UKIE has explained the benefit of tax breaks for the UK games industry for consumers and players of games.

CEO Jo Twist said that it will not only incentivise more UK-made games on the market, but raise awareness of the types of games being made in Britain.

Shizuo Kambayashi/AP



"What hopefully it will mean is that there are more UK-made games on the market," she told Digital Spy.

"We already have some great UK success stories like GTA and the LEGO games, which are made on our doorstep, which not a lot of people realise, particularly young people."

Having tax breaks will mean less risk for companies investing in the UK, hopefully leading to more studios, employment and games that better reflect British culture.

"We've already got a massive diversity of games on different platforms, but hopefully we'll have more that reflects a sense of British identity, which is really important," Twist explained.

UKIE



"We know these kinds of games - as with other kinds of cultural products like TV and film - they have a global reach, and they are liked by global audiences.

"We shouldn't be shy of that, and it will give people the confidence to do that, to take that risk potentially. It'll also give investors the confidence in the industry, that we also need."

Starting April 1, 2014, developers and publishers can put their projects through a cultural test to determine eligibility for tax breaks, which scores games on their setting, characters and where it was made.



While based on the film industry's test, it's been adjusted to take into account the "modern and unique nature of the games industry", from downloadable content to one-person independent developers.

"We've really made some fundamental changes to the cultural test; it even recognised undetermined location or species, which is really important when you're talking about games," said Twist.

"Even if a game is set in a fantasy world, then you can still get points."

Tax breaks for the games industry were approved by the EU last month, after originally being announced during the Budget in 2012.

The BAFTA Games Awards recognises UK-made games, with Grand Theft Auto 5 winning this year's Best British Game award.

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