Some changes in TN laws etc if you are Canadian and wanting to work in the USA. It's a bit harder.

Some changes in TN laws etc if you are Canadian and wanting to work in the USA. It's a bit harder.
http://canada.usembassy.gov/visas/doing-business-in-america/tn-visas-professionals-under-nafta.html

The visa category "Professionals Under the North American Free Trade Agreement" (also known as a TN Visa) is available only to citizens of Canada and Mexico, under the terms of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Qualifications for a "TN" visa

A citizen of a NAFTA country may work in a professional occupation in the U.S. provided:

• the profession is recognized under NAFTA; and
• the alien possesses the specific criteria for that profession; and
• the prospective position requires someone in that professional capacity; and
• the alien is going to work for a U.S. employer.

If all of these conditions are met, then a TN may be issued.

Note: Spouses and unmarried, minor children of principal aliens are entitled to a derivative status visa, but they are unable to accept employment in the United States. Aliens entering under this classification are considered non-immigrants and granted TD visa status.

Please click here for a list of professions recognized under NAFTA.

Obtaining a "TN" Visa

To qualify for admission under this classification, citizens of Canada, at the U.S. Port of Entry, must:

• Request "TN" status.
• Bring the original documentation and provide a copy of the applicant's college degree and employment records which establish qualification for the prospective job.
• Provide a letter from the prospective U.S.-based employer offering him/her a job in the United States. 
  
  Note: The job must be included in Appendix 1603.D.1 of NAFTA, which provides a list of provisions covered by the Agreement.
• Pay a fee of US$50.

Canadian citizens are not required to obtain a visa, but instead receive "TN" status with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at their Port of Entry. Please note that the "TN" status will only be granted if the period of stay is temporary.

For more information on forms and requirements for business travelers and international workers entering the United States, please click here.

Applying for an Extension of Temporary Stay

Applications for extension of stay are processed by the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services. When applying for them, Canadian citizens have two options:

1. They may have their employer file a form at the closest regional Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services office. This option does not require leaving the U.S.
2. Canadians may return to Canada to re-apply at the port of entry with the same documentation that is required for an original application.
Either option is permissible.

Job Opportunity: Senior SW Engineer: Linux/Unix/ C++

Senior SW Engineer: Linux/Unix/ C++

Las Vegas, NV

Will Pay for TOP Talent! compensation

Full Time Employment

For over 60 years our client has built a reputation as a premium supplier of ground-breaking technologies and services to the international gaming industry.  They employ over 3,000 staff and are in major growth mode with revenues that exceed $400 million.

Looking for career growth, stability and a work / life balance? 

You found it! 

As Senior Software Engineer you are responsible for developing games and applications for our clients proprietary Linux based platform in addition to Online / Web and Smartphone devices.  In this role you will design, code, debug and document a variety of compelling new original game content and work on globally recognized licensed IP’s using various software languages depending on the platform (UNIX, Linux, iOS, Android, etc…).

Requirements:

• 5+ years of SW Programming
• Strong in C++, C, Visual Studio, Debugging Linux programs with GNU GDB or DDD.
• UNIX/Linux system programming, network programming and low level device driver programming.
• Agile/Scrum methodologies- bonus!

Direct message me so WE can determine if this is a fit!

4/4 Series on Vetting Game Programmers: Testing and the Interview

I mentioned in my last article but it's really important that you do a little bit of research and carefully read the candidates resume before you begin the interview.

It's basically just common courtesy for you to do a little bit of extra research on someone that you're going to meet for a job interview. After all your literally inviting them to join your family if you like them and therefore you want them to like and respect you too.

So take a moment, with a separate sheet of paper some of the things that you like that the candidate has on their resume. Maybe John a couple of questions to clarify in between those factoids that apply to this person's resume. It's almost like a pre-rehearsal that Johnny Carson might have had for talkshow and it lets you know who this person is and that you let them know that you're thinking about them in advance of the interview. 

If someone in HR is doing the initial interview (other than having the candidate fill out paperwork,) be sure you’ve reviewed the job reqs with that staff member, and provided some initial questions you’d like them to ask the candidate.

You're going to interview and you're going to have to work with this person for the next 20 years. If you're lucky. Think of it like driving a car or buying a car. They're going to go in and buy a new car and the dealership will only allow you to sit as a passenger in the car but won't let you test drive it. If you're the person who has to work with this person that your interviewing why let someone else do the driving?

Letting someone with no technical background and/or real industry knowledge conduct the initial interview might let a fast-talking candidate in the door and a good one get away.

