Meet the mentors

Thomas Bidaux

I have been working specifically with online games for 10 years. I first started at France Telecom, taking care of their Multiplayer games.

I managed the release of my first MMORPG, La 4ème Prophétie, only available in French.

From there, the team grew significantly and as with Dark Age of Camelot, I had a bigger team to work with me, one that had to cover all of Europe in multiple languages.

In 2004, I left France Telecom and moved to England to set up the European subsidiary of the Online Game giant, NCsoft.

That took my previous experience to another level, having to manage teams across different games, for different countries. I also had the chance to get much more involved in the development processes, as well as starting developments in Europe for the group.

At the beginning of 2008, I left NCsoft Europe to start my own business, providing consultation on online games to different actors of the industry willing to make that important leap of faith.

The NESTA mentorship is an extremely nice opportunity to actually do what I find most exciting: sharing knowledge and enable someone to reach his potential.

The exercise is quite different from my day-to-day activity as a consultant and I’m hoping it’ll prove to be that much more rewarding.

Charles Cecil

I’ve been working in the interactive entertainment industry for over 25 years now.

In 1981, to subsidise myself at college, I started writing adventure games for one of the UK’s first games publishers, Artic Computing. I then joined the company’s Board.

I went on to run the production departments of US Gold and Activision before returning to development in 1990, when I founded Revolution Software.

Revolution’s Broken Sword series, which sells an average of a million units per iteration, is the most successful adventure franchise to have appeared on any games console.

I co-founded and remain a director of Games Republic, an alliance of game developers. I’m also a board member of Screen Yorkshire, the regional agency that supports film, television and interactive entertainment in Yorkshire.

In 2006 I was awarded the status of ’industry legend’ by Develop, Europe’s leading development magazine.

As a mentor, I hope to draw on my many years experience of designing successful games to mentor younger companies.

John Chasey

I’ve worked in the games industry since the 1980s. I founded and ran the hugely successful mobile game studio, IOMO, which was acquired by InfoSpace in 2004 for $15m.

I’m currently CEO of mobile technology middleware company, Metismo, creators of Bedrock; and chairman of mobile game developer, FinBlade.

Having been through the pain and pleasure of growing a company in the creative media space a number of times, the NESTA mentoring programme is providing a great forum to share this experience with exciting new companies.

Tim Gatland

Nearly 10 years in the video games industry following on from 20 in the wider software business means that I’ve seen a lot of exciting innovation and some truly breathtaking technical advances.

But I’ve also seen a lot of missed opportunities and am alert to some of the potential pitfalls that every business must try to avoid.

So, why am I a mentor? Witnessing the enthusiasm, open-minded and uninhibited thinking that young companies demonstrate is one of the most motivational experiences possible.

Helping companies to identify incoming challenges and establish strategies that will maximise the potential of new ideas is demanding, but intensely satisfying.

Some see this type of mentoring as a ’knowledge transfer’ exercise, but I believe it is a two-way process that develops both the companies and mentors by giving experienced professionals the opportunity to work at close quarters with some of the raw talent that will enable the games industry to become ever more influential.

Trying to align the technical ambitions of the new generation of video game pioneers with the practicalities of business, particularly in what is probably the worst financial downturn any of us have ever experienced, is my role.  It has to be the best!

Steve Taylor

I straddle the worlds of global media agency network and innovative micro businesses/SMEs. This is a big stretch that sometimes exercises (mental) muscles I never even knew I had.

I’ve been drawn to innovation all my working life - in publishing and TV; branding; design and digital agencies; content creation; and consulting. I’ve worked to build the skills to do more than dream; to plan, resource, execute - and deliver. I’m still learning, big time.

In my ’day job’ I do that stretch daily. My work can go from building a joint technology initiative with one of the world’s largest media owners to mentoring the CEO of an eight-person agency to help grow their business.

I’m proud and delighted to be working with NESTA.  I believe we could make much more of the massive amount of entrepreneurial energy that I see every day in feisty young digital, technology and creative companies.

One way to do that is to catalyse the connections between them and corporate entities, like the one I work for. Both need each other. And the only way they’re going to come together is if individual people just go out and make those connections - and then help make them work. That’d be me, then.

David Wightman

After more than 100 titles in 25 years, I have pitched, programmed and played tens of thousands of titles across every consumer hardware generation produced.

My particular interest lies in exploiting advancing technology and the artistry of game design.

I recently served on the Scottish Broadcasting Commission, where I developed an interest in mixing the worlds of tape and TV with polygons and processes.

I’m currently working with a handful of companies to try and bridge the technology opportunities between the two industries.

I founded and ran Creative Edge / Edgies in 1989 and helped create titles for consumption on every gaming continent.

My personal mission is to help companies grow beyond the business models of today and embrace new and innovative models for tomorrow.

Chris Wright

I’ve been involved in the games industry since the early 90s, making PC and console games. In 1999 I got involved in a small, exciting start-up, trying to make games on primitive mobile phones.

The company grew to become the third biggest mobile publisher in the world and was acquired by Oberon Media in 2007.

After leaving I-play at the end of 2007, I set myself the goal of working with small companies and start-ups.

"Mentoring provides the opportunity to get involved with companies at the most exciting stage in their development - the point when the world is open to them and they can do anything. My aim is to provide some help in making these companies a success."