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PC Connects London 2018: Meet the Speakers - Simon Sparks, Splendy

PC Connects London 2018: Meet the Speakers - Simon Sparks, Splendy

Ahead of PC Connects London on January 22nd and 23rd, we have been speaking to some of the wonderful speakers who are going to be sharing their insight at the show.

We spoke to the CEO of live action adventure game The Bunker studio Splendy Games Simon Sparks for a glimpse at what his session during The Making Of will be about. 

Tell us a bit about who you are and what you do.
I’m Simon Sparks the CEO of Splendy Games, We’re interactive story tellers. My job is to figure out how we keep oxygen in the company and keep punching above our weight!

What are you going to be talking about at PC Connects London 2018?
I’m going to be talking about why three dads from the school playground, who have never made a game ever, decided to make a game and a film at the same time.

What was your favourite PC game from 2017 and why?
Hidden Folk. No matter my mood or state of mind, I play this and completely escape to the 10-year-old me who could never get enough of Where's Wally. I can pick it up and put it down whenever I want. Perfect!
Same could be said for Superhot, apart from the 10 years boy bit.

What do you think are going to be the biggest trends and releases of 2018 for PC?
Well, I’m hoping interactive storytelling, using film footage and CG. Anthem is looking like BioWare at its best, so fingers crossed for them. I’m also excited for Last Night.

What are you most excited for in the PC games market right now?
Annoyingly I have very limited time to play games for myself, I normally spend time on the console with kids. I’m still excited about Superhot and the Hidden Folk.

And of course, anything which is pushing the boundaries of storytelling. Late Shift was a really interesting game, it really challenges your perception of what is game by not having any gameplay in it, but its narrative is designed really well and totally works.


PCGamesInsider Contributing Editor

Alex Calvin is a freelance journalist who writes about the business of games. He started out at UK trade paper MCV in 2013 and left as deputy editor over three years later. In June 2017, he joined Steel Media as the editor for new site PCGamesInsider.biz. In October 2019 he left this full-time position at the company but still contributes to the site on a daily basis. He has also written for GamesIndustry.biz, VGC, Games London, The Observer/Guardian and Esquire UK.