Everyone who’s participating in the interview should be prepared (i.e., has a copy of the resume and has seen the website or CD). If you’re including “peer” interviews for the candidate, be sure your staff knows that their job is NOT to scare the candidate way.
You know the drill: be prepared, be prompt (and if you might get called away to an emergency, let the candidate know before you start the interview), don’t take calls (unless there’s a pending emergency). Be focused and ready to listen. As a courtesy, if you’re deathly ill, stay home and let a colleague conduct the interview, or make arrangements to do it via Skype or some kind of video conferencing.

Having a member of the team with whom the potential hire will be working, preferably the team lead, as part of the interview process is always a good move. While there are many skilled programmers who can fill your job, getting one whose personality meshes well with your other programmers is always a bonus and in some cases, a must.) Remember that these people will be working very closely with each other, often in frustrating circumstances (the dreaded crunch time, for instance), and an argumentative or disruptive team member can cause a hit to productivity. Personality and work ethic is just as important as skill set, especially when you’ve got a small team, a tight schedule and no money to spare.

Interview Testing

Assuming you’re cleared for testing, use simple programming or logic tests. Asking very specific questions, like hex and terminology definitions, isn’t the most effective way to evaluate a programmer’s ability to code because rote answers don’t tell you how the candidate programmer THINKS. Recent grads will probably be able to answer “arcane” questions because the info is fresh in their heads but is that what you really need? Good programmers like to solve puzzles, riddles and mysteries rather than apply canned solutions. The right candidate will have some basic problem-solving skills in addition to specific programming knowledge.

Propose a simple programming issue and ask the candidate how s/he would handle it. Maybe a brain teaser or a suggestion for a modification to your product, which has the added benefit of showing you how well the candidate prepared for the interview.  A good type of coding question is one that has several answers; ask your prospective hire to give you the most optimized solution. You can quickly gauge how well he/she thinks and solves problems based on the answer. Someone who consistently picks the most obvious but less optimized answers is good for entry level positions, but if you’re hiring for senior positions, you’ll want people who can think on their feet, understand the need for optimization and have good reasoning behind their choices.

Here’s an example of a good question:
Every number between 1 and 100 has been inserted into an array of 99 integers in random order, with a random number missing. What’s the most optimized and memory-efficient way of figuring out which number is missing?

A weak answer would be to create 100 flags, then loop through the array and log each number, and subsequently loop through the flags to find the missing one. A stronger answer would be to loop through the array and add them all up into a single integer, then subtract the answer from 5050 (the sum of all the numbers between 1 and 100). An even stronger answer would be to sort the array, then loop through until a number gets skipped.


If you want to ask technical questions, avoid asking hypotheticals like what types of inheritance or global variables appear in a CPP file or polymorphisms or singletons in C++. Instead, present actual situations that are relevant to your product or project (unless, of course, any of those other examples ARE relevant. Bear in mind that the simplest code is, more often than not, the best code. A programmer who loves to pepper the code with unnecessary methods like ‘mutable’s and ‘goto’s might not be the best candidate. Likewise, don’t ask questions that are overly complicated for your code base. Unless you regularly need inline assembly code, don’t ask the hire to describe how to unwrap loops or other overly complicated questions. While it’s a great indication of general knowledge, it won’t tell you if they’ll do a good job.

In some circumstances, you may be looking for someone who can not only move forward with a project’s code but also knows how to deal with legacy issues in a manner that doesn’t involve stopping the entire project and starting over from scratch. It’s great when the candidate sees this situation as an interesting challenge but you want to avoid the candidate who claims to be able “fix anything.”





Ask the RIGHT questions. Hopefully, the combination of a well-crafted job description and vetted resume has weeded out candidates who aren’t right for the job.

Does the candidate use/play your product regularly? If you make MMOs, you’ll be able to determine the level of immersion and investment pretty quickly. If the candidate gets that glazed look and launches into a Very Detailed Account of her avatar and the last raid, that tells you something, too.

“Beware the lone programmer in a room” is an old industry adage that still rings true. You want someone who will fit into your company’s culture and actually likes working with other people. Does the candidate seem like someone who will thrive in a high stress team environment (if that’s what you’ve got) or does the candidate seem like someone who’s more interested in showing others “how it’s done.”

Consider asking some off-the-wall questions like, Do you prefer cats or dogs? Cake or pie? Summer or winter? And why? An industry veteran interviewing a programmer candidate said, “Tell me a joke.” The stunned candidate replied, “Oh. Do you want a funny one? I didn’t really prepare anything.” That told the interviewer what he needed to know about the candidate’s ability to think on his feet.

