Peter Molyneux - BAFTA Video Games Lecture

27 October 09

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Click the player's 'menu' button to watch the Q&A session which followed the lecture.

On Wednesday 21 October legendary video game developer Peter Molyneux OBE delivered BAFTA’s Video Games Lecture, in association with GAME.

Molyneux has been at the forefront of the video games industry for over two decades and is behind such classic titles as Populous, Black & White, and the BAFTA-winning Fable series.

In a passionate speech at BAFTA Headquarters, he spoke about his career inspiration and the great games of the past 20 years that have both influenced his work and moved the industry forward.

Providing the audience with an insight into video games of the future, Molyneux demonstrated his latest project called Milo which utilises Microsoft's Natal technology that relies on voice, facial and motion recognition.

The best innovations come from challenging the foundation stones of conventional wisdom.

He went on to explain why a range of factors - from new controllers and audiences to new distribution and pricing models - have come together to make 2009 "the most exciting year for video games".

Molyneux then urged the industry to address consumers’ appetite for truly original experiences and expand beyond the core gaming audience of 4 million people, asking "Is there some way we can create entertainment which appeals to a broader audience?".

The key to opening the industry up, he stressed, was to follow the example of film and television: "Here we are in BAFTA, the cathedral of entertainment... we [the games industry] must learn to share our vision. That's what the film industry do; that's what the TV industry do."

Event Partners:

Peter Molyneux

Peter Molyneux OBE co-founded Bullfrog Productions in 1987 and created the "god game" genre of computer games with the release of Populous. Since then Peter has been responsible for a string of massive-selling games including Theme Park, Magic Carpet and Dungeon Keeper. Cumulative sales of these Bullfrog games are around ten million worldwide.

In 1997 Peter left Bullfrog Productions to form new games development company Lionhead Studios, who released Black & White, Fable, The Movies and the BAFTA-winning Fable II. In April 2006 Lionhead Studios was sold to Microsoft Corp. Lionhead is currently working on two new projects, one of which is Fable III. Peter is also the current Creative Director of Microsoft Game Studios Europe.

BAFTA Annual Lectures

BAFTA's Annual Lectures showcase the most renowned creative forces in film, TV and video games, providing a platform to discuss their personal vision for the future of their industry. Watch our previous lectures online:

• Patrick Mckenna – Television Games Lecture in 2008
• Will Wright – Video Games Lecture in 2007
• David Lynch – David Lean Lecture in 2007

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