Jobs FIND THE PERFECT ROLE
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Four key recruitment trends that will shape 2021 and beyond Amiqus’ Liz Prince identifies the key recruitment trends, shaped by the events of the last couple of years, that will in turn shape the way we think about work itself THE past couple of years have seen a seismic shift for those working in games (and elsewhere), thanks to Brexit and, of course, the pandemic. But the industry has adapted brilliantly, and studios have continued to hire and onboard new talent throughout lockdown. As restrictions slowly ease, a return to some kind of normality is now in view. But many things have undoubtedly changed in the hiring process, particularly post-Covid. Here are the key trends we’re seeing… ONE: Candidates are looking for more flexibility from potential employers about how they work Flexible working options are important to many individuals – and particularly for those with caring responsibilities. The past year has shown that remote working is possible and, in many cases, has resulted in increased productivity. The pandemic has also seen many people re-evaluate their priorities and make some big changes to improve their quality of life, including relocating closer to family and moving out of cities. While it’s understandable that studios want their teams to be reconnected ‘in person’, hybrid working options will be essential if companies want to attract and retain the best talent. TWO: Virtual recruiting is here to stay Studios have dabbled with interviewing via video conference in the past, but the pandemic and lockdown forced all companies to adopt the technique wholesale. And for many recruiters, this process will remain in place – at least for first interviews – given the time saving it affords.
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THREE: The toxic workplace will not survive Sadly, we’re continuing to read reports on burnout, crunch and harassment at studios. As these behaviours continue to be called out – and rightly so – we would hope to see a change in leadership attitudes and overall company culture, or else lose key talent. But it’s also worth noting that in these times of ‘cancel culture’, consumers (particularly Millennials and Gen Z) are voting with their feet and boycotting brands and companies over their attitudes and policies. FOUR: The best studios will continue to implement solid D&I strategies and seek out under-represented talent Diversity is no longer a ‘feel good’ initiative, but a vital part of the recruitment process. Candidates want to see that studios are inclusive and publicly support under-represented groups. Pledging support for Black Lives Matter, International Women’s Day, Mental Health Awareness Month or Pride simply isn’t good enough. Candidates want to see real action from studios in terms of an inclusive and accessible recruitment and selection process and the proactive development of talent from underrepresented groups. This rich combination of improved technology, greater appreciation of work-life balance and a doubling down on D&I means that these changes are likely to be permanent and welcome. After such a globally challenging time, I think these are trends we can all be encouraged by and get behind.
June 2021
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Now Hiring! Just some of the many roles open at [xxx]
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Welcome to the first DEVELOP/JOBS I think it’s now clear that the year has been the most disruptive, for those right across Western Europe at least, than any in recent history. It completely upended the patterns of behaviour and freedoms that most of us take for granted. What now remains to be seen is how much that disruption is a catalyst for ongoing change. My guess is that you’re already thinking very differently about how much you want to go to the office for instance, and maybe you’re thinking about crafting a whole new lifestyle for yourself. With that backdrop we thought it was a good time to launch DEVELOP/JOBS. The idea is to feature a wide selection of great studios from around the industry and provide them a stage in which to showcase their best side to those looking for a new challenge. We do use the word selection in good faith as well. These are all studios we’re familiar with, ones MCV/DEVELOP has covered editorially in the past, many of which we’ve visited over the years. And we will continue to curate those who appear in these pages. The key idea of DEVELOP/JOBS is to let you hear the voices of those who already work at these studios, so you can see if their experiences chime with your own ambitions. If they do then please get in touch with them and do mention us when you do. DEVELOP/JOBS will become a bi-annual feature in MCV/DEVELOP, returning towards the end of the year with more great studios and great roles to tempt your talents. We sincerely hope that we can help you find your next role and be a small part of helping you take advantage of the opportunities for change that are now opening up. Finally a huge thanks to all our inaugural DEVELOP/JOBS studios for supporting the initiative this month. And now it’s over to you. Seth Barton, editor of MCV/DEVELOP
NOW HIRING...
16 Hangar 13
04 Creative Assembly
18 Hi-Rez Studios
06 Dovetail Games
20 InnoGames
08 Firesprite
24 Lucid Games
10 Frontier Developments
26 Sharkmob
14 GIANTS Software
28 Warp Digital
A craft-led studio
‘Work where you work best’
Game dev at the cutting edge
Authentic worlds, innovative games
The home of Farming Simulator
Building a space that empowers you
At the forefront of GaaS
Hamburg’s mobile maestros
Great people... make great games
Taking multiplayer to new heights
Striking out into AAA co-dev
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Creative Assembly Creative Assembly is a craft-led studio with a people-first approach, and is recognised as one of the best places to work in the UK industry for the last four years
Location(s): West Sussex, UK and Sofia, Bulgaria Team size: 800 Key projects [and/or key hiring areas]: New Sci-Fi FPS IP, Total War franchise Recruitment contact Emma Smith Head of Talent jobs@creative-assembly.com
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AS THE UK’s largest games developer, and among the oldest, Creative Assembly (CA) has developed a unique approach to creating AAA games over their 34 years. CA is a craft-led studio with projects fully shaped by the team, from art tools and AI to sound design and cinematic trailers. Everyone is given creative freedom to make a significant contribution to the projects they work on. The studio environments are built to support this approach with onsite bespoke audio, motion capture, playtest suites and a user experience laboratory. Multiple projects are always in development with two core teams: the New IP team and the Total War team. The New IP team are working on an as-yet-unannounced scifi fps IP, while the Total War team are working on historical and fantasy titles for the BAFTA award-winning franchise. CA is recognised for their people-first culture, with extensive wellbeing, career development, diversity and inclusion, and education initiatives, as well as regular parties including a summer festival. Their Legacy education outreach programme has won multiple Best Education awards and provides a platform for all employees to be ambassadors, sharing their insights, experiences and skills with the wider industry and future generations of game makers.
June 2021
27/05/2021 12:57
Jenny Nutter Senior Live Operations Manager New Sci-Fi FPS IP
IT’S EXCITING to be working in Live Operations in the industry right now – it’s a fast paced and quickly evolving area, and I’m especially proud to be part of that at CA. I joined CA around two years ago and was recently promoted to Senior Live Operations Manager. In my role there’s new challenges daily but my team is supported and empowered to deliver what we need to. I love that I get to work together with a range of passionate, talented people across so many teams. There’s such a variety of backgrounds, talents and interests, and you really feel that united motivation to make experiences that players will love. Everyone I’ve met is keen to hear feedback, whether that’s on the latest assets they’ve created or on studio operations. There’s always something to get involved in and all voices really are valued. A word that stands out to me is “welcoming”; CA UK is a large, established studio in a relatively quaint and quiet market town, and it feels like a family. A badass family passionate about making the best games.
