Settling into the saddle.

This continuous position here at my desk is strange after the almost constant travel this year, but it's been good as we get to grips with the games in development and get on with business, even if it's meant a fair few late conference calls with publishers on the west coast.

It's been good to start mentioning our own new Alien Breed title (that's been picked up in online press) and the reaction to the news that we're bringing one of our famed titles back has been very positive to date - it'd be even more positive had we released footage or any detail whatsoever, but that can wait :-) The great thing so far is that people have seen it think of the original, even if it's a very modern looking next-gen game - which is just the reaction we would have wanted.

I've had a couple of trips to the capital recently (or at least one, with another looming in a day or two) and thats been good to catch up with business partners and friends down there - had a beer with a bunch of them last Tuesday in an old haunt in Soho. I took a dozen of the famous Hoffman's pork pies, which went down a storm.

On Thursday I'm part of the UK independent games lobby group that's appearing at the Treasury to see if the UK will support tax breaks for the UK games industry - essentially other countries are offering ludicrously tempting tax offerings for companies to move (i.e. Canada mainly) and if the UK don't do something, it'll soon be bereft of major indy developers! Suit on time for that at the Treasury...

I've confirmed for the Game Connection event in Lyon, which is this time a month earlier than it normally is (now in early November) which unfortunately coincided with my wife's birthday - after a couple of pretty sticky conversations (nee heated discussions) this has resulted in me making it up by taking her away for a surprise weekend the day after I get back from Lyon.

Other than that, most of September and October are pretty clear (I've avoided going to the Tokyo Games Show) other than bi-weekly doses of what is for once, decent entertainment, at Elland Rd.