UK game makers take on US sports

The UK team behind a best-selling football video game has set its sights on the US, writes BBC Five Live's Phil Elliott.

The Grand Theft Auto games have been immensely popular

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City was one of the world's best-selling games of all time for the PlayStation 2, and it was developed in the UK, by Rockstar North.

It is one of several examples where UK games developers have taken on the world and won.

Like the movie and music industries, the Promised Land is the US, where the big money is made, and where everybody wants to succeed.

But despite only moderate success for British movies, and a poor track record in recent times for British music, British games developers clearly have what it takes to crack America.

However, last year a large number of games developers in the UK went into liquidation, so do the headlines paint a false picture?

Miles Jacobson, Managing Director of Sports Interactive, creator of the best-selling Championship Manager series, does not think so.

"I actually think [the industry's] quite strong at the moment," he said in an interview with Radio Five Live's Up All Night programme.

"It was a very difficult year for developers last year but it's still a very young industry and it's growing a lot more now."

Dull gaming

Instead he highlighted two weak areas: "I think a lot of people weren't releasing games that people really wanted to play.

Whilst we're not necessarily looking for global domination, we're certainly trying to increase people's awareness of sports they might not normally play Miles Jacobson, Sports Interactive

"There's also a cyclical problem with release dates. At the moment everything seems to be crammed into the fourth quarter of the year, and gamers are bored for the rest of the time," he added.

According to Mr Jacobson, there should be plenty to look forward to in the coming years.

"There's been a lot of consolidation which will lead to what some see as an upturn.

"The new consoles that are coming out in the next few years - the Xbox 2, PlayStation 3, there's a new machine from Nintendo, Sony's handheld PSP - actually means there'll be more machines to develop for, so you'll probably see a lot more developers springing up."

Go West

Sports Interactive is looking with hungry eyes across the Atlantic. After 11 years of Championship Manager games, it has gained a loyal fan base.

Come up with your dream hockey team

This autumn, since its friendly split with publishers Eidos, it will usher in a new era with Football Manager 2005.

Eidos have retained the rights to the CM brand, and will release their own game, Championship Manager 5.

With new publishers Sega, Sports Interactive is also releasing ice hockey and baseball management games as well - two sports that have their biggest fan bases in the US and Canada.

"We've always been very successful in Europe," said Mr Jacobson, "but there are lots of other countries that we would like to be able to entertain as well, and football is maybe not the best way to do that.

"Whilst we're not necessarily looking for global domination, we're certainly trying to increase people's awareness of sports they might not normally play. "

New releases

At the same time, Mr Jacobson's expectations remain firmly realistic.

Driver 3 coming to a console near you soon

"I think it'll take a long time, we're not approaching it expecting a million sales in the first year," he said.

"We'll be quite happy if NHL: Eastside Hockey Manager sells 30-50,000 copies in the US, because that's what our first football management game did in the UK."

Certainly 2004 is looking rosy for the UK games industry then.

As well as Sports Interactive's new titles, Rockstar North will be releasing the next title in the Grand Theft Auto series later this year, and Reflections Interactive will soon be responsible for the hotly anticipated Driver 3.

You can hear the interview with Miles Jacobson on BBC Five Live's Up All Night programme on Tuesday 8 June at 2.45am (0145GMT)

NHL: Eastside Hockey Manager is due for release in July in the UK, and September in North America