Alexandre Breault Design Director New Sci-Fi FPS IP
I WAS attracted to CA due to the team’s ambition. After redefining horror with Alien:Isolation they were up for a new challenge: pushing the limits of firstperson shooters, and I wanted to be a part of that. We don’t hesitate to tread new ground and we are building a team with diverse experience – one that can bring a unique perspective to the genre and take it further. It’s a truly collaborative effort with everyone openly sharing ideas and providing feedback. Designers are pushing and helping each other to increase the quality of the game; we start from different ideas, exchange, and evolve them over time. That can only happen with strong trust in the team, with the ability to openly discuss our opinions and to acknowledge our missteps; building on these to deliver a great game. At the center of our work is the player experience which we assess regularly through team playtests. Those playtests are the highlight of my day – mixing great discussions on how we make the game even better with a good dose of friendly competition on who is the best shot!
“I was attracted to CA due to the team’s ambition” June 2021
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Dovetail Games ‘Work, Where you Work Best’ at Dovetail Games, who are looking for people with the enthusiasm, drive, and learning mindset to craft a new generation of entertainment, across a multitude of gaming platforms Location: Chatham, Kent Team size: 180 Key hiring areas: Engineering
Recruitment contact Fiona Turner Senior Talent & CSR Executive fiona.turner@ dovetailgames.com
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DOVETAIL is an indie development and publishing studio, Est. since 2008, where the focus is on creating digital hobbies for its vast global audience of passionate enthusiasts. The core of its offering are its train and fishing simulator titles, where it faithfully recreates real-world scenarios. All roles are based “where you work best”, be it remote (UK or Spain based) or at their riverfront HQ in Chatham’s Historic Dockyard. The company works to guiding principles for their hybrid workplace and are working hard to create spaces that allows collaboration, connections, team building and innovation to happen. Equity is a key mantra between those in the office and those who are virtual/remote, and the guiding principles help make meeting spaces a ‘level playing field’. With the swift pace of releases, individuals working on their upcoming releases include Train Sim World 2 – Rush Hour and Bassmaster 2022, plus unannounced titles developed in Unreal Engine 4, get to experience a unique way of working, from fast innovation to seeing the results of their hard work in game quickly. Dovetail Games has many of the usual benefits offered by games studios, including competitive salary, regular bonuses, incl. many recognition benefits like their “above and beyond” bonus that rewards and recognises individuals that demonstrate Dovetail Games core values. The studio was nominated TIGA best large studio 2020 and is committed to equality and diversity and providing a friendly, safe, welcoming environment for everyone.
June 2021
27/05/2021 16:17
Rob O’Farrell Chief Development Officer
WE are passionate about what we do, not only delivering great quality across our Trains franchise and fishing games but our people. Whether it’s your first job in the industry or you’ve been on our journey for a number of years we want to make sure you are having fun in what you do and we allow you to do your best work. I take pride in the fact that many of our leads in Dovetail have grown from grads, juniors and QA (where I started from in the industry) to leaders in our business. Our simulations are for ever evolving as we work a very effective flywheel of efficiency, productivity, and quality. All of which makes Dovetail a place where we push ourselves every single day to make sure we are doing the best we can, not only for ourselves and the team around us but our millions of players who show the same passion and enthusiasm for simulations.
Jackie Tran Software Engineer
BEING a part of Train Sim World’s engineering team is like being in an escape room. I’m working alongside like-minded teammates, solving complex technical problems, and it’s a great laugh! Coming into my first engineering role, I’ve been fortunate enough to work on many facets of Train Sim World, varying from UI design to code fixes at the engine level. It goes without saying that there is a lot of accommodation on Dovetail Games’ part to align interests with projects and in my case, my fascination with Artificial Intelligence in video games led me to projects focused on improving our NPC Passengers system. The work culture at Dovetail Games is definitely worth mentioning as the environment is relaxed, hours are flexible and healthy work-life balance is encouraged. I’m also impressed by the efforts made by the company to raise awareness of mental health, which is especially important during these difficult times.
Heather Jackson Junior Technical Artist
DOVETAIL is a great place to work for those coming into the industry. My progression within Dovetail has gone from working in QA, to level artist, to environment artist (junior to mid), and now to junior technical artist. The company has allowed me to progress into the role I want to work in, showing that my hard work has paid off. I have learned a lot from my peers and leads, it has been a valuable experience. The smaller sized teams allow you to get to know your peers well, and it encourages a friendly atmosphere. I know I can rely on the people in my team, and get support when needed from them. I have met many friends, and personally had no encounters with toxicity in the teams I have worked with since coming here. Although working from home can distance people, I think we have managed to stay connected and support each other. With five years this coming August with Dovetail, I am thankful to the company for hiring me.
“There is a lot of accommodation on Dovetail Games’ part to align interests with projects.” June 2021
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Firesprite Firesprite is a next-generation experience focused studio with a distributed and in-house workforce, headquartered in Liverpool, UK
Location(s): HQ Liverpool, UK & distributed staff Team size: 210 Key projects and hiring areas: Multiple projects in development from small to large scale, hiring for all disciplines across art, animation, design, engineering, production. Recruitment contact Sharan Bassi Senior Talent Acquisition Specialist jobs@firesprite.com
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FIRESPRITE is an independent developer working at the cutting edge of game creation on the latest hardware and technology platforms, employing over 200 developers across a range of projects from small to triple-A in scope. The business has grown in recent years, placing in the Top 10 fastest growing technology companies at the 2020 Northern Tech Awards and placing nationally in the top 50 in The Sunday Times Tech Track 2020. It was founded in 2012 by a cross discipline team with over 80 years of combined industry experience with the ambition to bring creative and technical innovation to any game or genre Firesprite creates, collaborating with platform holders to develop showcase titles such as The Playroom or Playroom VR with PlayStation. More recently Firesprite has expanded into creating content for live service games, announcing their involvement in the inception of the Star Citizen: Theaters of War multiplayer mode, co-developed with Cloud Imperium Games. Firesprite also channels its creative energies and experience into developing its own IP, self-publishing their unique stealth horror title, The Persistence, for PlayStation VR in 2018. The title has since been brought to multiple platforms in 2020 and will be updated for next-gen hardware with ray tracing support in 2021.
June 2021
27/05/2021 13:51
Graeme Ankers Managing Director Liverpool, UK
Rebecca Brown People Director Liverpool, UK
Now Hiring! Just some of the many roles open at Firesprite Principal Animator (Action Shooter) Liverpool / Remote Work on a ground-breaking next generation PvP shooter project with a Games as a Service focus, set the standard for the team and deliver world class animation with key project stakeholders.
