Rami Ismail

The Dutch Games industry suffered a unimaginable loss today: due to a change in public funding policy, the Dutch Game Garden - which without exaggeration could be regarded as the beating heart of the Dutch games industry - has announced its closure after 17 years of service due to a lack of funding available. To put that into perspective, when I was dropping out of university, the "DGG" was where I went to start Vlambeer. Being in that building, with all the other studios and developers, was an invaluable part of accelerating my career. I don't think I'd be here without the guidance and selfless support of the team back in the days. Pick any random person in the Dutch games industry, and it's likely that at least one point or another in their career, the Garden was a critical factor, a meaningful support, or a useful resource. In the Netherlands, we have a disproportionally talented and creative games industry - but we also have had a lot to be jealous about when it comes to the structures supporting the industry in other countries. Yet, on my travels, the Garden was consistently named as something the rest of the world was envious of. An institute that enabled, incubated, organized, and connected almost every aspect of the games industry - brightly visible, a beacon, a clubhouse, a facilitator. All that now ends in 2025, and it feels borderline unacceptable to lose something that powerful in a time where the industry, more than anything, needs symbols of hope. The team at the Dutch Game Garden gave it their all to find a way forward, but that way never materialized. That means it is now up to all of us to make sure that we carry their torch forward. As a person, I have many more thoughts and tears to shed about this loss - but as a board member of the Dutch Games Association, I know there's a lot of work we can do to ensure the damage caused by their forced closure is at the very least reduced. We are already actively evaluating how our association can ensure continuity on at least some of the incredible activities of the Dutch Games Garden. And, as the person responsible for government relations, I am going to give it everything I have to ensure this will never happen again. If you are a part of our industry, and you have thoughts, ideas, or initiatives you want to share with us, or me, please feel free to e-mail me at [email protected]. If you just want to vent about this, express your feelings, or share a story - please do feel free to reach out too. Thank you so much to everyone who made the countless iterations of the Dutch Game Garden possible. It would not be an exaggeration that there would be far less of us without your efforts. I would not be here without your support. Your legacy remains - and while I can't speak for everyone, based on the countless messages I received today I know many of us feel the same: we'll miss the Garden, but we will make sure we grow onwards on the soil you've nurtured for us.

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Horrible news to hear about KeokeN Interactive having laid off their entire team today. In a statement published on X, CEO Koen Deetman and managing director Paul Deetman said the Netherlands-based studio was forced into the decision after exhausting all possible options for completing planned projects or taking on other work. To those affected, please find a comprehensive list of resources, below: 🥇First, Discipline Games Jobs Resources: Over the past weeks I have created 9 (at time of writing) Games Jobs Resources to find jobs in a wide range of disciplines: 🎨 Art, Animation, VFX and UI: This resource contains around 1,000 jobs worldwide across all links. Link: https://lnkd.in/eKAHK7VF ⚙ Engineering and Programming This resource lists just over 1,800 jobs worldwide across all links. It also talks about interview tips and questions to practice. Link: https://lnkd.in/eYdxANFM 🕹 Quality Assurance: This resource lists over 450 QA jobs worldwide. This post also talks about the craft of QA and contains tips and interview practice. Link: https://lnkd.in/dwwVjZuc 📑 Game Production: This resource lists around 400 jobs worldwide. It also contains info about game production as a whole and GDC talks. Link: https://lnkd.in/gxDvFM-Z 📢 Marketing & Community: This resource lists around 400 jobs worldwide. It also gives an intro into game marketing and community management. Link: https://lnkd.in/e5MuViug 🎶 Audio and Sound Design: This resource lists around 190 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/eSkPSsWf 📠 Studio Support, HR, Recruitment and BizDev: This resource lists around 290 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/ePG57_7v ⚙ IT, Helpdesk and DevOps: This resource lists around 140 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/e8ZsuiZh 🎮 Game Design: This resource lists around 440 jobs worldwide. https://lnkd.in/dCv_hQXv 🥈 Second, the Ultimate list of Video Games Career Resources: This should be your one-stop shop for all information. My dear friend Amir Satvat maintains these documents, he is a legend for doing this - please check them out: https://amirsatvat.com/ 🥉 Third, do not give up. Ever. No matter how dark things may look right now, I KNOW you will get through this, you have got this! 👊 Remember you are not alone. If you need help, advice, or even an ear to listen, we're here for you. Always! ➡ A request to my community, please can I ask you to repost this post to your colleagues and friends, so that we can get as many into jobs as possible! And please comment if you or your studio are currently hiring - let's help each other! Much love ❤️ #layoffs #gamesindustry #jobsingames #keokeninteractive (source: https://lnkd.in/eWK2PgvX)