Ask about a “hot” programming topic that’s making the rounds on industry boards and at conventions. Is the candidate passionate about one side or the other? Dismissive? Baffled? (Hopefully the candidate will not say, “Well, does that really have anything to do with this job?”) Having a sense of humor is actually pretty important in our industry because it reduces the possibility of melt-down at the worse possible moment.

Ask candidates what they love about programming. (Hint: “An easy way to earn a living” probably isn’t what you want to hear. “I love to solve problems” or “I like to make great games” is better.)

What’s the biggest thing the candidate worked on that didn’t ship? Do they have any idea why it didn’t ship? Watch out for indications that the candidate thinks failure was other people’s fault. One of the tenets of Agile Development is that failure by one unit is failure by all, so you don’t want to hire someone who’s more adept at finger-pointing that accepting responsibility and proposing positive solutions.

Has the candidate worked in an Agile Development environment and if so, how was it? If it seems that the candidate felt it was intrusive, see if you can determine whether the system was poorly administered or the candidate just doesn’t like to be interrupted or told what to do.
What was the biggest challenge the candidate has faced as a programmer so far, and how did s/he solve it? (For female programmers, gender bias may be the biggest issue so be sure you stay within the boundaries of what can and can’t be asked legally.)

Ask question(s) that give you a sense of how flexible the candidate is, how willing to try new approaches, take suggestions and explain solutions. Odds are you probably won’t be happy with some hot shot who thinks that everyone else is too simple-minded to understand what he  does. (In fact, sometimes this is a red flag that the programmer might not be so good at building strong foundations or accepting responsibility when fixes don’t hold together.)

If you decide to review the candidate’s demo in person, ask what specific portions s/he handled. Obviously, with a small app, it’s probably “all the programming” but if it’s a big game, the programmer was probably part of a team. Ask about how collaborations worked and whether the programmer’s suggestions for game play improvements were considered. Avoid the programmer who says, “Oh, I write the stuff but I don’t play the game.”

Here are some questions on the “lighter” side:

Although there’s no single magic formula for hiring the best programmer, you’ve got a lot of tools at your command that will give you a pretty good sense of which candidate has the right skills and is the best fit for your company.

Special Thank You: Kody Kahrizi for participating in this article.

3/4 Series on Vetting Game Programmers: Who is this Person and Why Would I Hire them?

I think that biggest and first trial in the quest for a good employee is in the careful reading of a candidate's resume.

The resume is one of the first trials in both of your relationships.  

We all whine about reading them. Databases and other online application forms can be confusing and lack robust meaning and nuances.  

It's almost like reading a resume is just a preflight checklist and it turns off our analytic thought process and turns us into resorting to simplistic inelegant binary code thinkers.  It's either true or false, on or off.  When I first started it was hard for me to think of the resume as a real person, but it is.

Screening resumes is a bit of a drag sometimes.  Candidates who are great at coding have a hard time revealing to you some facts which would benefit both you and your company but somehow it gets lost in the transmission.  So try to read the resume carefully anyway even if it is misformatted or a pain in the butt to read.

If you have not looked at the millions of articles on resume writing on blogs and the internet do it now.  This isn't about how to write a resume.

Your a CEO and your dog ate your homework?  Didn't have time to read it or you are reading it for the first time in an interview.  Not so good.

This may sound sort of “duh” but looking at the resume in front of the candidate sends a message (intentional or otherwise) that this interview is either inconvenient or a pro forma exercise so the company can hire the person it REALLY wants. Reading the resume in advance gives you a chance to come up with specific questions.

If you haven't used the resume as a menu on which to Google your candidate and spy a little on them it means that you really don't care who arranges your play dates.  There's a chance you may not have fun.

Researching beyond the potential employees' resumes is like checking out a date before you go out with them.  (Well at least you'll know what they look like.) 

If you show up and can flatter that person by showing an interest in them by showing them that you know something beyond reading the resume it shows you care.

Check out the companies listed on the resume. How long has the candidate worked at the past few companies? Are any of them start-ups? Do you really want someone who has moved quickly up the ranks and name-drops like crazy but has no real experience?

Candidates need to really think too.  They often don't realize that a resume is the same as sending an emissary to speak on the their behalf.  


