PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360... They’re lovely machines, but the high definition era requires massive art content, which means more human resources, more time, and increased development costs.

If you're fond of studies, white papers and reports, for two grand (or one, if you're counting in British Pounds) you're able to immediately purchase Screen Digest's classy Outsourcing in Next Generation Games Development: Delivering Cost and Production Efficiency study. The report's key findings: the global market for games outsourcing is set to grow to $2.5bn by 2010 – representing 40% of the worldwide game development costs. Outsourcing is already common – it is estimated that 70-80% of game studios outsource today. The document also has a long and informative section dedicated to the pitfalls of outsourcing.

I've spent the last year as a business development executive at 3D Brigade, Eastern-Europe's leading art and asset outsourcing studio. The company is an official vendor of Electronic Arts, Disney Interactive Studios, Activision, Eidos Interactive, Atari, Liquid Entertainment, Digital Extremes and many other companies. After making direct contact with over 80 different development studios, I'm familiar with the pitfalls that our clients are most afraid of. Let us run through them – the top six, for free.

 
Concern No.1: Delivered quality may not be good enough
 

So, if you fear that your precious art will ultimately lack style, precision or creativity if you choose to outsource it, you shouldn't be. As a warm-up lap, check your potential partner's references, track record, and portfolio. Do not judge a studio based on its online references! What you'll see online is usually 1-2 years old material – current projects or even client names are almost always under strict NDA.
  

Although many artists working in the outsourcing industry do not have a deep game development background, this is not the same everywhere. More and more experienced, veteran developers are joining art outsourcing studios as this is a fantastic opportunity for them; instead of having their name in a single game after what is often a years-long development cycle, they're now able to get credit in several high profile productions in a relatively short period of time. Outsource your work to places with a lively development scene if you're keen on top quality – you get the most enthusiasm and the most professional results there.
 

 Apply the same method of selection, when you're thinking about outsourcing the "chop work" (low polygon modelling, large packs of environmental assets, etc.) – you'll need the best seniors to supervise your work. The golden rule: analyse your expectations first.
  

Ask the studio about their Quality Assurance processes, but do not put the answers into their mouth in a questionnaire – let them explain for themselves. If you're unsure, commission a test work or request additional samples.
  

Concern No. 2: With art outsourcing, we’re basically strengthening our rivals
 

Search for outsourcing and you’ll instantly meet hundreds of zealous “vendors”. Most of these are small or medium sized game developers, who’ve just finished a product and are waiting for their next contract – in the meantime, they’ll happily lend you a hand with your art; however, the customer should see this as a red flag.  Think about it – would you move your best artists to work on the Client's project, if you have your own product?
 

Avoid studios who are not completely dedicated to art outsourcing. Nomen est omen: graphics are one of the most important elements of the videogames so, as you would pick a professional agency for your PR, you also need a dedicated art outsourcing studio for your 3D asset, animation and motion capture needs, too.
 

Concern No.3: Keeping a creative control over the production demands too much time and resources
 

Believe it or not, this time the ball is in your court. Good – in fact, excellent – communication is crucial. This, of course, is hardly news to anyone with outsourcing experience but, frankly, picking the wrong partner will easily result in a nerve wrecking production nightmare. Commission a test work, but don't expect the studios in high demand to do this for free. The test work is actually testing both the vendor and the client - the quality of the specifications, communication and feedback, as well as the client's inclination regarding the payments and the vendor's ability to deliver quality on the agreed deadlines.
 

If you skip it, you're on your own: giving constant feedback during an actual production is very time consuming, in some extreme cases averaging about 30-40% (!) of your work time. To avoid unpleasant surprises, be prepared to give out exact specifications and orders. Honest and open communication (both written and verbal), good reference pictures with clear markings, guidelines and strict technical documentation can save you countless man days. Never forget, these guys are ruthless mercenaries, "game development ninjas" – they do what they are told to do. If you want more artistic input from your provider, grant them a certain degree of creative freedom and let them know about it – but even the most free-flowing asset needs to be agreed upon first. Arrange periodic conference calls from the start as they can be very helpful.
 

