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One search for the Snake game on my smartphone somehow also returned the Snakes and Ladders game as one of the search results. Like, hey! You gotta be kidding me, right? One day, you find yourself playing physical board games, the next, pre-installed games on the mobile, and before you know it, such games can be found and downloaded via stores or marketplaces on your smartphone. Don’t worry, I’ve yet to download and play any. But from my interview with Jun Jie, who’s in the industry, I’ve come to realise I was actually playing one of the top games, mainly because it was, and still is, available via Facebook. Eventually, the very same game developer who brought this particular game launched its corresponding mobile version, as a sign the company was moving with the times. Now, here’s my interviewee helping to unpack the intricacies of mobile gaming for you.

What sparked your interest in mobile gaming? How would you define mobile gaming?

My interest [lies in PC and console gaming]. [Over time, the portability of mobile gaming made me switch to mobile gaming, especially with the prevalence of smartphones]. Mobile gaming can suit a bigger niche market compared to PC or console gaming, supported by the fact that mobile phones and other smart devices are much cheaper compared to the PC or console. I would see mobile gaming as something trending in a hectic and fast-paced world that we are living in now, whether for casual type of gamers to hardcore type of gamers or even for non-gamers.

What device(s) do you use for the purposes of mobile gaming? How much do you usually spend on these? (You may provide a range)

I am currently using a mid-range (priced at RM1.5K Xiaomi Pocophone F1) phone for mobile gaming purposes. The specifications of mid-range phones nowadays are really good and can support almost all types of games, including high graphics triple-A (AAA) games.

How is mobile gaming during the pre-smartphone era different from today’s version of mobile gaming?

In my view, during the pre-smartphone era, using one’s phone keypad has limitations in terms of a game’s gameplay. Technology really restricts how one can play around with the design of the game. During the pre-smartphone era, players had faced difficulties in playing games that require them to control or move a character, where players had the options of navigating up, down, left and right [– there’s no support for players to move diagonally]. The controls had also been stuck within just the number pads compared to now, where developers can place any type of control they want on a touchscreen, whether it is a joystick, accelorometer control, gyroscope and whatever you can think of. In summary, there are many more types of gameplay and genres in today’s version of mobile games compared to the pre-smartphone era.

What types of mobile games do you play/have on your device(s)? How much do you spend on these games?

I have many types of mobile games – from first-person shooter (FPS) type, Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA), and also those casual types including arcade, puzzle and simulation. Usually, the more competitive games will make me spend my money. Since I am not very professional and don’t focus on just one type of game genre only, my spending is usually relatively low. The most I have spent on mobile games fall into the competitive multiplayer type, where I spent around RM100.

How much time do you spend on mobile gaming per week?

I usually spend around 10 hours on mobile gaming per week. Some of the contributions are from waiting for someone or when taking public transport. This is one of the wonders of mobile gaming, you can play it anytime, anywhere.

Would you be able to describe what you do at work?

There are three basic skills that a game development team would need

1. A programmer (Communicate and write instructions or algorithm for the computer so that the game would work as intended. Eg: program the function of a character movement so that the computer will know to move the character to jump if the jump button is pressed).
2. An artist (Handles all the art in the game. Eg: The user interface (UI) button design, character design and map design).
3. A game designer (Design the core gameplay of the game).

There are individuals who can handle all three at a time [though few and will take up an extended period of time]. Developing a game can be simple but can also be complicated and require a huge number of resources, depending on the type of game you want to build. There are three phases that one will need to undergo before a game is born.

The first phase is called the pre-production phase. This is the earliest phase [in the] game development [process during which] we will brainstorm on the barebones of the game and the direction [in which] we want to go.

As a programmer in this phase, I will work closely with the game designer and artist and brainstorm on what kind of game we are going to build, what are the things we want to achieve and also very important to know and understand if [our goals] are feasible within the given timeline. Other than that, our whole game development team will also sit down together during the early phase and try to add in or shoot down any idea that we think will kill the element of fun in a game. It is very important for everyone in the team to understand the requirements and how the whole game will work in the early stages so that we will be able to plan and know what to do in the next phase.

