Mobile (Android):
– It needs a native Sound API. Then get the great people of FMOD support the platform.
– Marketplace must improve it’s payment solution so that people that work on Android can make money right away, that’s the key to developer support, especially indies. (A solution is on it’s way I heard)

Web:
– Native client is a great initiative, OpenGL ES 1.1 or 2.0 support should be a high priority. So that native client app development, looks a lot like iPhone and Android native development.
– WebGL vs O3D fight, I think WebGL should be a priority, I think monolithic engine have never been a good solution in an emerging tech segment (3d on the web).

I wish you good luck with your new job.
Don’t hesitate to contact me if you need details.

Thanks,

Laurent,

Congrats on the position. I am a game developer hobbyist with a full time job. The barriers you talk about here are exactly some of the limitations that I run in to when trying to pursue my passion for game design.

Ideas come easy for me, but the current generation of tools are either out of my budget, are beyond my technical abilities, or have a learning curve beyond my time constraints. A few exceptions exist to this including YoYo Games GameMaker, Unreal Development Kit, and a handful of mod tools for existing games (example: valve hammer editor).

Luckily for me, a close friend of mine is an avid programmer who has the technical skills that I lack. The problem we often run into is this: When I find a toolset that is high enough level that I feel I can properly express my ideas with, he is generally frustrated by how limited the tools are in their potential for extendibility. Likewise, when he stumbles upon a toolset that he really finds to be powerful in its ability to be extended, I generally find it too low level for my abilities.

What we have always dreamt of is a collaborative real-time development environment that could properly leverage my creative abilities and his technical skills. Eskil Steenberg has created some exciting tools in this vein around his newly released MMO “love”. I have a lot of respect for his vision and can hardly believe his drive as a lone developer. I hope to see the barriers for this industry drop low enough that there is more room for 1-3 people development teams.

I would be surprised if I was alone in this conundrum. I hope this helps to give you a view of some of the trails of game developer hobbyists so Google may better facilitate our processes.