FIRESPRITE is based in the Northwest, which is arguably the cradle of the UK games industry with a heritage dating back to Psygnosis in the 8-bit era and then subsequently growing into Sony PlayStation Studio Liverpool. Our founding and leadership team have decades of collective experience representing business, art, production, code and design disciplines and we believe that these foundations have fostered a collaborative and inclusive approach in the way we work at Firesprite. There is no single discipline which takes absolute priority. Our teams are encouraged to be creatively brave, to speak out and be responsive to the awesome, pioneering and fast-changing industry in which we operate at, on the front line of creative and technical innovation. Firesprite’s culture is very important to us, and we have worked hard to create an environment where people enjoy coming into work and feeling empowered, but also listened to and we have an opendoor policy for staff to speak to any of the Senior Leadership Team. We have multiple exciting projects in development, each one looking to bring innovation to a genre, including a gamechanging huge multiplayer shooter and an ambitious dark narrative blockbuster adventure and we’re always looking for amazing developers to come and collaborate with us!
IT’S BEEN an eventful 18 months and we’ve been fortunate to be in an industry that has thrived during what has been a difficult time for many. We had to adjust our working and move the studio to fully remote and this is now part of our future, offering remote, flexible and inhouse; we’re always looking for ways to improve work-life balance and a flexible approach allows that, even when we come to reopen the office. Adapting our onboarding, new starter processes and internal communications for distributed working has enabled us to continue to expand, welcoming 99 new ‘Sprites over the past year. We have evolved our People Engagement team to keep everyone connected, informed and reassured that their wellbeing is always considered in everything we do. We’re also pleased to have introduced further benefits this year including healthcare, mental healthcare and wellbeing support, enhanced paternity and maternity, alongside a bonus scheme and increase in holiday leave to over 28 days a year. With many exciting projects, opportunities, and plenty on the horizon to keep us busy and focussed, it has never been a better time to join us!
Graphics Programmer (Narrative Adventure) Liverpool / Remote Join our rendering team on a dark, story-driven next generation ‘Narrative Adventure’ with genre defining goals, you’ll be responsible for delivering awesome & innovative effects & systems in areas such as hair, skin, lighting, vegetation & terrain. Physics Programmer (Action Shooter) Liverpool / Remote Work on a ground-breaking next generation PvP shooter project with a Games as a Service focus, we want someone to blow the doors off and bring something new to the genre to design and oversee implementation of the physics system protocols. Principal Animation Programmer (Narrative Adventure) Liverpool / Remote Join the team to work on a dark, story-driven next generation ‘Narrative Adventure’ taking atmosphere, storytelling & player agency to new levels, responsible for developing & maintaining the animation pipeline, state machines and mentoring Junior team members. Online Services Programmer (Action Shooter) Liverpool / Remote Work on a ground-breaking next generation PvP shooter project at an early stage, architecting robust services across multiple platforms. Technical Artist (Various) Liverpool / Remote We’re looking for Technical Artists to bring their experience and best practices to a team which is at an exciting stage of defining and building pipelines across a range of exciting, varied and challenging projects.
June 2021
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Frontier Developments An independent developer and publisher with a legacy of much-loved titles for PC and consoles over the last 27 years, Frontier are passionate about creating authentic worlds through innovative, genre-leading games Location(s): Cambridge, UK Team size: 620 Key projects [and/or key hiring areas]: Programming, Art, Animation, UI, Design, Audio, Production, QA, Publishing, Operations. Recruitment contact Rob Senior Head of Talent rsenior@frontier.co.uk
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FRONTIER are based in the world-leading technology cluster and historic city of Cambridge. With a growing team of over 600 talented people, (they have hired about 230 people since the first lockdown!), they offer the chance to create and nurture enduring genre-leading games in a collaborative studio environment. They have achieved serial successes across a wide variety of titles including Elite Dangerous, Planet Coaster, Jurassic World Evolution and Planet Zoo. With numerous openings across a wide range of disciplines, Frontier are continuing to grow their team to support their existing portfolio and an exciting and ambitious future roadmap, which includes the development of both own-IP titles and licensedIP titles, including Formula 1 and Games Workshop (Warhammer). They are also growing their team to support the expansion of Frontier Foundry, their games label for publishing games developed by carefully selected partner studios. Joining Frontier means the chance to work with talented and passionate people, developing and publishing sophisticated and enduring games in a creative and collaborative environment. Frontier rewards passion and determination by sharing in the company’s success and by supporting their teams to keep doing what they love.
June 2021
27/05/2021 16:21
Megan Brown Programmer Planet Zoo
Chris Marsh Principal Animator Jurassic World Evolution
Now Hiring! Just some of the many roles open at Frontier GAMEPLAY PROGRAMMERS You will work across the game team to bring together the design, code and assets we create, and build the game experience that our players will love. UI DEVELOPERS Create compelling and responsive user interfaces that connect our players with our games across multiple platforms.
MY name’s Megan and I’m a gameplay programmer at Frontier. I joined Frontier on an internship, and have now been working here for over three years. In that time I’ve learnt a huge amount while working with some incredible people. Before I started here I couldn’t really code at all, but thankfully Frontier must have seen some potential and took a chance on me! When I arrived I was pretty nervous, but everyone was so friendly and supportive that I settled in fast. That really helped me make it through the initial steep learning curve and come out the other side as a programmer working alongside the amazingly talented team on Planet Zoo. They helped train me and were always there for me, whether it was for a rant about a bug, a step-by-step code review, or even just a cup of coffee and a chat. Now I’m a full-fledged programmer with a love for what I do. No day is ever the same, and you’re never quite sure what challenges you’ll come up against – which is just how I like it!
FRONTIER is great at fostering and growing talent. I started working as a Graduate Animator here in 2011 and in that time I’ve been given all of the opportunities that I needed to work my way up to Principal Animator. As animators, we are spoiled by the variety of projects that Frontier develops. In my time here I’ve been lucky enough to be able to stretch myself as an animator across a huge range of wildly different projects; from epic, cinematic space battles in Elite: Dangerous, to the zany mascots in Planet Coaster, to the naturalistic creature work for the animal kingdom in Planet Zoo and the dinosaurs of Jurassic World Evolution. We have some really exciting projects in the pipeline and we’re always looking for talented people at a range of experience levels to join us, so be sure to check out our current opportunities. Frontier is a wonderful environment for animators and game developers of all disciplines to come and grow their skills.
3D ARTISTS As a 3D Artist you’ll have the opportunity to create high quality art assets for our games. We have opportunities across a number of our titles. CHARACTER ARTISTS Our Character Artists produce a wide spectrum of subject matter from stunningly photorealistic to beautifully stylised. SENIOR GAME DESIGNERS As a Senior Games Designer you will work closely with the Design Lead, playing a key role as an owner of important design aspects for the game. PRODUCERS Our Producers work closely with our talented development teams to help deliver exceptional new game features and content. We have multiple opportunities across several titles. TEMPORARY QA TESTERS We’re hiring a number of QA Testers to play test, destructively test, regress, create test suites, generate reports and provide general game feedback to aid the internal development teams. ANIMATORS Fantastic animation plays a huge part in our success. Your passion for animation will be pivotal to delivering the quality that we strive for in all our games.
