Taras Koshelev

Serbian Games Association has released a new report for 2023. What's particularly pleasing is that the industry is growing! Here are some highlights: - Total revenue exceeds 175 million euros; 150 in 2022 - The number of employees has doubled - from 1700 to 3400 - One of the reasons for the increase in the number of employees is a large number of gaming professionals and their families from Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus moved to Serbia last year - The number of studios, however, has not increased significantly - from 140 in 2022 to 150 in 2023 Link to the full report in the comments. #SGA #GameDevIndustry #Games #Gaming #GamesReport

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Two of the biggest competitors for Coin Master and Monopoly Go will be operated by Playtika 🎲 1️⃣ One year ago, in Sep’23, Playtika acquired InnPlay, the developer behind the casual casino game Animals & Coins, for $300m. 2️⃣ Last week, Playtika announced a $2B acquisition of SuperPlay, the developer of Dice Dreams — the third-best casual casino game. This means Playtika will own 2 of the Top-4 games in the Casual Casino genre! Both deals follow Playtika’s strategy of buying successful studios and fueling their portfolio with resources and expertise to reach new heights. 🚀 But does it work? It actually does! Animals & Coins saw its monthly IAP revenue grow by 65% after a year under Playtika’s umbrella, according to AppMagic. Yeah, it’s hardly can be seen on the chart, but it is there! 😅 Do you think Dice Dreams will see similar growth to Animals & Coins? 🎲 We never know. But what we do know are the key facts and details of the deal! You can learn them too from the new piece by InvestGame. Link is in the comments 👇

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Are you looking for a job with relocation? This one mistake can cost an interview: You forgot to mention in the CV that you are open to relocation. Let me tell you why this is important. Let's say there's a process for a Unity Developer in Berlin. The ad clearly states that it's Berlin, and the work is hybrid. You apply, and there's info you're from another country. There's no information that you are ready to relocate. And there are 20-30 other applicants. (If we're talking small numbers). Possible outcomes: 1) The recruiter contacts you to ask if you want to relocate. If your profile seems like a match, it's likely to happen. If it's 50/50 and they have other people in the pipeline, they might move on to the other ones first, find someone local or with proper info, and simply not return. 2) The recruiter assumes you haven't read the ad and just auto-rejects. Neither is great for you, honestly. So, just be precise. If you're open to relocation, mention it in the CV. As always - don't leave room for assumption. You got this 💪

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✨𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗲 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴✨ Andrii Bohatyi and I have known each other for 8 years. I hired him at a mobile gaming company back in 2016, when we were just starting our game development careers. We worked remotely at the same company, long before it became common. Over the years, we moved to different companies but stayed in touch. Only this year, while working together at Burny Games did I realize we had never actually met in person. A few weeks ago, we finally broke that online-only connection and met face-to-face. Surprisingly, it wasn’t awkward at all. Our remote friendship was so solid that meeting in person felt completely natural. 📌 And since I have your attention, I’d like to mention that I’m hiring a 𝗦𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗿 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗔𝗰𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿 again! ✔️ If you’re interested in joining our remote marketing team, send me a message! ✔️ You can also recommend a friend—we have an external referral program. 👉🏻 We can schedule a quick video-chat, and I’ll tell you more about our journey at Burny Games. #gamesindustry #useracquisition

