinary collaboration within the games industry. As gaming journalist, Will Freeman, told the BBC: “Games, by their very nature, are multi-disciplinary. They bring together musicians, voice actors, performers, artists, animators, and illustrators.”
As a university that’s centred around creative disciplines, students across all our campuses work together on projects that require talent from across music, performing arts, film and – of course – creative technology. This collaboration is exactly what students can expect from their roles as they enter the industry, so they’re well prepared and able to easily integrate from day one.