“Everyone was so friendly and supportive that I settled in fast” June 2021
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GIANTS Software GIANTS Software invented the Farming Simulator. Using its own engine, the developer and publisher brings farming with hundreds of authentic machines to all popular platforms Location(s): Headquarter in Switzerland (Schlieren/Zurich), branch offices in Germany (Erlangen), USA (Chicago) and Czech Republic (Brno) Team size: 80 Key projects: Farming Simulator 22 Recruitment contact Petra Erlbacher HR & Office Manager Erlangen, Germany perlbacher@giantssoftware.com +49 9131 92 793 52
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GIANTS Software is an international video game developer and publisher from Switzerland established in 2004 and known worldwide for creating the popular Farming Simulator series. Since 2008, over 25m copies of the franchise have been sold worldwide. With releases on all popular platforms including console, mobile, tablet and PC. The team created its own engine, and the upcoming Farming Simulator 22 will run on GIANTS Engine 9. This will also be the first title to be self-published globally, following the foundation of a dedicated publishing department and a major headcount increase. GIANTS Software is committed to maintain close contact to the agricultural industry and to engage with the community. User can create mods using the GIANTS Engine, a feature that is now even available on console. And since 2016, GIANTS has held an annual convention, FarmCon, to interact with the community. And the company can surprise too: With Farming Simulator League (FSL), the series introduced a competitive esports mode in 2019 – now in its third season many acclaimed brands and sponsors compete in professional tournaments. GIANTS Software concentrates on all things Farming Simulator – let the good times grow!
June 2021
27/05/2021 16:23
Manuel Leithner Studio Manager Erlangen Erlangen, Germany
Martin Rabl Head of Marketing & PR Erlangen, Germany
Now Hiring! Just some of the many roles open at GIANTS Software today Senior Software Engineer (C++) - Core Game Engine Schlieren/Zurich, Switzerland Challenging senior role to implement new features to our own GIANTS Engine. Improve existing functionality using cuttingedge technology with a strong focus on performance and memory usage. Extensive responsibilities in an exciting environment!
I HAVE a double function: on the one hand I manage the Erlangen branch, on the other hand I am the lead gameplay programmer and work on Farming Simulator 22. At GIANTS Software I work with an international team and the whole German branch is in close contact with the programmers in the Swiss headquarters. I am particularly fascinated by the fact that we have remained a family-run company with flat hierarchies despite millions of sales. This allows us to react to changing situations with short decisionmaking processes and quick solutions. All employees can contribute ideas and take responsibility for their own areas. Everyone benefits from a lot of freedom within our work processes. Even mistakes are forgiven, we are open to new proposals and try to learn from setbacks. Although we currently only serve one brand in our portfolio with Farming Simulator, the work is extremely varied due to the participation in different projects. Personally, I am very lucky that I was able to combine my private hobby and fascination for large machines with my programming background.
WHEN I joined GIANTS Software six years ago, the marketing department consisted of our graphics designer and myself. We quickly realized that we have to be really flexible and learn new skills to bring all the ideas that we had to life. But I loved it, we had a vision and everyone else within the company was ready to help and support each other on the way. Since then we have established our own yearly event, the FarmCon, launched exciting community programs, new social media channels, produced more and more videos in-house and also have our own live-streaming studio for the Farming Simulator League in our office. This wouldn’t have been possible with just the two of us. The team grew and we are now even self-publishing our future games but the spirit is still the same. If you have an idea, you can find someone to help you make it real. I love it that you can make an impact here at GIANTS Software. Or in farming words: You can watch your seeds grow.
“You can watch your seeds grow”
Senior Software Engineer (C++) -R&D Schlieren/Zurich, Switzerland Individually responsible for a range of extensive projects. Use your strong C++ and mathematics knowledge to implement complex and state-of-the art solutions. Besides programming, communicate and cooperate both with internal and external partners. Tools Programmer Schlieren/Zurich, Switzerland Develop and improve our internal software tools and processes. While coordination with other teams and definition of concepts are important tasks, you will still be actively programming most of the time. Game Tester Erlangen, Germany Closely work with your surrounding QA team and participate in improving the quality of the Farming Simulator games. Check functionality across multiple platforms, use your creativity to break a product and recommend design improvements. Community Coordinator - video games Chicago, Illinois, USA Engage the community via forum, social media and events. Collect, organize and escalate community feedback to ensure community-driven game development. Identify and build long-term relationships with key influencers.
June 2021
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Hangar 13 Games Hangar 13 is the 2K development studio behind the award-winning Mafia franchise. We work collaboratively across our 4 locations on triple-A titles in a diverse environment, developing games as one global team
Location(s): Brighton (UK), Brno & Prague (Czech), Novato (USA) Team size: 375 Key projects [and/or key hiring areas]: We’re busy developing a new IP across the studio and are actively hiring across all disciplines. Recruitment contact Paul Collins Recruitment Director paul.collins@hangar13 games.com hangar13games.com
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WORKING at Hangar 13 means getting to work on original IP on cutting edge, proprietary tech, in a space that fosters autonomy, empowerment and support. Our culture is evolving and our most important mantra is ‘Bravely Create.’ We recognise that every game we develop needs to take at least one smart risk, and we encourage everyone in the studio to be courageous and willing to take those risks together. We have the team spirit and creative ambition of a start-up, supported by the financial and organizational structure of 2K. Diversity has been central to our vision for the studio, and we know that actions are more important than words, so we work all year round supporting various initiatives, industry organisations, and internal groups in these areas. We believe that diversity on the team makes us creatively stronger and is something to value at all times. Growing Hangar 13 significantly over the last couple of years has enabled us to ensure that everyone that joins buys into our vision of what a modern development studio should be like and has the passion and excitement for creating something truly special, both creatively and culturally. As a result, we have a team of highly talented people that are supportive and encouraging of their peers, and all help to make Hangar 13 a fun place to work, and a studio that our team members are proud to be a part of.
June 2021
27/05/2021 17:16
Damian Buzugbe Principal Concept Artist Brighton (UK)
Leah Lindner Software Engineer Brighton (UK)
Now Hiring! Just some of the many roles open at Hangar 13 At Hangar 13, we want people driven by curiosity — Visionaries who aren’t afraid to explore new territory. Intrepid individuals who embrace the weird, the challenging, the unconventional. We’re building a space that empowers you to take risks and redefine what’s possible, where your inquisitive nature is nourished — A home for people who aren’t satisfied with what is, but who are obsessed by what could be. So bring your talent, your unique point-of-view, your fearless tenacity, and together, we’ll Bravely Create.
