Industry snaps up Dare to be Digital winners

Companies including market leader Electronic Arts have moved in to hire key members of the winning teams from the Dare To Be Digital competition, which seeks out the best game development talent from amongst Scottish and Irish students.

Three members of successful teams from the 2004 contest have been hired by Electronic Arts, which also hired three winners of the 2003 contest, with EA Studio UK executive proucer Richard Leinfellner commenting that Dare will have "a major impact on the global games industry in the near future."

Top Scottish development studio Visual Sciences - which is based in Dundee, near to the home of the competition in the University of Abertay, Dundee - has also taken on two members of one of the winning teams.

Other winning team members have also been hired by the BBC's interactive division, BBCi, in Glasgow, and by brand design firm Brand Ambassadors.

"Talent plays a key role in the games sector," according to Visual Sciences managing director Russell Kay, "and with Dare to be Digital on our doorstep we have access to some of the brightest students entering the industry."

"One of the biggest problems for an employer is getting students with the necessary business experience and Dare actively addresses this problem, bridging the gap from the academic sector to the working environment."

Dare to be Digital runs each year over a ten week period, and challenges teams to produce a concent for an original game or edutainment product, complete with prototype and business sales document for investors.

Originally targetted at Scottish students, last year's competitions welcomed entries from the Republic of Ireland for the first time, and next year's will be open to South Asian students thanks to a £35,000 grant from the Scottish Executive's Fresh Talent initiative.