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More horrible news: Dutch Game Garden is shutting down in January 2025 after 17 years... Since its foundation in 2008, Dutch Game Garden has developed itself into a cornerstone of the Dutch games industry. The organization has played a crucial role in the growth and development of countless start-ups and established game companies. Over the years, more than 130 companies have participated in its incubation program. More than 150 companies have had an office in Dutch Game Garden’s cluster, allowing them to pursue and realize their creative ideas. Successful companies from this ecosystem include Studio Deloryan (Deloryan B.V.), Abbey Games and many more. I know we cannot provide an incubator like this, but what we can do is try and help those affected through mentorship, engagement and support: 🥇 Jobs wise, reach out to us at People Can Fly Studio, we have many roles open right now in Canada, the UK, Ireland and Europe, please check them out here: https://lnkd.in/eWpV5PbA 🥈Next, Discipline Games Jobs Resources: Over the past months I have created 9 (at time of writing) Games Jobs Resources to find jobs in a wide range of disciplines, and I would urge you to check them out, if anything just to see what would be available to you: https://lnkd.in/ePywd2kq You can find over 6,000 jobs there. 🥉 Third, the Ultimate list of Video Games Career Resources: This should be your one-stop shop for all information. My dear friend Amir Satvat maintains these documents, he is a legend for doing this - please check them out: https://amirsatvat.com/ I urge you to check out the areas in particular about support and mentoring, as these will help you no matter what industry you are hailing from or are looking into going next. 🎖 Finally, do not give up. Ever. No matter how dark things may look right now, I KNOW you will get through this, you have got this! 👊 Remember you are not alone. If you need help, advice, or even an ear to listen, we're here for you. Always! ➡ A request to my community, please can I ask you to repost this post to your colleagues and friends, so that we can get as many into jobs as possible! And please comment if you or your studio are currently hiring - let's help each other! Much love ❤️ #dutchgamegarden #shutdown

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One thing about our work at Purple Puppet BV is that we take great pride in developing our own logo, identity, and solutions. There is a fine line between copying and getting inspired. When you have nothing more to add or contribute to your inspiration, give credit where credit is due. Speaking of which, if you want to know the original, this is it, and I shared a step-by-step tutorial on how you can achieve it on your own. https://lnkd.in/eEs8HacP #3dart #rigging #techanim #characterart

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Digital Twins for Social Good: a Presentation by Nick van Apeldoorn from BUAS 🤖👯‍♂️ Yesterday, Philipp Werle welcomed us to High Tech Campus Eindhoven (HTC), at this 3EALITY event focused on innovative technologies. Who is the presenter? ✅ Nick van Apeldoorn is the digital realities program leader at academy for AI, Games & Media at Breda University of Applied Sciences (BUAS). ✅ Nick studies how digital twins (virtual simulation models made to accurately represent a real-world system/process/object etc.) help fulfill social needs such as environmentally conscious urban design - or other needs. BlueTea, The EdTech Engineers sent two members to HTC. 🔵 1) Michel van der Linden, senior Unity developer. Michel studied at BUAS, and at BlueTea, he worked on projet VIBE, where he collaborated with BUAS to implement the face detection system and connected the emotion control dashboard with the birth simulation digital human. He’s created various AR, VR and computer gameplay software. 🔵 2) 🎮👩🏻‍🏫 Anamaria Kudrna 💻🥽, the lead instructional game designer (serious game designer) at BlueTea. I come with the background in philosophy and I’m always motivated by socially beneficial initiatives. I take complex problems or educational needs and with our game development team, turn them into immersive engaging virtual learning experiences. 🏭 TECH & ECOSYSYEMS 🌱🐳☠️ 🌱 We’ve seen Nick explain fascinating fully interactive digital twins of entire ecological systems they’ve developed: a simulation that showed the connection between the living world and our technological interventions forced on it. 🌱 It was made partially with Unity game engine and partially with Unreal. 🌱 For example, you can interact with it and experience with your own eyes how many dolphins die if you place a specific type of energy producing tech in a specific place in a specific way. 🌱 It’s very useful for understanding the impact of our capitalistic profit-driven exploitative interventions on the environment - all backed up by scientific research made by teams of experts in those fields. 🌱 This kind of tool can help policy makers make better decisions which can protect the environment. 🤖 DIGITAL HUMANS & PSYHOLOGY 🧠 🤖 We’ve also seen Nick explain how digital humans can be used for various socially beneficial proposes. 🤖 They’re using metahumans developed by Unreal Engine and, for example, help people fight addictions with virtual humans in virtual bars. 🤖 They’ve created an interesting and cheeky character MAI. I was impressed with the features, values and purposes of this innovative tech! I’m also curious what other methods should be used alongside these, for social benefit. 💡 In my view, better access to good quality education with critical thinking skills development would prevent many issues we’re trying to solve. Capitalism is creating these issues and then profiting from selling solutions to problems it created. 🏫 #SeriousGames #EdTech

