Boyes: Pub Fund to generate "higher quality" PSN content?

While much is still being said about the evolution of the primary console download platforms - Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network - Sony's approach to developer support with its Pub Fund could lead to it creating the "higher quality" content of the two in the long term.

That's the opinion of Adam Boyes, founder of Beefy Media - a consultancy for developers looking to publish on those platforms - and formerly one of the Capcom team that oversaw a whole range of releases over the past two and a half years.

In that time, he said, the quality of games released on both Microsoft and Sony platforms has improved, but that the majority of titles being created weren't up to the required standard, so were being turned away.

"I think the quality control of some of those titles early on... [the platform holders] wanted content - they wanted a lot of stuff on the channel," he explained. "But as we evolved the games got better - I think Bionic Commando Rearmed was a great example of a game that raised the bar, and then Shadow Complex came out and raised it even more.

"We saw more and more dollars being spent on the games, so Microsoft wanted to spend more time on fewer titles - but at the same time the blade was getting crowded with the Facebook stuff, Zune stuff, and all of a sudden my content is harder to find, and there's less of it. It was never really truly transparent to people outside as to why that was happening.

"I think what we're seeing is an evolution - people always think they're going to make great games... but they're not. The majority of people are making s****y games, so less and less of them are being accepted, and more and more people are getting turned away."

Boyes likened his approach to Simon Cowell, in that if a developer's game isn't up to it, he'll make sure they know - but he also underlined the importance of knowing how to engage with publishers in the first place.

"When you're going to have a nice conversation with a publisher, and you've never done that before, you need to talk to somebody like me so you can understand what they're looking for. You can't wing it, not nowadays, because they're going to go to 80 other developers - and what's going to edge you out is if you know what they're looking for, and talk to them the way they like to be talked to.

"But it's been an interesting evolution - I think Sony right now, if they continue to focus on the indie stuff, more of the Joe Dangers of the world, and the Pub Fund really comes up with some more great content then they could be the ones having more content pumped out that's higher quality.

"It's really up to the platform owners to find the best stuff and put it up there," he added.

The full interview with Adam Boyes is available now.