ByteAction - Issue 130
ByteAction is a newsletter for game developers and fans
Hello, and welcome to 130th edition of ByteAction newsletter!
Last week we recorded another episode of ByteAction Podcast. I sat down with Vadym Syvolap - Game Director at Plarium to talk about game design, f2p games, Ukraine, state of the games industry and Vadym's journey in game development. You can check out the recording here:
As for what’s been happening in the games industry - Sega has sold Relic Entertainment and is planning to cut 240 positions across Sega Europe, Creative Assembly, and Sega HARDlight.
In other news, a AAA developer Smilegate Barcelona has shut down. Smilegate opened up Barcelona studio 4 years ago, but eventually decided not to continue with the project.
Lastly, Bill Roper, a seasoned industry veteran, has co-founded Lunacy Games, a new studio. While his co-founders remain undisclosed, the press release highlights their extensive experience in MMO, RPG, and FPS games.
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The Byte
The Action
Retro Byte
Studio Byte
Wildlight Entertainment is a fully funded studio, bringing together talented creators from gaming's biggest IPs like Apex Legends and Call of Duty. Driven by passion and a dedication to quality, they cultivate a supportive work environment where every voice matters. With a remote-first approach and offices in Los Angeles and Seattle, they are poised to deliver unforgettable gaming experiences
Legal Stuff
Acquisitions/Investments
Wargaming co-founder launches Mika Games, investing up to $50M in mobile games
Embracer to sell Gearbox, the developer behind Borderlands, to Take-Two
New Game Corner
Stellar Blade - April 26th, 2024
Stellar Blade, an action-adventure game in the works by Shift Up and slated for release by Sony Interactive Entertainment, is set to hit PlayStation 5 consoles on April 26, 2024.
Resource Byte
SPEEDRUN - A16Z $750k Games Fund
SPEEDRUN is A16Z GAMES' early-stage accelerator for startups at the intersection of Tech x Games.
Who’s Hiring?
UI/Gameplay Engineer - Super Evil Megacorp - Remote
Game Network Engineer - Cult of the North - Stockholm, Sweden
Level Designer - Archetype Entertainment - Austin, TX
VP, Marketing - Scopely - Barcelona, Spain
Lead Character Artist - Redhill Games - Helsinki, Finland
Technical Animator - Liquid Swords - Stockholm, Sweden
Engineering Manager - Procreate - Hobart, Tasmania
QA Manager - Playground Games - Royal Leamington Spa, UK
Senior Producer - Anchor Point Studios - Barcelona, Spain (Remote)
Lead Technical Artist - Fool’s Theory - Remote
Lead Writer - Ubisoft - Paris, France
Senior Character Artist - Skeleton Key Studio - Austin, TX
Senior VFX Artist - Bad Robot Games - US, Remote
Senior Backend Engineer - Wildlight Entertainment - Woodland Hills, CA (Remote)
Senior Gameplay Programmer - Tactical Adventures - Paris, France
Senior Publishing Producer - Build a Rocket Boy - Edinburgh, UK
Senior Producer - Sharkmob - London, UK
Senior Environment Artist - Endnight Games - Vancouver, Canada
Senior Gameplay Programmer - Heart Machine - Culver City, CA (Remote)
CMO - Tacticle Games - Copenhagen, Denmark
UI Programmer - Flix Interactive - UK, Remote
Interested in sharing your job posts here? Just click on the button below for more info and reach out to tomas@byteaction.co
Dev Talks
Interview with Swen Vincke - Larian Studios
“I think this is a frustration that developers have had forever, alright, because we've always been dependent on third parties. I mean, like, when I started out as an industry, one of the first publishers I met told me with a smile - a smirk really, "Luckily for us, this industry is driven by idealism." What he really meant is, "This is how we profit". And it's true. It's literally true. I mean, like a lot of us are idealists that like to entertain people. This is why we became developers, alright - and so it's very easy to abuse. So you see a lot of that. And so none of us want to be economy designers. We don't want our games to be milked out or concepts to be milked out. We just want to make new things, and entertain people. And so I think that's something that's shared across. Regardless of which development platform you are, I think that's something that's shared, because ultimately, you just want to entertain players..”
Swen Vincke
Events
Reboot Develop - April 22nd-24th
Reboot Develop Blue is a major gaming industry conference held annually in Dubrovnik, Croatia. It's a gathering of game developers, publishers, investors, and other professionals to network, share insights, and discuss the latest trends and innovations in gaming.