Presentation, format, clarity are all part of the deal.  Same as designing a game.  So the resume should be designed as carefully as your game and it should interface exactly with the platform it is to be delivered on.  So if they don't or can't handle it, how will this affect your chances to find a stellar employee?  One way would be to check in with recruiters like me.  The other is to get on HR to not be paper pushers but to really analyze the applicants that come through and make suggestions rather than pure good or bad judgments.  

A fifteen minute telephone call with asking an HR persons' advice, even though you've never met them (or me) might yield some results you've never thought of.  

Email me or contact me for a consultation.

   

+1-866-358-4263

Okay so maybe part of the presort must be that candidates need to look at the companies submission process and reformat the resume exactly as the company asks for it to be. You might even want to make it clear to future candidates that they may need to spend hours formatting it and cross checking each resume submission to fit. 

BUT How you read even the "bad" resume is important too.

You have to take time to think about the resume as a person rather than a bunch of facts on paper.  Cliche time, "Read between the lines." "Be thoughtful."

Can you see a person in there?  Could this also be a chance to help someone and make a friend?

Example, someone is leaving a company because they want to change disciplines, example artist turned coder.  This person has no experience except for "hobby" code writing.  Make sure HR knows how to spot this person!!!!  Could this person be better at a task than someone who is already doing it and the added incentive of you choosing them for your team could inspire a crazy great working relationship between the two of you.

Bilbo nor Frodo had ever been on a quest before Gandalf asked them into the Fellowship etc.

In both real life and gaming the plot often centers around diplomats and emissaries. If there is a miscommunication on the part of your emissary, you could be excommunicated.

2/4 Series on Vetting Game Programmers: The Prenuptial and the Character Design

In my last post I likened the game industry to a royal family.  Arranged marriages and political marriages are the rage but you also often need a prenuptial agreement when the royal families get engaged.  

Your HR and you both are the equivalent of both the suitor and matchmaker.  

To increase the odds of making the best hire for your company, you want to develop a basic “vetting” system that looks at traditional and non-traditional aspects of your potential new programmer.

If you do not have one and need my help please feel free to contact me.

Marc Mencher 

marcgamerecrruiter@gmail.comhttp://www.gamerecruiter.com/

 Of course you could also read these articles.

Probably the most important aspect of making this marriage is to describe in depth what you would like in your new partner.  You need to be able to do more than just describe what they look like on paper, but provide a nuanced complete description or "character design."   This is also a kind of binding contract between your HR/Recruiter, the candidate for adoption, and the executives and managers who have to work in the family with them.

Wouldn't it be nice to pick your own family?

The job is a sort of prenuptial marriage contract that lays your cards on the table.  You have to reveal as much as you possibly can about who you want while still staying in the boundaries of good taste and ethics in your post.  Be thoughtful DON'T INCLUDE GENDER BIASED STUFF!  Don't speak in generalities. The more specific you are the less work HR has to do to screen stuff.  So meet with HR, or have a phone conversation about the nuances of each position.  

HR and data management often have a problem figuring out the work that you do if they haven't done it themselves unless they have a conversation with you.


Step 1: The Job Description

• Before you write the job description, be sure you have a good understanding of what various job titles mean. 
• Terms like developer, programmer and engineer aren’t always interchangeable. A QA person might be called an engineer at one company, while developer might refer to someone other than a programmer. Some programmers prefer engineer because it sounds less like a drudge position. If need be, include a sentence or two that describes what the title means at your company.
• Figure out what you want your new hire to do, then write a job description that clearly states you’re required and preferred criteria. Aim for something between “as long as you’re breathing” and “must have a Masters Degree in everything.” 
• (Hint: It’s pretty easy to spot a job req that’s been customized for someone you’ve already decided to hire.)

Here are some things to look for:

• Let candidates know if some kind of testing will be administered. If you have questions about the legality of testing, check with your HR department, and if they don’t know, get the info from someone who does, like your state’s employment agency. Surprising an interviewee with an on-the-spot test (the formal kind) can be grounds for action, and not the good kind.
• Be clear about your interview agenda. Will candidates be asked to undergo both “personal” and “technical” interviews?
• Do you want to see a demo of the candidate’s work? Do you want to see it online by yourself? Ask for a CD or URL. Because of proprietary software and NDAs, be willing to look at open source work and/or game modding.
• Does your formal application allow for an attached resume, or will the candidate be required to fill it out? Will the candidate be asked to provide a salary history? Letting interviewees know this in advance saves you time and helps reduce the normal anxiety that comes with interviewing. (It also tells you if the candidate can read and follow directions.)

