Back in the dawn of the games industry, it was not unheard of for small teams, even lone coders, to develop commercially successful games. These days, big budgets mean that a single game might take HUNDREDS of people more than FIVE YEARS to develop. That's enough to drive a person like me karazzzy.

You see, I just don't like the idea of rocking up to work every day for half a frickin' DECADE to work on the exact same project I was making before my primary-school-aged daughter was CONCEIVED. I don't care how crazy-awesome the game is; it just seems like a massive waste of time to be doing the same thing for such an extended period. So here's my first reason for going small: See the light at the end of the tunnel when you start.

But there's an even more insidious issue at work here. You see, when you're working in a company of over a hundred people, it's very difficult to do things your way, even if your way is the right way. There are just so many conflicting ideas and opinions that it's sometimes just easier to give in and do what's asked of you. And then... pffft... the creativity goes out the window, and you realise you're working on just another boring programming job. So that's my second reason: Work with people you like and respect to make the kinds of games you all love.

Another problem that studio size brings is communication overheads. It's very easy to get trapped in a position that sees you spend most of your waking hours just communicating and co-ordinating, when what you really want to be doing is creating and building. Spending more time in Microsoft Project than Visual Studio is a strong symptom of managementitis. It's a scourge on society, and should be elimated forthwith. My third reason is therefore this: Keep the team size small, to drastically reduce communication and process overheads.

The main reasons, though, has to be the fact that technology has come full-circle, and it is now possible once more for small, creative teams to make incredible games that are played by millions of people around the world. Timing is everything, and there's every chance that this opportunity would pass me by if I didn't pay attention to it. I saw the planets align and took action, and now here we are. What next?