Short version: Without architecture, the whole game code most likely sonner or later (normally sooner) will become a mess
It's also about the feature set and I guess the overall design of the final game.

What Firoball said. But Dan, our Gameplay Architect, often focuses on tactical elements. What do levels need to look like? What plays well and feels good? I think that, for us, separating this out from the programmer/janitor helps us implement some juicy stuff that we'd otherwise miss.

Ichiro how could you be in business for 75 years when video games have only been around for 74?

ummm *scratches head* ???

It's like they count age differently in different countries. Some people say that when a baby's born, it's already 1. Other people are angry about such statements.

>It's like they count age differently in different countries. Some people say >that >when a baby's born, it's already 1. Other people are angry about such >statements.

It's already.... already what... who is angry...and why...

Now I'm confused and I'm the one that started this diversion.

Have you or have you not been making video games since the time of moses?
Sorry poor attempts at humor on my part. I get the joke. There were very few video games 75 years ago...yet another attempt at humor. I like it. In fact I asked it, just to make sure others noticed.

Okay back on subject:
This happened to me(I was on of the staff victims.):
My x-boss' business model: Get a lot of money from an investor. Give yourself an enormous salary. Use your staff like dogs pretending that you know what you're doing, and towards the end treat everyone terribly so that they quit, and with the rest simply stop paying them without warning with a promise that money is coming. Promise the money is coming so that they can't file for unemployment. Then take a vacation when they realize it's all a bunch of junk. Everyone will be starving by this time and will have to simply quit. After shop is clean, hire your marketing and sales team with the developer's salaries.

No matter how good you are, they only need so many good folks to work in the great companies that would never do something like that.

Point: Feel free to help figure out some indie business models and contribute because it ain't all sausages and pancakes in the world of "big-time" publisher video game development-- not all the time. Independent models empower the developers.