I’M IN a very privileged position to be working as concept artist for Hangar 13 in one of the very best cities in the UK. I’m biased as I’ve lived here for 17 years now, and Hangar 13 is slap bang in the heart of this fantastic city. Brighton is a very colourful and open place. It’s incredibly lively and full of life’s unique and sometimes left field people and it’s all the richer for it. Hangar 13 is a perfect reflection of this with its diverse and madly talented team members. Inside the studio we are spoilt too with newly refurbished high-end workspace tripping over itself to offer a built-in gym, showers, modern office layout and all the fancy coffee you can handle. But this is just a portion of our studio with our other sites located in the Czech Republic and US. It’s an international team not just in name and that offers immense opportunity to learn and grow as a developer.
“I’m in a very privileged position to be working as concept artist for Hangar 13”
I JOINED Hangar 13 a little over 2 years ago and it was the best decision I could have made. Our incredibly diverse and talented team welcomed me with open arms, and it has been a pleasure working with everyone. Personal development is encouraged and supported here, and thanks to the opportunity of working with and contributing to our stack of inhouse technology - which is geared towards creating triple-A games, I have been able to greatly improve both my programming and my wider set of professional skills since. Studio leadership is transparent and I am confident that they put the needs of the team first, especially after how well they have handled the transition of working from home during the pandemic. Due to our inclusive culture and travel opportunities (pre apocalypse), it truly feels like we are one big global team, despite being spread across 4 locations in the US, Czech Republic and the UK. That said I am particularly happy to be located at the Brighton office, this city felt like home to me as soon as I moved here, as it is full of open minded and creative types of people, and being close to the seaside is a nice perk.
Lead UX Designer Brighton Working closely with the Game Director, you’ll lead and inspire a team of talented UX and UI professionals and set the overall vision and direction for user experience, capable of ensuring that UX design and other teams are closely aligned. Senior Gameplay Engineer Brighton Using cutting edge, proprietary tech, you’ll be working with interdisciplinary agile teams to design, develop, write, implement, and debug code for new and upgraded software products. Animation Director Novato Working on an incredibly exciting new Hangar 13 game, you’ll collaborate closely with the Game Director to define and deliver a unique vision and style. You’ll set the bar for animations across the entirety of the project and drive toward the highest quality at every phase. Technical Animation Director Brno/Prague You will be responsible for the studio’s long term Technical Animation strategy, the overall development of our animation technology, and the mentoring of the technical animation team. You will review contemporary games and development practices as you create and drive the vision for the studio through mapping out a long-term technical animation plan.
June 2021
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Hi-Rez Studios Hi-Rez Studios is at the forefront of cross-platform, games-as-a-service titles with SMITE, Rogue Company and Paladins – with its games having been played by 100m gamers and counting Location(s): Alpharetta GA, USA; Brighton, UK; Seattle WA, USA Team size: 450 Key projects: SMITE, Rogue Company, Paladins, Realm Royale, Unannounced Recruitment contact Scarlet Dangerfield VP of Talent talent@hirezstudios.com
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HI-REZ specialises in multiplayer games that create big, inclusive communities. Its free-to-play titles have garnered a huge audience and critical acclaim. The company has three key titles. SMITE is the number one MOBA on console. Running since 2014, SMITE sees players take the role of gods to go head-to-head across PC and all major platforms, with over 35m players to date. Rogue Company is a cross-platform multiplayer shooter, where mercenaries take on the world’s most challenging missions. And then there’s Paladins, a team based shooter with strong strategy elements and a card-based character customisation system, allowing players to augment their abilities to their playstyle. And 45m players worldwide do just that. Hi-Rez prioritises building communities. It seeks to work with its players, online and in person at its own Hi-Rez Expo and other events. Hi-Rez Studios is also committed to supporting diversity, with a wide-ranging programme from in-game representation to Pride celebrations and online training to counter unconscious bias and other issues. And its new Creativity Unchained initiative allows employees to work from where they want, both remotely and across its locations. It’s a company that’s as open and balanced as the games it creates.
June 2021
27/05/2021 16:24
Andrea Chang Audio Director Hi-Rez Studios, Cross-game
Ashley Barrett Producer Titan Forge, SMITE
Now Hiring! Just some of the many roles open at Hi-Rez Studios Senior Graphics Programmer Remote from US/UK • Implement graphics algorithms, techniques and processes that meet the artistic, design and technical requirements of the project. • Use practical solutions to implement feature requests, taking into account performance, maintainability as well as resource usage. • Ensure coding standards are followed in their own and others’ code.
I’M Andrea Chang, the audio director at Hi-Rez Studios and I lead the audio team here. We’re a centralized team, providing all of the audio for each of our games and cinematics across the company. I enjoy building, mentoring, managing, and providing audio direction for our audio team’s sound design, which can span across many different styles and genres of games. This definitely helps stretch our team’s skill sets, while simultaneously keeping things dynamic and exciting! A key part of our team is the education aspect, whether it’s having weekly lessons on Euroracks, Wwise certification lessons, sound design plugin deep dives, or regular game critiques of other games, we want to make sure our people are growing and learning. In a similar vein, we also employ R&D Fridays where pockets of our audio team prototype ideas in small groups for developing tools, features, or anything audio related that they are super passionate about. I love working at Hi-Rez because we have the freedom to explore and take measured risks, and try new things such as this.
MY name is Ashley Barrett and I’m one of the producers on Smite at Titan Forge. Specifically, I’m the art pipeline producer which means I help our studio track, schedule, and collaborate on all assets that go through the art pipeline. This involves facilitating communication and looking for areas where we can improve our efficiency. I work alongside other producers and a whole team of amazing artists that range from 2D character artists, 3D modelers, animators, FX artists to sound designers, and more. My favorite part of my job is working with creative talent. My day consists of going to a meeting about Babylonian gods to another meeting where we are debating the artistic differences of dragons and dinosaurs. We work on a steady stream of skins for our expansive list of gods. We are also trusted to handle big projects like Avatar and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IP. It’s busy, always changing and never dull. If there is one favorite thing I had to pick about my job, it’s my team. Our team is incredibly passionate and skilled and they are always driving me to be my best.
