The Lesser of one 'Evil'
Like many in the games industry, Hendrik Lesser wears multiple hats. But his specific collection of hats don't always fit neatly together.
"Many many years ago, I called myself the king of conflicts of interest," Lesser tells GamesIndustry.biz.
Lesser is the CEO of Remote Control Productions, a collective of 15 different game companies with more than 500 employees between them, some of which could be seen as competing with one another.
He has also been on the board of the European Games Developer Federation for the past decade, and currently serves as president of the trade group, helping give a voice to more than 2,500 studios and their 40,000 developers.
In those roles, Lesser must understand that he is representing many people whose interests may not align perfectly with his own, and a certain amount of diplomacy is called for.
But Lesser is also the founder of indie publisher Lesser Evil, which strikes a very different tone from what we have come to expect from industry trade group senior leadership.
"We are uncompromisingly anti-authoritarian, anti-racist, and pro-democracy," Lesser Evil says on its website (emphasis in original). "We publish video games with clear political or social intent and messaging."
It continues, "We believe in making statements. We aim to initiate difficult discussions, spread awareness, and take a stand. Gaming is a politically and socially conscious medium – we should never apologize for this!"
One might think that outspoken attitude would conflict with what is demanded of a board president for a trade group like the EGDF, but Lesser suggests it hasn't been a particularly big issue.
"I see myself mostly as a citizen, and I'm very fortunate that a lot of my colleagues in the EGDF
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