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Game-based learning 𝐩𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭 again: what do 𝐄𝐗𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐓𝐒 think about hydronic balancing immersive digital training? 💻🎮 Today, Ruud Dullens and I traveled from BlueTea, The EdTech Engineers to visit Vakwijs B.V. experts for another testing session. 💻 This is one of the projects I worked on (including the game design concept and game scenario design) with our team of developers. We collected a lot of great feedback from professionals who used our innovative practical virtual training made in collaboration with Marijn Zaal from Wij Techniek! 💡 💧 The subject matter experts were testing our game-based learning solution which uses personalized approach to teach the principles and procedures relevant for hydronic balancing. We didn’t leave empty-handed: 🔎 we collected observational feedback 📊 we collected learning analytics 📝 we collected quantitative feedback 🗣️ we had a discussion Some of the elements included in the immersive learning simulation: ✅ exploring and analyzing the heating system parts 🧰 ✅ switching the heating system between statically and dynamically balanced ⚙️ ✅ manipulating the entire heating system to observe its principles 💡 ✅ talking to customers with real case-scenario issues 🧍🏼‍♀️ ✅ investigating the customers’ heating system issues 🔍 ✅ fixing the heating system issues ⚒️ ✅ delivering the work to the customers 🎤 Based on the quantitative and qualitative feedback collected from our target group, we’ll make iterative improvements, to make sure the end result is suited for their needs and preferences. 📈 Music credits: Track: Warriyo - Mortals (feat. Laura Brehm) [NCS Release] Music provided by NoCopyrightSounds. Watch: https://lnkd.in/dMr5EDGH Free Download / Stream: http://ncs.io:Mortals #GameBasedLearning #SeriousGames #EdTech #Innovation #LearningAndDevelopment

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Game-based learning put to the test: what do students think about hydronic balancing immersive digital training? 💻🎮 Today, I’m accompanied by Ruud Dullens from BlueTea, The EdTech Engineers and Frank Theeuwen at CIVIL installeren - innoveren, in collaboration with Marijn Zaal from Wij Techniek. 💧 The students are testing out game-based learning solution developed for Wij Techniek which teaches them the principles and procedures relevant for hydronic balancing. 🙌🏻 They can learn by doing, through their own personal practical experience. Some of the elements included in the immersive learning simulation: ✅ exploring and analyzing the heating system parts 🧰 ✅ switching the heating system between statically and dynamically balanced ⚙️ ✅ manipulating the entire heating system to observe its principles 💡 ✅ talking to customers with real case-scenario issues 🧍🏼‍♀️ ✅ investigating the customers’ heating system issues 🔍 ✅ fixing the heating system issues ⚒️ ✅ delivering the work to the customers 🎤 Based on the quantitative and qualitative feedback collected from our target group, we’ll make iterative improvements, to make sure the end result is suited for their needs and preferences. 📈 #GameBasedLearning #SeriousGames #EdTech #Innovation #LearningAndDevelopment