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Alright, another gaming industry report for the first half of 2024 has been recently published. Thanks, Konvoy. In 2024, the market is expected to reach 💲 1️⃣ 8️⃣ 9️⃣ billion, which is heftier than the COVID years. Moreover, with an annual increase of 💲 7️⃣ - 8️⃣ billion in revenue, this forecast looks pretty optimistic. 🔍 As a gaming startup, we were particularly interested in the investment landscape. Private market funding in gaming YTD has already surpassed that of all of 2023, which is encouraging. 💳 Early-stage funding is doing well, but late-stage funding is lagging. This is understandable. Those who can navigate this stage and gain investor trust through an ambitious product, promising metrics, or both will find it relatively easy to secure late-stage investments due to the abundant growth capital available. 💹 Don't fall into momentary pessimism over the fewer M&A deals. With so much cash on hand among strategists, this is clearly a temporary phenomenon. There's a great opportunity for startups aiming for late/growth stage in the next year or two. Public gaming companies hold 💲 3️⃣3️⃣ billion in cash and equivalents, so, as the report states: "a healthy M&A environment." Additionally, YouTube and LinkedIn introducing game strategy means the trend towards cross-platform is continuing, and games should not only launch as standalone apps. In summary, with the hope of no new geopolitical shocks and easing global tensions, the future of the gaming industry looks optimistic. For now, we give ourselves at Made on Earth Games a pat on the back for deciding to go cross-platform and build our own IP with a standout product for a wide audience. The results will show whether this praise was well-deserved. Link to the full report is in the first comment #vc #venture #capital #startup #gaming #game #developer #crossplatform #growth #merge #strategy #nextgen #report

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✨𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐂𝐕 𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐭 *𝐥𝐚𝐲* 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧! ✨ Since we recovered from the Game Industry Conference, it’s time to bring the final episode of the series! We’ve covered all the essential CV sections, but what about the overall layout? Should you go for a specific style or keep it minimal? Are there any golden rules that apply to all CVs? 🥇 Well, the answer is … IT DEPENDS. While there are no strict rules, there are myths around that worth debunking 🤔 📃 Forget the one-page rule It’s a myth that is still alive among people. Just imagine being an expert in your field and having some non-skippers in your experience, but you have to cram it into only one page. You shrink fonts and sections just to fit that one page, making your CV unreadable and unappealing.   It’s understandable that when you gain experience and skills, but also do extra stuff related to the industry, your CV will lengthen. It’s totally ok! However, remember that you should verify if the content put in your resume is still relevant. That matter was a part of my previous post regarding the experience section. 🖼️ What about the aesthetic? Honestly? It’s not as important as you may think. Many people, even in creative jobs, are using their LinkedIn profile in a .pdf file. As you know, they're quite minimalistic and may not fit the ones seen online, BUT they win with the readability and clearness. If you want to add your own flair to it, it’s good to look at the structure of what LinkedIn generates - it’s a good starting point! Sure, a well-designed resume can catch an eye, but don’t do too much - CVs with many colors and images can be unreadable and distract from the whole goal of the CV, which is to be 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞. That can especially occur when you use striking colors or rich graphics - you can go overboard with the amount of extra stuff and, at the end, get the worse result. The safest bet is to do something clean and readable, with some air on pages and a few colorful accents 🎨 📏Does section order matter? CV is your card, so benefit from that - even with the layout! Generally, it’s good to showcase the most important things first, like a brief intro or the experience. However, it's different when you are changing industries. Then, besides the introduction, it’s good to show your education, skills and maybe showcase a valued certificate in your field. 📚Don’t forget the GDPR clause! If you’re applying to a EU-based company, put the GDPR clause at the end of the CV. You give consent to processing the data and then the recruiter is allowed to message you if you shared your resume online. As you see, the layout can be a bit tricky, but I hope that with these general guidelines, it becomes less stressful! 🍀 If you're interested in our previous parts of the series, check out Kamil Nowakowski, Aleksandra Kuchcińska, Ewa Tarkowska, Sonia Urbaniak and Paweł Kamiński for more! #11bitstudios #LifeAt11bit #careers #CVtips #gamedev

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The best thing about Burny Games among an endless list of advantages – is its mature, conscious, and professional team. I've said this phrase myself and heard it from every employee of any department – every month of working together, we get better. I'm genuinely happy to have the opportunity to work with such strong personalities and experts. Read Andriy's article, and you'll see it for yourself. It’s great to watch him come up with clever solutions when others might give up. #burnygames #gamesindustry #gamedevelopment

