Conceptual Development
The objective of the Conceptual Development Phase is to clarify the project intent and define the plan for pre-production. It is the opportunity for the team to formulate a matured creative vision and prove their intent to deliver an innovative, fun and successfully viable product. The Conceptual Development Phase allows for the formalizing of the direction for the setting, narrative, features, systems and core gameplay experiences and how they interact and support each other, along with the accompanying scope of content. The focus is also on understanding the market and business potential, along with the production planning roadmap for shipping the final product.
In the PEOPLE category, the focus is on assembling the core team (expanded Directors, Associate Directors, Producers, Leads) and establishing the team’s foundations for moving forward. This would include the team’s organizational structure (feature teams, content teams, strike teams, specialized teams), as well as clarifying, documenting and communicating the various project roles and their associated responsibilities. In addition, team support processes are implemented: team development best practices (individual career goals, individual development plans, manager one-on-ones, performance review framework), onboarding & training processes (onboarding checklists & documentation, learning & development programs, training curriculums), and regular team health surveys & action plans.
In the PRODUCT category, the focus is on cementing the product vision followed by building out the initial product scope: Feature List, Content List, Product Backlog. These are the 3 foundational artifacts that will influence all aspects of PEOPLE, PRODUCT, and PROCESS throughout the rest of development. In addition, development support area needs are clarified (legal, localization, user accounts, store, servers…), along with the expectations, deliverables & acceptance criteria of the project’s upcoming production gates. Another key clarification is the Vertical Slice expectations (or MVP, depending on the scope of your project) for the end of Pre-Production, which should be the mechanism for establishing benchmark targets and de-risking the most imposing technical questions facing the teams.
In the PROCESS category, the focus is on a wide variety of items that establish the production frameworks needed for success, generally running in parallel to the PRODUCT’s goals during Conceptual Development. Initial Levels-of-Completion are documented that allow for early estimations of the proposed Feature List, Content List, and Product Backlog, which in turn leads to Scope & Capacity exercises to identify additional risks and external partner support needed. In addition, project management processes are implemented, agile & hybrid methodologies are implemented, the release & sprint cadence is established, and project KPIs are clarified and tracked moving forward.
At the conclusion of the Conceptual Development phase, the team must pass the Conceptual Development Gate and the associated proof-of-concept deliverables to move into the Pre-Production Phase.
