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Livingstone: UK too pricey for game makers

Give us a break... urges Eidos man

Develop magazine have been told this week by Eidos executive Ian Livingstone, that the UK is now the most expensive place in the world to develop new videogames. This is not a good thing, the big cheese adds.

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"The Government should address the issues of skills and costs for the UK to remain competitive," he railed.

"The UK is now the most expensive country in the world in which to develop. There are naturally cheap labour markets in Asia and also subsidised markets like Canada. The UK has slipped from third to fourth in world development. Given the heritage of development in the UK, this is a tragedy."

Livingstone says that if the present situation continues, UK firms will continue to be acquired by foreign publishers - devaluing the UK's clout as a games development powerbase.

Independent devs have been calling for Canadian-style tax breaks for some time, and while the government have so far resisted, some kind of initiative is possible.