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#WodoCommunityTalks series continues with our talented #gamedev Helen Şevval Gençay from our gaming team! 🎮🚀 💬 We had a pleasant conversation about #WodoGaming's game development process, #playtoearn model, Wodo Game Hub and how blockchain technology is integrated into our ecosystem. Don't miss out! 💜 #WodoNetwork #Web3 #gaming #gamedesign #BlockchainGaming

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I can count my interactions with cool Romanian people working in Game Dev on one hand. And I don't even need all the fingers. It was surprising how people from many other countries would be open to sit down with me and chat about their disciplines. And essentially teach me a thing or two about the gaming industry. It is humbling to talk to CEOs, VPs, Directors etc. etc. from these countries and see how much they're willing to help 🙏 Bear in mind, I didn't ask any of these folks for a job. My only asks come down to: "Hey. This is who I am. These are the specifics I wanna learn about. Could you help me understand things better?" While my experiences with strangers were stellar. My experience with most Romanian folks comes down to: - Being ghosted after they would post and ask people to reach out for more info - Being ghosted after someone would introduce me to them - Being ghosted after they mentioned they'd help out - Receiving cold, corporate answers meant to drive me away As everything happening in life is meant to guide us. I take this as my "Maybe don't search here" sign. There are a few exceptions to this rule - you know very well who you are, cool people. But except those, I'll be searching for advice from folks outside our country's borders from now onwards. They seem to be more down to earth 🙏

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Alexandra Trifonova from Hitapps tips on finding a new monetization partner "Reputation and Reliability: Research the partner’s market reputation, stability, and reliability. Look at reviews, ask for references, and consider their industry presence. - Scalability: Determine whether a potential partner can scale operations to meet growing demands. This is crucial for expanding projects or entering new markets."

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Remote Work is here to stay in the games industry, and here is how to make it work for you! As the CEO and co-founder of Simply Sweet Games, having a remote team allows me to live out my dream of residing in a small town outside the city and spending time in my garden. I also cherish my regular trips to Vancouver to see my team and connect in person with colleagues, friends, and family. A remote work model offers significant benefits to everyone on the team, allowing us to schedule our work around our personal lives much more flexibly than if we worked full-time in an office. This is important to us at SSG because we care deeply about life balance. As a business, we save significant money on location costs by not having a permanent physical location, and our team also benefits from reduced commuting costs and the gift of more time for what matters most to them. But let’s be real: working remotely has its drawbacks and challenges. Thoughtful and effective communication is critical to our efficiency and overall success, and we need to trust each other to deliver. It also requires having clearly defined processes for how the work is done and understanding ‘what good looks like’. Examples include sending agendas in advance of meetings, defining performance metrics and KPIs, and clarifying how decisions are made. Building trust and establishing how the work will get done with a remote team takes time. Whenever possible, provide remote teams with regular opportunities to meet in person for shared experiences beyond Zoom. Each team needs to find its own way to establish the best working methods – one size does not fit all! Take time to learn about the cultural diversity of your team and explore together how to best support each other’s ability to thrive and deliver their best. Here are a couple of articles I wrote previously on related topics: Team Building with Remote Teams https://lnkd.in/g3Rj2qpz Best practices to work effectively with distributed teams - culture matters! https://lnkd.in/gR6g63HP And now, it's time to plan my upcoming trip to Vancouver for some team bonding… 😊 😉 #remotework #remoteworklife #workfromanywhere #futureofwork #gameindustry #gamedevelopment #lifebalance #remoteteam #teambuilding #companyculture #remoteworktips #ceothoughts #startuplife #ssg #simplysweetgames #peopleingames #womeninleadership