“I love working at Hi-Rez because we have the freedom to explore”
Rogue Company - Senior Technical Artist Remote from US/UK • Engine side character setup, interfacing with programmers, working with designers, and supporting artists & animators to shape the stage for characters, features, & systems. • Create and maintain BluePrints, Anim Sets, Character Models, and Physics Assets. Rogue Company - Weapons Modeler Remote from US/UK • In-depth knowledge of weapon/hard surface modeling. • Proficiency with industry software tools & pipelines (3ds max, Zbrush, Photoshop, Maya,Fusion 360, Modo, substance painter). • Excellent Hard Surface modeling skills. Rogue Company - Lead Tools Programmer Remote from US/UK • Mentor, level up, and grow your team. • Learn and adopt new game technologies, practices, tools, and systems. • Establish technical requirements for tool requests for a wide range of stakeholders across the Art, Design, & Programming teams Announced Project - Senior Level Designer Remote from US/UK • Work closely with the design team and creative leaders on designing and implementing 3D levels using UE4 for an Online Multiplayer game • Design and greybox exciting, innovative, and balanced multiplayer levels • Continually iterate and test level designs against player move set, combat abilities, and player skill level
June 2021
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InnoGames InnoGames is Germany’s leading developer and publisher of mobile and online games. The company was recognized as one of the Best Employers in IT 2021 by Germany’s Great Place to Work Institute Location(s): Hamburg, Germany Team size: 400+ Key projects [and/or key hiring areas]: Development, creatives and product management Recruitment contact Silja Bernecker Team Lead Talent Acquisition Management recruiting@innogames.com twitter.com/innogames
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INNOGAMES creates games that players all over the world enjoy for years. Its portfolio encompasses seven live games and several mobile titles in production. The company based in Hamburg is best known for Forge of Empires, Elvenar and Tribal Wars, which celebrates its 18th anniversary this year, as well as for its sustainable approach to not just games, but also when it comes to talent. Born as a hobby, InnoGames today has a team of 400+ employees from more than 30 nations who share the passion of creating unique games. Team members benefit from a wide range of benefits, including flexible working hours, an in-house gym and canteen, continued training and education opportunities, and regular team and company events. These benefits have been adapted to the current remote work environment, with food delivery from the in-house canteen, online training possibilities and virtual events, among others. Due to the coronavirus outbreak, InnoGames switched its company-wide operations to home office and turned its hiring process into a fully virtual one. When hiring, the company is also open for new team members to start their work remotely from within Germany or to adjust contract start dates accordingly. InnoGames offers relocation support and will assist colleagues and their families in the relocation process.
June 2021
27/05/2021 16:26
Left: Team photo taken at pre-pandemic event
Christin Matt Senior Game Designer New unannounced mobile title
Justus Graf Software Developer Forge of Empires
Now Hiring! Just some of the many roles open at InnoGames TEAM LEAD SOFTWARE ENGINEERING – GAMING You will be both the team lead and technical lead of a highly agile game development team on a mission to create a great game played by millions of players.
I AM a Senior Game Designer working on a new game with a small team and have been with InnoGames for the past eight years. I don’t really have an everyday routine. The job is varied and constantly brings new challenges, which is a lot of fun. We work from a conceptual pitch through a longer development phase to live operation. All of these phases are very different. The job of a game designer, for example, often includes designing individual building blocks of the game, documenting them and collecting feedback from people with different areas of expertise and incorporating them into the design accordingly. What I like most about my work is this collaboration in a team. The more different people come together in a company, the better. We are proud to have so many different nationalities under one roof at InnoGames. This opens our horizons, ensures exchange and a high level of tolerance and variety that we can pass on to the players in our products.
WHAT I love most about my job at InnoGames is the constant opportunity to take ownership of game features. We are empowered to be more than coders by taking part in every step of the feature development, from the design phase until the release and beyond. Our feature team setup with experts from all areas allows not only for close relationships with my colleagues, but also for developing my skills by working cross-functionally on new areas or technologies. Expanding one’s knowledge is strongly supported by the company, e.g., by offering online training or visiting conferences. We also like to constantly challenge ourselves by not just accepting the technical status quo of a project, but to actively seek improvements and to keep our tech stack up to date. Every two weeks the Forge of Empires team has an InnoDay, an entire working day where we can work on projects that help us grow in our career or are helpful to us or the team outside of our usual sprint work. And no matter if on a personal or business level – we always take the time to celebrate our successes!
“The more different people come together in a company, the better.”
SENIOR MOBILE GAME DEVELOPER – UNITY You will complete our international team of developers specialized in strategy & simulation games. You will drive the technical development of new features and improve the code of our most recent mobile game in production. SENIOR GAME DESIGNER FOR A NEW F2P MOBILE GAME You will be responsible for designing exciting new game features and establishing successful live operations as soon as the new game enters the global market. SENIOR PHP DEVELOPER – PAYMENT SYSTEMS You will join our agile team to advance the development of our next-generation and PCI DSS certified payment tools that secure up to 50,000 transactions per day. MARKETING DATA ANALYST You will help us shape, explore and utilize data from millions of players and a wide range of marketing activities to enable the best data-driven decisions. DATA SCIENTIST Data is our most important resource and foundation of our actions: Help us shape, explore and utilize data from millions of players and a wide range of marketing activities!
June 2021
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WILL RETURN IN DECEMBER Show your best side to potential candidates Our advertorial feature will consist of double-page studio profiles including short interviews with key staff, so candidates can put a name and a face to those they will be working with. Boost your recruitment drive in this difficult year with a concise summary of everything that makes your studio a great place to work from the people who know it best: your team.
Distributed via print, digital edition, email newsletter and online. All studios will also receive a PDF version for future use as they wish. To get involved with DEVELOP JOBS then contact: alex.boucher@biz-media.co.uk
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Lucid Games Lucid Games is an independent studio, developing cutting edge games, Located in one of the world’s most iconic cities, their studios are in the heart of Liverpool’s creative quarter Location(s): Liverpool, UK Team size: 150 Key projects: New AAA title, Destruction AllStars, Apex Legends and more unannounced projects Recruitment contact Hollie Lapworth Head of Talent Hollie.Lapworth@ lucidgames.co.uk 07946 845284
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LUCID GAMES is the developer of Playstation 5 exclusive Destruction AllStars, vehicle combat game Switchblade, and also works alongside the worlds biggest developers and publishers on some of gaming’s biggest franchises. Lucid is always pushing boundaries of what’s possible. In the past year they have developed Destruction Allstars, worked on Apex Legends, Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order … and that’s just the ones they can tell you about. Lucid has been established for over a decade now and has grown from ten founders to over 150 employees and looking for more! The team at Lucid from the top down are all hands-on, including the founding members who to this day, still have a passion for developing great games in a great environment. With different size projects from AAA titles to smaller co-development teams, the studio benefits from having a relaxed informal culture, whilst working on huge titles, giving their team the best of both worlds.
June 2021
27/05/2021 16:28
Kathryn Hopkins Producer Destruction AllStars Liverpool
Steven Brown Lead Programmer Unannounced AAA title Liverpool
Now Hiring! Just some of the many roles open at Lucid Technical Art Director Liverpool As the Technical Art Director, the candidate will oversee the art technology process, pipelines and quality across the titles at the studio. They will be responsible for the technologies and techniques that Lucid uses to ensure the optimal balance between asset quality and game performance.