Quick follow up call with HR once the suitors start trying on the slippers.  

Ask them: 

• What kinds of people are we getting?
• Where are they from?
• Anybody have problems understanding what the job entails.
• Anything I should know about?
• Are there any candidates that don't strictly fit the criteria but you have a feeling about them.

1/4 Series on Vetting Game Programmers: Family Matters

Ever read "Dune" by Frank Herbert, it's a bit like "Game of Thrones" the books are political first and then they are Fantasy and Sci Fi later.  The premise of both books deals with royal families and how they behave.  The more more compassionate they are the more successful they are.

If you own a game company or are part of one you are now part of the royal family.

I sound like an old fart but I'm still a hardcore gamer who loves the business and wants to see even better more interesting games develop.  I also like to help out some of the companies that are blasting off right now.

So I thought I'd write a short series on how to make things better for game companies who want to hire Game Programmers and other other employees.

Since I'm a recruiter and work with HR and CEO's I've noticed that some of the companies who are hiring have hired people in HR who are professionals but not really into gaming.  A Catch 22 is that some of the CEO's don't realize that they aren't connecting with the grass roots of the company they own.  I guess what I'm saying is upper management often doesn't really have a lot of interaction with the people they are hiring and HR is relying more and more on computerized systems for mining resumes but they don't understand the gold that they are mining.  

Before you even think about submitting a a job description, you have to think in depth about who you want this golden new person to be that you are adopting into your family and what role they will play.  

Literally, they will become part of your company's family.

In some ways it's a wedding or partnership and in some ways it's a parent to child relationship.  How much of each do you want this person to be?

• Deep interest in gaming, both as a programmer AND a player. This used to be designated as “avid gamer” but what does “avid gamer” mean any more? Of course candidates are going to tell you they’re avid gamers!

• Wide variety of gaming genres (ok, at least two!) If you make MMOs or FPS games only, specify that you want someone whose interest and passion is in your genre.

• Want someone with corporate-culture experience? These days, that’s different from “must have shipped an AAA game” because small companies can ship AAA titles too.

• What do you like about gaming?

• What was the first computer or console game you played?

• What was your first computer?

• What’s your favorite game and why?

• What’s your favorite book? Movie? TV show?

• Do you prefer open worlds or well-defined quest lines? Do you think a game should/can have both?

• What’s your favorite character class?

• How would you briefly describe the mechanics of your favorite game to a non-programmer?

• Do you usually play games to the end?

• What’s your Beta test experience? (No, you’re not looking for a QA person BUT it doesn’t hurt to hire a programmer who thinks like a QA person at least a little, as in being able to vet their own work before they hand off a fix as “done.”)

• What’s your favorite game of ours and why? (If you’ve only published one game, they better have played it! And listen for their own words—if they sound like they’re parroting what they read about your game, it’s entirely possible they haven’t actually played it.)

• If you could work in any other area of our industry, what would it be and why?

• What makes a game fun for you? (No, you’re not hiring a game designer BUT the programmer’s job is to make the designer’s vision work.)

• If time and money was no object, give me a quick pitch for a game idea. (No, you’re not hiring a marketing person but you want your employees to be well-rounded and be able to communicate with each other.)

A blast from my past.

I got this email the other day.  What's so great is that it came from a company that I like!

Hi Marc.

Back in 2007, you took part in the Game Career Seminar at E for All. My son and I attended.
My son was considering a career in game development. He went on to graduate from Full Sail and worked at Other Ocean interactive for several years.

I was an IT programmer looking to get into the game industry.  I eventually worked at both MumboJumbo and Other Ocean Interactive.

Now, Stephen and I run our own indie game studio in Colorado! And we have just released our first game: Minecart Rush.

I just wanted to take time to thank you for being an inspiration to us both.
And of course, play the game! It’s available for free at https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/minecart-rush/id850876074?ls=1&mt=8.

Robert and Stephen Madsen
SynapticSwitch, LLC
719-588-6582http://SynapticSwitch.com ßCheck out our new and improved website.
http://twitter.com/SynapticSwitchhttp://facebook.com/SynapticSwitchhttp://www.linkedin.com/company/SynapticSwitchhttps://plus.google.com/+Synapticswitch/

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When Worlds Collide: Some musings about free to play versus console and the direction of the game business.

I've been stalking some companies and their directors lately and wondering about what drives the market, what inspires and entertains and how economics can impact the production of games.