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Mobile gaming giant Playtika has acquired SuperPlay, a leading mobile game developer. The deal, valued at $700 million with potential for additional payments, aims to strengthen Playtika's position in the mobile gaming market. Key Points: ⭐ Strategic Acquisition: Playtika views SuperPlay as a valuable addition to its portfolio, offering opportunities for growth and innovation. ⭐ Strong Partnership: Almog and Netzer, founders of SuperPlay, expressed enthusiasm for the acquisition and the potential for collaboration with Playtika. ⭐ Growth Potential: SuperPlay's existing games, Dice Dreams and Domino Dreams, have demonstrated strong user engagement, and the company has additional projects in development. This acquisition marks a significant step for Playtika as they continue to expand their reach and deliver exceptional gaming experiences to players worldwide. (source: https://lnkd.in/esbkzdpz)

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Updated 11/10/24: 1,039 New Games Jobs at 250+ Companies Category #3, Resource #11 at amirsatvat.com https://lnkd.in/d6x5NHMZ Looking for new opportunities in games? Please check out Resource #11 - the most robust new games roles resource out there! Combining it with Resource #10 (Games Jobs Workbook - our long-form flagship resource updated every 1-2 months) offers the most comprehensive view of the games job market worldwide. It's not just about the total aggregate numbers - our data is the cleanest! I run a 9-step process to keep everything clean, accurate, and automated: When the role was posted How it categorizes across our 20 standard community functional groups Dedupe for the same roles in multiple locations Clean out miscategorized roles Tell you where the role is Tell you if it's remote or not - for real Tell you if it is a reposted role or not with conditional formatting - for real Give you a direct link to apply Explore more and dive into your next big opportunity! Always free and without ulterior motives, for gamers!

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My next stop is Barcelona, ¡Hola, España! Let's meet and discuss cooperation, also this time I'm going to take a part at a panel discussion on AI and how it could help Gaming industry to prosper and develop. Let's talk on future horizons of AI tools 😉 #mobilegames #gamedev #gaming #gamedevelopment #ai

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🎮 The Uncertain Future of Live-Service Games? 🎮 Recent surveys among 600 developers have revealed significant doubts about the sustainability of live-service games, with 70% expressing uncertainty. Concerns center around the monetization methods, particularly with frequent updates and in-app purchases. Despite the prominence of live-service games, only 35% of developers consider their latest release as such, indicating a disconnect in perception. Key worries include player disinterest (63%) and losing player bases to competitors (62%), raising questions about long-term viability. In response, developers are considering a shift back to traditional monetization models like paid DLC and upfront payments for future releases. In essence, while live-service games dominate the industry, doubts persist about their lasting impact and sustainability. 🎮✨ What are your thoughts on the future of live-service games in light of developers' uncertainty? https://lnkd.in/efbnAkcd

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Sad news this evening with Gameloft announcing that their studio in Cluj, Romania has been closed. To those impacted by this closure, 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 1,300 jobs worldwide across all links. Link: https://lnkd.in/eu2bjadW ⚙ Engineering and Programming This resource lists just over 1,700 jobs worldwide across all links. Link: https://lnkd.in/etPj22BE 🕹 Quality Assurance This resource lists over 440 QA jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/dkiEy8da 📑 Game Production This resource lists around 400 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/d9qfQ5tg 📢 Marketing & Community This resource lists around 380 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/dc-PVb3h 🎶 Audio and Sound Design This resource lists around 180 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/dU8t6Esq 📠 Studio Support, HR, Recruitment and BizDev This resource lists around 300 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/dMdWv4xN ⚙ IT This resource lists around 100 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/df7d-KkR 🎮 Game Design This resource lists around 600 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/d2kKaw95 🥈 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, If you have worked in publishing, please message me. I am looking for quite a few roles right now! ⬅ 🎖 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 ❤️ #layoffs #gamesindustry #jobsingames #gameloft #cluj

