MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
Continuing our series of interviews with the companies that help make the Develop Awards possible, we spoke to Universally Speaking’s Loreto Sanz Fueyo.
She discusses the great mix of familiar faces and newcomers in this year’s finalists, and discusses why Universally Speaking is the longest-running UK-based localisation firm.
Partner Spotlight: Universally Speaking
Year founded: 2003
Website: www.usspeaking.com
For any readers who might not know you, tell us a little more about your company and its goals.
Universally Speaking provide localisation, QA and audio solutions for the games industry.
We were established over 10 years ago and since then have worked on games ranging from massive triple-A titles to smaller budget titles. In recent years we’ve seen the evolution of gaming through mobile platforms and social media, changes that are reflected in the explosion of developers we partner with, and games we work on.
We are passionate about what we do and our objective is to help our clients maximise the potential of their game. We have a team of experts in the fields of localisation, QA and voice over ready to help our clients, from translating their game to running compatibility testing, from localising keywords and metadata to recording the voices for their main characters.
Our goal is to help our clients create games that the end user will enjoy.
What differentiates you from similar outfits? What’s unique about you?
We are the longest-running UK-based games localisation specialist. Universally Speaking are solely focused on the games industry – although with the increasing popularity of story-driven games or TV games, we now extend this to the interactive entertainment industry. Our company is structured so that we have a wide range of linguists and testers with a huge wealth of experience and skills. This leads to our first unique point, which is our agility. We are more agile and able to respond to last minute requests than other companies we have encountered.
We couple this with our unique characteristic, which is about bringing the personal touch to everything we do. The success of a client is also our success, and we strive to make that happen. We build personal relationships with the client so they know exactly who they are dealing with within our company and they are not treated like a number or the bottom line of the turnover.
What excites and/or encourages you about the games industry and games development today?
The most exciting thing about our industry is that it keeps changing. The latest technological developments are often found in games before they make their way to other sectors. The work we do as an industry covers so many genres that life is never boring and if you top that with people who really care about the work we do and the quality of the game they’re working on, you have a win-win situation.
Regarding the Develop Awards finalists, what does it say to you about the industry and development today?
The list of finalists is full of talent and positive energy. There are some really outstanding new arrivals and some “old favourites”, which only goes to show that despite the economic crisis we are an industry that has a very hungry audience looking for good games.
Looking at the list of finalists makes us very proud to be part of this very creative and enthusiastic industry.
Do you have a message for the finalists?
Just a very short one: well done for making it this far (alive!) and best of luck on the night!
Anything else you’d like to add about your company and the Develop Awards?
We feel privileged to have been nominated once again as a finalist for the Develop Awards (the seventh time in eight years!). We are deeply conscious that this is the result of the very hard work and dedication each member of our teams puts into their work and we want to take this opportunity to thank them for their contributions.
Last but not least we must thank all our clients; without them we wouldn’t be here and it is for them that we do what we do. So, thank you trusting us with your IP and for letting us help you through the minefield that can be the localisation and QA processes. Your trust and support is not lost on us!
About the Develop Awards
This year’s Develop Awards ceremony will be held at the Brighton Hilton Metropole on Wednesday, July 15th. It runs alongside the Develop: Brighton conference, organised by Tandem Events.
You can book your tickets over at www.developawards.com, or by contacting Kathryn Humphrey via khumphrey@nbmedia.com or call her on 01992 535646.
Other Develop Awards supporters include gold partners Amiqus, UKIE and Unity, table gift partner OPM, drinks reception partner Keywords Studios and event partners Aardvark Swift, Game Connection, Green Man Loaded, InnoGames, LocalizeDirect and Develop: Brighton. Unity is also partner for the Micro Studio Award, while Iconicfuture is sponsoring the Use of a Licence or IP Award.
For more information on sponsorship opportunities, contact Charlotte Nangle via cnangle@nbmedia.com or call her on 01992 515303.