If you think about it CEOs, game designers, producers, and even programmers are all artists and impresarios were putting together work of art. Some people are really interested in money 1st. Others are totally into it because they just passionately love games. The medium in which these games are delivered can really influence the art of gaming.

The current debate for some people in the business is to wonder if they should put all their eggs in one basket. Should they be console game people, where should they be free to play people. Personally, I don't think either one is going to go away soon and I also think that some game companies might want to think about integrating the two a little bit more.

Now we have mainly console and F2P.  The debate is somewhat polarizing.  Professionals and CEOs seem to feel they have to choose one camp or the other for the direction of the company.  

Gamers, some of which actually seem to hate or love F2P and the really hardcore still seem to love the console.  

Interestingly enough, the gaming and gambling industry under the direction of Louis Castle seems to be going in a sort of direction which combines the two.

I guess in a way when I'm trying to do is pick out loud about helping my clients to figure out what they need in their companies by anticipating their needs.


I thought it might be cool to look through the history of games up to about 2006 below just to get a little bit of perspective.


Introduction
Knowing something about the evolution of the games industry will help in your quest to become a professional in this business. It’s just one of those things that you need in order to be taken seriously by other gamers.

This is a (very) brief history, beginning with the birth of SEGA, with particular emphasis on milestones in hardware development.

First There Was SEGA

Originally a U.S. company providing coin-operated (arcade) games primarily for military bases, SEGA began life as Services Games. After purchasing a Japan-based machine company in the early-‘60s, the company transformed itself into SEGA. During that same time, an industry founding father, Nolan Bushnell, designed an arcade version of “Asteroids” to play on his newly developed dedicated game machine. Thus the first cartridge-based game system was born, introduced to the market as VCS and later known as the Atari 2600.

During this era, other companies created their own game systems, including Coleco and its Colecovision, Milton Bradley Electronics and its Microvision and Vectrex, Mattel Electronics and its Intellivision, and Commodore Computer and its Commodore 64, all of which had impact on, but eventually disappeared from the scene.

Although not a dominating force until the mid-’80s when it caught the attention of the U.S. gaming community with the introduction of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), Nintendo was actually founded in 1889. It is, in fact, the oldest game company still in existence. Atari and SEGA competed head to head with Nintendo, but the company proved a worthy opponent with the release of its Game Boy handheld device and the smashing success of the Super Nintendo (SNES) console.

Over the next few years, the unfolding battle witnessed SEGA’s release of its Sega Master System to compete against NES, and Atari’s release of the 7800. Commodore Computer also entered the fray with the CDTV. While the TurboGrafx-16, SEGA Genesis, and Atari Lynx machines tried to compete, Nintendo ultimately stole the bulk of the marketshare. Thanks to its portability and associated free games (“Tetris” and “Super Mario”), Game Boy sales were significant.

The Console Wars Heat Up

When Sony entered the scene, the 32-bit console wars began. Initially, Sony and Nintendo collaborated on the development of a CD player to work with the SNES. While this development project failed, it gave Sony an idea. The company chose to develop a 32-bit game machine known as PlayStation (PSX) to compete directly with Nintendo. Among other notable competitors who jumped on the 32-bit bandwagon was The 3DO Company, started by Electronic Arts founder Trip Hawkins, who announced his new 32-bit gaming console in association with Panasonic. However, Panasonic eventually acquired the 3DO technology for use in other devices.

Trying to reclaim lost marketshare, Atari then came out with its doomed 64-bit system known as Jaguar. By the late-‘90s, the market was totally confused as evidenced by alarmingly sluggish sales. The SEGA 32X and Saturn came and went, and Nintendo bombed with a few platform releases as well. Eventually, Atari was forced out of the hardware business.
Currently, the industry’s popular development platforms are the personal computer (PC), Sony’s PlayStation 2, Microsoft’s Xbox 360, and Nintendo’s GameCube and Game Boy Advanced (GBA). The market for PDAs and mobile phones is also gaining momentum and promises to be the next growth focus.

A short while ago (2006) we had Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft competing for market share with their next-generation consoles; Microsoft’s Xbox 360 was released in November while Sony’s PlayStation 3 and Nintendo’s Wii. SEGA was still creating games but has chosen to halt production of hardware. Atari chose this same path years ago.

And now we have mainly console and F2P.  The debate is somewhat polarizing.  Professionals and CEOs seem to feel they have to choose one camp or the other for the direction of the company.  

Gamers, some of which actually seem to hate or love F2P and the really hardcore still seem to love the console.
  

How will you contribute to the continuation of this story?