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On #Vgmag, our online games magazine, you can find "V", our new monthly magazine about games and the games industry. Done by Idra Editing, and published by VIGAMUS Group, V tries to explore a new and modern take on the field, accepting the challenge of following an ever-changing landscape like the one we see in the global games industry. Our first cover story, an article that I've chosen to write, is about the industry crisis, with some interviews with industry veterans about it. The magazine is in Italian, but every article is uploaded on Vgmag as a common online piece, so it's not hard to translate it. Thanks a lot for your attention, and enjoy V. Every feedback is welcome! 💙 Read the magazine for free here: https://www.vgmag.it/ #vmensile #Gamepro #vigamus #vigamusfamily #gamejournalism #riviste #criticavideoludica #stampaspecializzata #idraediting

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I really wish everyone analyzed online poker properly. What happens in a typical gambling operator’s office when it’s time to analyze reports? Let’s say it’s an operator that has all the main verticals. Someone at the top opens a report, sees that online poker only accounts for 3% of the revenue structure, closes the report, and decides to further cut expenses for online poker. How does middle management react to this? Pretty much the same. Because numbers are stubborn and straightforward, they’re hard to argue with. If you see 3%, it’s tough to resist the urge to stop developing that direction. How does junior management feel about it? Under pressure from upper management and lacking a deep understanding of online poker, junior management also picks up on this negative trend and treats online poker with indifference. But if the company properly analyzed this vertical, things could change. Online poker isn’t just 3% of your company’s revenue structure. Yes, it’s not a major revenue driver, but it’s definitely a system builder. When a casino manager opens yesterday’s report, they see a new player who brought the company thousands of euros in revenue. The casino manager immediately feels proud, thinking how great it is that they made money for the company. But no one bothers to figure out where this player came from. I assure you, a significant number of new players in other verticals come precisely because of poker. A player might have been drawn to the platform because of an interest in online poker. They could have registered for a long tournament and opened a few casino games on the side to make the experience more enjoyable. And they might only open casino games while they’re also playing online poker. So, who’s the real hero here? Who actually brought the player in? If that player made a big deposit thanks to their interest in online poker and part of that deposit ended up in another vertical, in my view, that’s the credit of online poker. If we accurately identify the product preference of players and know the triggers that lead them to other product verticals, we’ll start seeing online poker in a completely different light. At least 50% of poker players venture into casinos and slots, but their product preference remains poker. And they come to the platform thanks to online poker events. So, poker is bringing you far more than just 3% — but indirectly. You might argue that this works the other way too, with someone coming for the casino and then transitioning to poker. Sure, it can happen, but you shouldn’t allow that. Effective, high-margin migration should go from poker to casino and sports, not the other way around. Because it takes 5 seconds to earn €1,000 in a casino, but it takes a year to earn €1,000 in online poker. Let’s keep fighting for online poker and not let the other verticals completely absorb it. I’ve got nothing against other verticals, I just consider myself an ambassador and defender of online poker. Thanks.

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Get started with our Preparatory Course – set up your game portfolio! Ready to turn your passion for games into a career? Our Preparatory Course gives you the tools to apply to top international gamedev schools. Whether you're just starting or looking to level up your skills, we’ll help you build a portfolio you’ll be proud of! 💻 Week 1 - Master Blender Dive into 3D modeling with Blender. Learn the interface, best practices, and create a prop ready for your favorite game engine! Perfect for beginners or those looking to refine their skills. 🌟 Week 2 - Get Started with Unreal Engine 5 Discover Unreal Engine 5’s powerful tools for stunning game environments and interactive experiences, all without writing a line of code! Visual scripting and real-time rendering made simple. 🎮 Week 3 - Create in Unity Begin your journey in game development with Unity. Learn essential tools, C# scripting, and build your project base, all while receiving feedback from our mentors. The next course starts on November 18th – learn more about the course and how to apply here: 👉 https://lnkd.in/dWc-Fc34 Take your first step towards a thriving career in gaming! #gamedev #games #preparatorycourse #unrealengine #blender #unity

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