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In this video record I show one of the many applications of Reward Rect Bar. The fuel bar, which includes the coloring and the arrow animation is entirelly managed by RRB. If you feel you need this solution for your projects, or even got curious about how it is made, you can find the Reward Rect Bar in Asset Store. Download link: https://lnkd.in/dtq7n6wQ #hybridcasualgames #hypercasualgames #causalgames #games #rewardrectbar #shader #material #techinicalartist #renderprogramming #GameDev #Unity3D #AwesomeMask #InverseMasking #Tutorial #GameDevelopment #ProfessionalDevelopment #DevCommunity #LearningTogether #indiedev #indiegamedev #assetstorecreator #assetstore

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Unreal Engine has very powerful material authoring tools that I used to create this river and waterfall shader for the game project at Breda University of applied sciences. See more about how I did it on my Artstation. Games | Breda University of Applied Sciences Epic Games Unreal Engine

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𝗜𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲? (in creative industries it isn't)  Last week I was invited to a panel on the future of work. It was a great opportunity to share my perspective. In conclusion: The future of work isn't simple.   Especially in creative industries like video games.  Hybrid, remote, or on-site – each has its place.  We’ve all seen the benefits of flexibility.  👉 𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁.  → Junior team members benefit from face-to-face time → Cross-team collaboration becomes problematic → Team culture suffers Short-term remote work may be as productive. But the combined output will sufffer. And the long-term team growth will suffer. In-office days are opportunities for real-time collaboration.   Innovation often sparks faster when ideas bounce freely.  ▶️ 𝘚𝘰, 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘰?  → Make office days count → Adapt flexibility to project phase → Adapt your office for the new reality → Maximize time for collaboration on-site → Design hybrid plans that work for everyone The future is adaptable – and so are we. ❤️ P.S. What's your preference? (on-site / hybrid / remote)

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My Mum and her friends always ask me what I do for work. I explain that I work in games for a Backend Game Engine. But what's a Backend Game Engine, they ask? 🤔 Our latest Pragma article explains all of this: https://lnkd.in/eZ7D2Mmj 🔎 ▶ Game development is challenging, especially for online games. While game engines have standardised many aspects of game creation, backend services remain a challenge, even more so at significant scale ▶ Pragma is the first "backend game engine," providing a flexible foundation for online game services that allows studios to customise and extend their functionality ▶ By offering pre-built solutions for common backend needs and tools for customisation, Pragma reduces development costs, speeds up feature implementation, and minimises launch day risks for game studios of all sizes. Love you, Mum.

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🎬 Behind the Art: Making of "ROBO DUDE" keyart! Discover how we blend creativity and coffee to create captivating visuals in our latest project in Essential Studio. Interested in collaborating on unique key art or dynamic animations? 🤗 📩 Reach out for projects at [email protected] 🎥 Watch the video here 👇 #RoboDude #DigitalArt #Animation #CreativeProcess #GameDev #Blender #Photoshop

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The type of legal framework Brazil has implemented will boost opportunities in game development across the entire board. In collaboration with the Dutch government the Dutch Games Association is working in the Netherlands to establish similar structures. The games industry is distinct from other forms of software development, distinct from other forms of art, distinct from other forms of entertainment media. While I aim to form and strongly maintain coalitions across software, art, and entertainment where our needs overlap, it is important that as an industry, we get to legally define ourselves as "games industry" - not just "software companies" that happen to make games.

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#retail and #creativeautomation must have #barcodes Nicola Verbeeck and I talk about how we integrated 1D and 2D barcodes into GraFx Studio.

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https://lnkd.in/eTa8i_-z Time to finally make this public, I suppose. To copypaste from the description: "I was working on a short film about Batou from Ghost in the Shell. Then Embracer group shattered the whole ass games industry and, as a result, I haven't had employment since March 2024. Needless to say, I don't have time or energy for side projects anymore. This absolutely guts me. I had excellent talent lined up, and a fantastic performer in Eric Saldanha, whose audition is heard here. When I'm back on track, so too will be this short film. But for now, it's in dev hell. Making this video public is me ripping the bandaid off." This uses an old model and rig of the character that I've since trashed, but the aesthetic is pretty much exactly what I was pursuing; an illustrative realism. PBR photoreal materials with very cheaty lighting, basically every frame should look like a late 70s movie poster. I need a job so I can keep doing cool side projects like this :p Not gonna stop knocking!