I’M a producer, working primarily with the UI team. I’ve been at Lucid now for 6 months (I’ve just passed my probation! Hurray!). One of the stand-out things about Lucid for me is how I instantly felt part of the team. I started just as Destruction AllStars was being shipped. It could easily have ended-up feeling overwhelming, with everyone busy working on their own tasks with not much time to support a new employee. This didn’t happen. The other producers on the team were on-hand to help show me the ropes. The UI team and other departments were so approachable and supportive. I had a clear stretch of time that was protected for me to read-up, catch-up and get to know my new colleagues. This allowed me to feel ready and raring to go when the time came to pick up the reins. The professionalism and skill of the Lucid team, as well as the nature of the project, means that I am constantly learning and being driven to improve my skills and confidence in my work. This is a key factor for me. It’s a really very satisfying environment to work in.
“I instantly felt part of the team”
I’VE been working at Lucid for the past 7 years. During which I’ve progressed from junior to lead programmer, working on a variety of games and technical projects. There are always exciting projects to work on at Lucid. A few of the internal projects that I learned a lot on have ranged from mobile games like Jacob Jones and the Bigfoot Mystery to technical ports such as Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories and Goat Simulator. I’ve also had the pleasure of working on exciting external projects with teams around the world, such as with EA on the Need for Speed franchise. We’ve covered a lot of different game engines over those projects; Unreal 3 & 4, Unity, Frostbite as well as other proprietary engines. So far my favourite projects have been technical ports and remasters. I find them particularly interesting, diving into codebases with little to no documentation trying to figure out how everything works! Getting something building again after all those years can be a bit of a challenge and that’s only the beginning! While interesting projects are great, the people at Lucid are it’s biggest selling point for me. We have an extremely gifted set of people of all backgrounds that I’m unbelievably lucky to work with. I learn something new every day working alongside some of the most experienced and talented people in the games industry. I couldn’t see myself working anywhere else.
Multiplayer Programmer Liverpool or remote The Multiplayer programmer will join an experienced team and work on an exciting next generation multiplayer game. This is a rare opportunity to become one of the leading members of the network team. The candidate will be working with some of the best people in the industry as well as having the opportunity to grow and progress in their career. Producer Liverpool Lucid Games is hiring for Producers to join them and be a key part of their leadership team. The Producer will be working on new and existing AAA titles as well as being responsible for directing a talented team. Senior Technical Animator Liverpool or remote As a Technical Animator the candidate will collaborate with the animation, art, design and programming teams at Lucid. They will be tasked with finding progressive techniques and processes to animation solutions and issues with models, characters and vehicle movement. As well as being able to work with some of the most talented people in the UK game industry, Lucid Games also offer: • Remote and flexible working • Private Healthcare • Pension (up to 10%) • Profit bonus & company shares • Enhance Parental leave and many more… www.lucidgames.co.uk/careers
June 2021
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Sharkmob Sharkmob is a game studio based in Malmö, Sweden and London. The studio develops AAA quality games for PC and console, using Unreal Engine to power its ambitions of taking multiplayer games to new heights Location(s): London Team size: 19 Key hiring areas: Engineering, Technical Art, Animation, Combat
Recruitment contact Michelle Simon michelle.simon@ sharkmob.com Michelle Simon | LinkedIn
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SHARKMOB was founded in 2017 and acquired by Tencent Games in 2019. The founders wanted to make games differently and to create a company culture where ownership was central and work/life balance was promoted and prioritized. The studio was built on the notion that happy employees who have fun at work will flourish creatively and make awesome games. Sharkmob is working on three major projects: a battle royale set in the Vampire: The Masquerade universe set for release in 2021; and two proprietary, unannounced titles. The most important part of Sharkmob is its crew - so we strive for a healthy, productive atmosphere where everyone plays an important role. We have a passion for our craft and want to excel - from office managers, to writers or coders to art directors. All employees enjoy a 10% profit share bonus and yearly performance-based bonus. We give direct feedback to each other, allow for work-life balance with flexible working hours and 6 weeks holiday, distribute ownership and make time for social events like beer-tasting, kitbashing sessions and game jams. We have offices in Malmö, Sweden and London.
June 2021
27/05/2021 16:31
Ben Penrose Art Director Sharkmob London
Martin Connor Design Director Sharkmob London
We have open roles across most disciplines and these can be found on our career site. The roles listed below are a priority for us; if you apply and your skills match then expect an immediate response. Senior Animator London The Senior Animator will create great animations that capture our player’s imaginations. They will be proactive and work with the wider team to drive our project forward with exciting ideas. They will have a passion for creating cutting edge AAA animations that fully leverage what is possible with modern toolsets and hardware.
I AM art director for Sharkmob London where we’re building a team of world class developers to work across some exciting titles. We’re looking for artists across a broad spectrum of specialist disciplines to join us and make our games look and feel beautiful, as well as being fun to play. I joined the London studio in 2020 and have been working with a team of really experienced developers ever since – it’s been thrilling to see our collective levels of ambition, talent and energy come together and we have already built a real sense of mission and teamwork. And that’s just the beginning – I am incredibly excited about the adventure we’re about to go on together, and am really looking forward to meeting future talent we recruit. I joined this industry with a passion for creating unique worlds, characters and experiences and Sharkmob is truly a place where those things can be explored. If that sounds like you - get in touch!
ALONG with James, Sam and Ben, I’m one of the founders of Sharkmob London. As the studio design director I’m working in tandem with Sam to oversee all things design to come out of the London studio. Right now that includes a few things – concept development for the London studio’s project, being part of the director team on one of Malmö’s projects and, importantly, building a world-class design team for our London studio. Currently, the design team is seven people strong. We’re already covering a number of different design subdisciplines: game design, level design, tech design & vehicle handling design. Our team is already quite cosmopolitan with four different nationalities represented. My time at Sharkmob (seven and-a-half months now) has flown by. To be trusted to the extent that we are, is a breath of fresh air. I feel incredibly fortunate to have landed this gig. We’re building something truly epic and I can’t wait to be in a position to share more, somewhere down the line.
“We’re trusted and heard, which is a breath of fresh air.”
Senior Vehicle Artist London The Senior Vehicle Artist will collaborate on all creative and technical aspects of the projects to draw players into the experience with highly detailed compelling vehicles. They will be proactive and work collaboratively with the team to drive our project forward with exciting ideas. Lead Character Artist London The Lead Character Artist will create great looking characters and will collaborate with the Tech teams to define and maintain Character content pipelines and work. They will be handling communication between Sharkmob, outsourcing studios and external artists. Lead Technical Artist London The Lead Technical Artist will breathe life into our worlds, vehicles and characters by working with the Art and Engineering teams. They have a passion for creating AAA visuals to fully leverage what is possible with modern toolsets and hardware. Maintaining the great communication between London and Malmö teams. Lead Gameplay Engineer London The Lead Gameplay Engineer will collaborate with Design, Narrative and Art to bring to life world class experiences. They will be passionate and thrive on engineering excellence as well as pushing the boundaries of what is possible with new and innovative solutions.