If you're serious about saving money on production, be as specific as you can, prepare everything before the start, and discuss all your concerns with your partner. Ultimately, your goal is to save valuable time, not to waste it.

Concern No.4: Information security, protection of confidential information and IP may be weak
 

Last Thursday, GameSpot (thus EDGE) reported, that Ubisoft filed suit against North Carolina-based Optical Experts Manufacturing for copyright infringement, breach of contract and negligence, after one of the company's employees posted a pirated copy of Assassin's Creed on the Internet. Allegedly, the pirated version also had a bug, which caused an "irreparable harm" to Ubisoft's reputation.
 

Now, imagine the harm this piece of news caused to the service providers! If such thing can happen in the USA, how can anyone trust a partner in China or in Eastern-Europe?! Having a Security section in your Outsourcing 3rd Party Questionnaire is often not enough – anyone can tick a box about having a 24/7 video surveillance or an implemented separated LAN per Client policy. Pay a due diligence visit in person and see your potential partner for yourself. It's roughly 6,000$ for you and your Art Director or Outsourcing Manager to fly from the East Coast to Eastern-Europe.  That may seem like a lot, but it’s 3,333 times less than the amount UbiSoft is now seeking in damages and legal fees.
 

Concern No.5: Location, different time zones and the language barrier may badly affect communication and workflow
 

Many providers are open 24 hours a day, so there's always someone in the office who can answer your calls or mails. Other studios may be not so prepared. Again, a test period may address your concerns or give you the definitive answer you’re looking for. Do not be afraid about the cultural differences when considering an Eastern-European vendor. This culture has emerged from the same cradle as the Western.  The people here understand gothic, renaissance or baroque even more than an artist in the New World, since they're basically surrounded by it. However, this doesn't mean we didn't see Ken Burns' Civil War or are unable to faithfully recreate Chicago in 1930. (Mafia was developed in the Czech Republic.)
 

Regarding the language barrier, Eastern-Europe may not be in a better position than India or China. English is the predominant language of business in both regions and most service providers employ only well educated, fluently English staff. Eastern-European artists and managers are also familiar with the expressions and terms of this industry, they speak the "language of the videogames". This is what gives this region a competitive edge - you're able to get a TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) certificate in India or China, but our guys grew up on Atari, Sinclair and Commodore.
 

Ian Livingstone, boss of Eidos at the time, told a story in issue 65 of EDGE about his experiences with his first game, Eureka!, on the ZX Spectrum: It was a very, very difficult game and was programmed in Hungary for secrecy. It was very funny because in those days – with the old Iron Curtain – we'd go over there and they'd say [adopts strong Hungarian accent], "Oh, it very difficult but we do it okay."
This was in 1983. Nine years later the same guys – with much better English skills and a Palo Alto branch office – managed to develop Ecco the Dolphin for SEGA. The Iron Curtain and the eighties may be long gone, but the dedication to excellence is not – sometimes it's still very difficult, but we are and always were ready to pick up the glove.
 

Concern No.6: Outsourcing is not cheap and we have a limited budget
 

Outsourcing can save you a lot of money, if done right. But cheap outsourcing is, in fact, often very expensive outsourcing. Ask for list prices first and do not let the studio calculate the price depending on your good reputation. If you don't have a good reputation yet, you're still open to negotiate on discounts. Never forget, you're not just outsourcing art, you're also outsourcing the rigorous and difficult project management with it. Check carefully what's included in the price. You do not want additional invoices for the overhead – your primary goal is to have the work done on-time, on-budget and in the desired quality.
 

Most importantly, don't jump on a good offer before calculating and considering. You don't want to pay a wonderful monthly rate through 6 months, if a professional and reasonably priced studio can deliver it in a month, do you?

Feel free to drop me a note, if you're still afraid.