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My very first steps into VR game development! During my study at De Haagse Hogeschool / The Hague University of Applied Sciences I entered the game development minor in year 3. Here we had to create a team of 8 students that would work on a project together for the next 6 months. Those months would turn out to be one of the most valuable periods in my personal development as a game development student with a lot of different lessons. As I wanted to have a project where I could play a big role in audio and sound design, I joined a group that wanted to create a horror game. As if that wasn't hard enough on itself, we decided it should be a game that uses VR. A team without any experience in the game engine we would need to work with and only 3 of the 8 members able to code and no one experienced in 3D, we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into! Looking back at the different projects, this was the moment that teached me some of the most valuable lessons when it comes to game development. As the game producer of the group, it was a really challenging project with many ups and downs. We way over-scoped what we wanted to achieve at first and had a lot of lessons to learn as a group. I also wanted to work with a voice actor again, which added a lot of work to the already existing tasks we had. Making the game was tough. We've spend a lot of late nights to make sure everything worked, which we eventually did achieve at the very last minute. We got the full experience ready and had a full playtrough which took 40 minutes total to complete, all narrated by the voice actress Floor, who did an amazing job! The build was working pretty much as we intended with some minor bugs at the final expo. I remember at the end students from the group thanking me personally for the project and what they've learned and achieved. We came in second in the competition which was a bummer but ended up with a 9.2 as the grade and I was really proud of what we were able to achieve with such an unexperienced group. I know without this project my life would have been very different. I've learned so much in those six months of work and it propelled me forward with a lot more convidence in my skills as a developer. What I've taken with me from this period: Sometimes you just have to take a big leap and try something that seems really hard. Be a bit stubborn and you'll be surprised how far you can push yourself! Just make sure to be honest with yourself and your team and don't give up the moment problems arise.

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The impact of the Dutch Game Garden on the European game industry goes far beyond the borders of the Netherlands. It was among the first game industry-focused incubators, and for years, it inspired and set the benchmark for a number of similar initiatives and game education institutions across the continent. In many ways, its example has helped to build the foundations of local game industry ecosystems in Europe. The sad faith of the Dutch Game Garden is also a warning sign for everyone working with game industry ecosystem building in Europe. As long as we rely on public funding, there is always a risk that one day, even the most established and long-standing game industry talent-building institutions will become victims of budget cuts and changing political priorities. It is true that building a long-standing game incubator focused on early-stage first-round start-ups requires public funding in Europe, but it should be done in partnership with private funding that ensures that initiatives stay alive when the (local) government changes its priorities. The true challenge is building a model that survives the ever-changing priorities of both the public government and the private companies.

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👟 Step Into Immersion 🥽 tested XELERATE VR Platform 🙌 Imagine walking freely in a virtual world—every step, every turn perfectly mirrored in the digital realm. This is what I experienced at the XelerateVR booth during VRDays Foundation Immersive Tech Week in Rotterdam. 👟 𝗠𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻-𝗖𝗮𝗽𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗠𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 A bowl-shaped platform with 1,000 sensors tracks every step with precision, translating full-body motion into joystick inputs. It’s seamless, dynamic, and works with most VR games. 🏋️ 𝗕𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 This technology isn’t just for gamers. It offers transformative possibilities in rehabilitation, helping patients regain mobility, and training, simulating real-world tasks in controlled environments. 🎮 𝗨𝗻𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝗜𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 During testing, I embodied a warrior traversing a vast virtual steppe. The physical movement enhanced the sense of presence, turning VR into a truly active experience. 💡 𝗟𝗲𝘁’𝘀 𝗜𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗧𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 Curious about applying these technologies to your projects? Let’s explore how to make your vision a reality with immersive, sustainable solutions. FOLLOW ME Ulrich Buckenlei 💌 PM‘s are welcome 🤗 #mmersiveTech #VRGaming #XelerateVR #MetaverseSolutions #VirtualReality #RehabilitationTech #DigitalInnovation #Visoric #FutureOfTech #DigitalInnovator

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