The second phase is called the production phase. This is where we will take the ideas and turn them into a game. As a programmer, I will need to program every requirement planned in the earlier pre-production stage. I will need to take the arts from the artist and put them into the game, which includes making them move or adding animations. The explanation looks short regarding this process but this phase is the most time-consuming phase. Sometimes, we will also need to tweak the requirements from the pre-production phase, [especially when we notice that certain parts] during some early playtesting in this production phase don’t turn out as we imagined. As a programmer, it is crucial to ensure that the codes are well-written, especially because badly written codes can cause the game to lag on lower-end devices.

The final phase is called the post-production phase. In this phase, the game will be almost complete and there will be a lot of playtesting from everyone in the team. As a programmer, I will have to fix all the bugs in the game. Bugs are very common in games and they are caused either by the logic error when programming or even human errors. There will also be tweaking of visual effects and animations in the game during this phase so that the game will be more polished and of better quality. Submitting games to the Google Play Store and the Apple Store is also done during this phase as [both these stores] will take some time to review the games to make sure that they comply with their store policies.

So it is not just about playing games, but also finding a solution to make a quality game that works according to the plan.

Could you talk to me about the comments that people make when you tell them you’re in the mobile gaming industry? Maybe your slightly older relatives, family members? Or, if they are supportive, you could explain why, too. What about your friends?

Well, most of them are very curious about the mobile gaming industry. Every time I tell them I develop mobile games, they would ask “Can make money ah?” Or even, “How do mobile games make money one ah?” Most of them did no go against me pursuing [this line of work] because as long as we can make enough for a living, they don’t really mind which industry we are in, as long as it’s legal. In fact, before I joined the industry, I was also very curious about whether a game can get us profit to sustain a company. The answer to this –  both yes and no. Great games are very time-consuming to create and the more time you consume, the higher the cost of production. The reason is because great games require a lot of playtesting, to test out if the mechanics planned creates the fun element in the game or otherwise. If not, we might need to scrap the thing off and start again from scratch (if we were to aim for the production of a great game). And yeah, even if a great game was created, the monetisation strategy in the game must be well-planned so that it will generate enough revenue for us to sustain, or even better, exceed the cost that we spent during the production of the game. Mobile games usually get their earnings from either selling the games, through in-app purchases (IAP) or even through advertisements. So yeah, [a great game alone] without any monetisation strategy in the game will not generate any money [from the perspective of a mobile game developer]. And sometimes, luck does play a role in the gaming industry, just like how the game Flappy Bird went viral.

Out of curiosity, do you have female/girl gamer friends who are also into mobile gaming?

Yeah, I indeed have a lot of girl gamer friends who are into mobile gaming. Some are into competitive gaming such as Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) and Call of Duty (COD), while others are into more casual type of games such as Homescapes and Candy Crush. In the days before, girl gamers were hard to find but with the existence of smartphones, there are more and more girl gamers.

What is the situation like with regards to mobile gaming in Malaysia (if you happen to know)? I can see it’s developing in popularity. Is there enough being done to let the industry flourish?

The mobile gaming industry is huge in other countries such as the USA, Taiwan and China. The community in such countries is big. In Malaysia, I would say the mobile gaming industry [is made up] of a very small community. It is on the verge of rising as there are a few local companies such as Appxplore, Kurechii and Weyrdworks, which are doing quite well in the Malaysian mobile gaming industry and gained several awards. There are also quite a number of mobile gaming esports tournaments which reward players greatly (there was a time they even offered a BMW car as the first prize, and it was hosted by the company called Techinier). So yeah, it is definitely growing but very few in Malaysia have what it takes to handle a game development company and there are many new startups that didn’t last long in the industry, where lack of experience might be one of the reasons.

Would you have anything else to add?

Well, I do hope that more and more Malaysians will thrive in the gaming industry, not only locked to the mobile platform and for those who are already in the gaming community, we should help each other more often, exchanging knowledge within the community, especially with those who are new to the industry so that they can make it through the early stage, and subsequently make Malaysian games be more well-known worldwide.

Note: Quotes/responses have been modified slightly without affecting the intended meaning, as denoted by the use of square brackets.