June 2021
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Warp Digital From the Sea of Thieves to Dune’s Arrakis – London’s Warp Digital is stepping up to AAA co-development
Location(s): London and remote Team size: 20 Key projects: Dune, Metal:Hellsinger, secret porting project Recruitment contact Piers Duplock Senior Producer piers@warpdigital.com Twitter: @Piers_D
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LONDON-BASED Warp Digital has existed for five years, although the core team dates back fifteen years, having split off from Curve Digital. The studio built its reputation porting some of the most beloved indie titles around – including Return of the Obra Dinn, Close to the Sun and For the King. Warp Digital has worked also with the likes of Devolver Digital and Team17 and many more along the way. Things are changing over at Warp, though. The studio has been transitioning into triple-A co-development. With Warp already working with NaturalMotion and Rare – and has its fingerprints on the enormously popular Sea of Thieves. And now it’s also partnering with Funcom to bring the world of Frank Herbert’s Dune to life. Having already worked on popular multiplayer survival title Conan Exiles with the company. The studio believes in striving to be the best that it can be by cultivating a teamoriented working environment, a culture based on fixing problems rather than assigning blame, and open and honest communication. Co-development provides exciting opportunities to work on big-name titles. Warp aims to create titles that live up to their clients IP and vision, and which Warp can be proud to add to its portfolio. If that sounds good to you, then many positions are currently open.
June 2021
27/05/2021 16:33
Muneer Fergiani Software Engineer Location: London Project: Dune
James Rance Junior Software Engineer Location: Newbury Project: Metal:Hellsinger
Now Hiring! Just some of the many roles open at Warp Digital Lead Programmer London or Remote A key leadership role for our co-development projects working with the producer to help guide and mentor the team, while also maintaining technical standards.
I REALLY like working for Warp. I started in October and they have been really accommodating when onboarding me from home. Starting here really has been smooth sailing and I can’t wait to visit the Surrey Quays-based office and meet the guys in person. The projects here are quite varied at the moment so there’s lots of different types of work to get stuck in with. The project I’m on is a really ambitious one in all the areas featuring lots of custom tech in UE4. My role involves co-developing and maintaining a gameplay system. There’s loads to consider when developing on this project. At times it can be challenging but it never feels daunting because I’m backed up by an experienced and communicative team. One of my favourite things about Warp is that the senior management are really approachable and care about the well being of the team and work hard to make sure our concerns are taken on board.
I STARTED working at Warp just over two years ago as my first role within the games industry, having just recently graduated. Working within a studio seemed daunting at first, however, thanks to the support and advice from friendly and very knowledgeable colleagues I was able to quickly settle in and hit the ground running. Because of the large variations in the projects we work on, both in terms of genre and scale, I have been able to expand and develop my understanding and skill set across a large number of diverse areas of development. For the last two years I have already worked across seven different platforms, each bringing their own requirements and challenges to projects, as well as new learning experiences. Even now, I am implementing brand new features introduced with the latest generation of consoles. With the vast and varied amount of knowledge and experience I have gained, paired with all the great people I have been able to meet and work with, I am extremely grateful that I have been able to begin my career with Warp.
Graphics-Rendering Programmer London or Remote Join the world of Dune and work on several key areas of the game, using the latest rendering techniques to bring that largescale, next-gen feel. Unreal Gameplay Programmer London or Remote Be part of the core gameplay team, creating and implementing features that directly impact gameplay while working with designers and artists to make those features as polished as possible. Unreal Console Programmer London Be a key player in a small team that ports and supports both small indie titles and AAA scale Unreal projects on current and next-gen console platforms. Unity Console Programmer London Be a key player in a small team that ports and supports both small indie titles and AAA scale Unity projects on current and next-gen console platforms.
“It can be challenging but it never feels daunting because I’m backed up by an experienced and communicative team.” June 2021
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SAVE THE DATE
Thursday 23rd September We’re planning a very special and very different event this year, simply entitled IRL. We’ll both applaud the industry’s incredible response to the pandemic and celebrate being able to gather together once again. We’re now looking for key partners to support an inclusive and positive comeback event for everyone.
For more details contact alex.boucher@biz-media.co.uk
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Should you go back to the studio? OPM’s Kim Parker Adcock discusses the key issues and considerations around the biggest question of 2021 for both employees and employers THE last year has been one of evolution through necessity. It is astounding how well this industry adapted to the problems we have all faced. However, now there are more changes on the horizon, with a potential return to ‘normality’ looking ever closer. In March 2020 I feared the absolute worst for my business, it was a tough couple of months mentally. However, we have had a very productive year and now I have found myself asking if I want to send my team back to the office?
What have we all been missing? It obviously hasn’t been sunshine and rainbows. Loneliness has been a serious challenge to people’s mental health. The studio is a place for socialising, creativity and team spirit. It may have been a support network, or even a safe place. Finding a work/life balance has also been harder, with a lot of people falling into irregular hours and finding it difficult to switch off. Staying consistently productive can feel impossible for people that need a team environment to be at their best.
What are the benefits for employees working from home? We ran polls online to get an idea of how the industry feels about remote work. The results have been substantial. One poll showed 93% of people wanted to keep working from home. A following poll gave us an insight into the reasons behind this. When asked what benefit of remote working has had the most impact on their lives, 43% put it down to travelling times and commuting costs, 29% appreciated being more productive and focused, and 23% enjoyed more family time and found it easier to manage personal events.
Does the best of both worlds exist? I think it might. A flexible remote working hybrid model could be an answer for some. Studios can downsize and cut the costs of office space, or even consider renting a room once a week. Meetup days can be used for creative projects, socialising, and maintaining team spirit. Whereas the rest of the week the team can enjoy the benefits of remote work. Flexibility creates loyalty so it’s a win-win situation.
What are the benefits for companies in a remote working model? Speaking from my own experience here, the biggest benefit would be to save money on rent and bills. Office space is often the biggest outgoing for any business, to completely eradicate this expenditure whilst still being able to operate is a tempting proposition. Another benefit is that a lot of people work more productively when left to manage themselves. What might have been a long meeting is now a short call, as well as there being less distractions at home.
How will we feel longer term? There is a possibility that once we return to the office, be it full or part-time, we realise we have missed the environment, the people, the camaraderie, and that we maintain our productivity with renewed passion. There may be firms, who having disposed of their premises, must find a new “home”. It might even affect their employer brand. Despite this, will we ever return to fully office-based working? I very much doubt it.
June 2021
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