David Braben
David John Braben, OBE, is a British game developer, game designer and game programmer. He is the founder and CEO of Frontier Developments since January 1994.[1]
Braben is best known for creating the Elite series. He co-developed the original Elite with Ian Bell in 1984, Frontier: Elite II, Frontier: First Encounters and Elite: Dangerous. He is also a co-founder of and works as a trustee for the Raspberry Pi Foundation which in 2012 launched a low-cost computer for education.
David Braben is married to Wendy Irvin-Braben and has two sons. He lives in Cambridge, United Kingdom.
Awards
BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award
At the British Academy Games Awards on Thursday 12 March 2015, David Braben OBE received the BAFTA Fellowship. Awarded anually, the Fellowship is the highest accolade bestowed by BAFTA upon an individual in recognition of an outstanding and exceptional contribution to film, television or games. Braben said: "I am absolutely delighted to be receiving a BAFTA Fellowship; it is an incredible honour. I have a truly great team behind me at Frontier, and without them I would not be receiving this, so the honour is effectively for all of us."[2]
Discussing the Fellowship, Harvey Elliott, Chairman of BAFTA’s Games Committee, said: “With Elite recently celebrating its 30th anniversary, David Braben’s enthusiasm for the medium remains as undiminished today as it was back then. David is a genuine pioneer, not just in terms of game design or cultural significance but also in the field of computing, having championed the Raspberry Pi that recently became the most successful British computer of all time. The Academy Fellowship could not be more appropriate.”[2]
Braben received a standing ovation when he took to the stage to be presented the award by fellow games industry legend Ian Livingstone. In his acceptance speech he suggested that the games industry is on the "cusp of a golden age".[2]
| Date | Award | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 5 September 2005 | Development Legend Award | Braben received the Development Legend Award at the Develop Industry Excellence Awards in Cambridge. |
| 2012 | Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering | Braben was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering |
| 2014 | Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) | Braben was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2014 Birthday Honours for services to the UK computer and video games industry. |
| January 2015 | Pioneer, Game Developers Choice Award (GDCA) | Braben received the 2015 Pioneer, Game Developers Choice Award (GDCA), for his work on the Raspberry Pi and for working more than 30 years as a game developer. |
| 12 March 2015 | BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award in video gaming | Braben was awarded the BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award in video gaming at the 11th British Academy Games Awards. |
Games
This is a list of David Braben's games.[3]
| Game name | First released | Braben's role(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Elite | 1984 | Designer & programmer |
| Zarch | 1987 | Developer |
| Conqueror | 1990 | Developer |
| Campaign | 1992 | Programmer (original 3D shape display code) |
| Frontier: Elite II | 1993 | Designer, writer & programmer |
| Frontier: First Encounters | 1995 | Director & writer |
| Darxide | 1995 | Designer |
| V2000 | 1998 | Programmer |
| Dog's Life | 2003 | Director & designer |
| Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit | 2005 | Executive producer |
| RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 | 2004 | Executive producer |
| RollerCoaster Tycoon 3: Soaked! | 2005 | Executive producer |
| RollerCoaster Tycoon 3: Wild! | 2005 | Executive producer |
| Thrillville | 2006 | Executive producer |
| Thrillville: Off the Rails | 2007 | Executive producer |
| LostWinds | 2008 | Executive producer |
| LostWinds 2: Winter of the Melodias | 2009 | Chairman |
| Kinectimals | 2010 | Executive producer |
| Kinect Star Wars | 2012 | Chairman & Founder |
| Tales From Deep Space | 2014 | CEO & Founder |
| Elite: Dangerous | 2014 | Director |
| Planet Coaster | 2016 | CEO & Founder |