Nicole Senger’s Post

🚀 Gamers Home - #Update 007 - Elevating the Gaming Universe! 🚀 Time flies in the world of gaming, and we're on an exhilarating journey where every moment counts! 🤝 New Partnership Alert! 🌐 We are thrilled to announce a groundbreaking partnership with the International Game Developers Association (#IGDA). This collaboration marks a pivotal moment in our mission to revolutionize the gaming industry. Together with IGDA, we're committed to forging new pathways of diversity, inclusion, and innovation within the gaming community. 🌟 Successfully Navigated Pilots 🌟 We've crossed a significant milestone on our journey. The booking phase for our pilots with studios has concluded, and we extend our heartfelt thanks to all who participated and shared their invaluable feedback. Your insights have been instrumental in refining our services, ensuring we provide nothing short of excellence. 🚀 Open for Business! 🎮 Exciting news for game studios! Our flagship services, Market Research Focus Groups (MRFG) and Cultural Inclusion Focus Groups (CIFG), are now open to all studios eager to enhance their game experiences. Whether you're aiming to connect more deeply with your audience or take your game to the next level, we've got you covered. Contact us to discover how we can collaborate and empower your journey. 🗓️ Mark Your Calendars! 🗓️ Our September #CareerInsightWebinar has a special twist! It's now happening on October 4th, and we have a surprise guest in store for you. Here's a hint: the theme revolves around "#Storylines and #Narratives." 💼 Investing in Our Future 💼 The Gamers Home family is proud to announce that we have secured a lead investor for our upcoming funding round. If you're interested in joining us on this exciting venture or wish to learn more about investment opportunities, please don't hesitate to reach out. Thank you for being part of our incredible journey. Stay tuned for more thrilling updates and innovations from Gamers Home! 🎮🌟 #GamersHome #GamingCommunity #InnovationInGaming #IGDA #StudioPilots #Feedback #GameChangers #Partnership #GamingIndustry #InvestmentOpportunity #WebinarAlert #MRFG #CIFG #GameDevelopment #GamingStartup #FutureOfGaming

We at Spoilz (Hiring) are pleased to share some recent milestones that reflect our ongoing efforts and commitment to redefining the #gaming landscape. In the past few months, we've been laser-focused on enriching the experience of our game, Last Letter | آخر حرف. Thanks to a well-executed roadmap and continuous updates, we've seen some encouraging results: -🥇 Reached the #1 ranking in the word games category on both iOS and Google Play in multiple countries. - 🇺🇸 Found a place among the top #50 word games in the #US - 🌍 Appeared in the #top_free games list in both the category and overall app rankings across various countries. - 📈 Witnessed more than 15x #growth in user engagement in the past month. A big shoutout to our dedicated team! 🙌 💛 So, what's on the horizon? We're focusing on delivering even more engaging gameplay and broadening our community reach.🤝 We see these milestones as stepping stones in our journey toward innovation and inclusivity in gaming. 🌟 Ready for what's next? We're just #OneTapAway 🕹️ #SpoilzGames #innovation #creativity #startups #motivation #strategy #saudi_arabia #MENA

I will be at GDC. I am happy to meet up with friends old and new and discuss how GDC should be held in Vegas. 🤠 Other topics to chat about: • Web3 Gaming - It's just gaming. 🖖 • This Deconstructed MMO thing I'm building. ⚡ • The Thing you're building. 🚀 • AAA Premium Games & Free-to-Play, Live Service, and Mobile games are just as hard to make successful. Pivoting from one to the other isn't going to magically change your stars. I'm looking at you Warner Bros. Games. Embrace the AA wave about to crack like lightning with all these laid-off rockstars starting studios. ⭐ • Game Investors are basically bad focus groups where good and bad ideas get left on the floor, and you get a beige mush of "Me too" companies that no one gets in trouble for investing in. 🍙 *Excluding Midnight's investors of course. They're like the cool art teachers who let you use glitter. Total rockstars 🌲

This Week in Gaming: Transformations and Innovations The gaming landscape is continually evolving, and this week’s highlights from NeuraNode's Gaming News Update showcase pivotal industry movements and collaborations: 🎮 - Activision's Strategic Expansion: The unveiling of Elsewhere Entertainment marks a new chapter for Activision. Based in Warsaw, this studio is set to develop a narrative-driven AAA franchise, promising to redefine the gaming narrative with talent from iconic games like The Last of Us and The Witcher. https://loom.ly/rikTk-U 💡 - Riot Games’ Mental Health Initiative: In collaboration with Take This, Riot Games launches the Accelerate Fellowship Program aimed at addressing mental health within the gaming community and fighting toxicity in gaming spaces. https://loom.ly/GsVR_vo 🔍 - Take-Two's Transparency in Restructuring: Amidst rumors of closures, CEO Strauss Zelnick clarifies that Roll7 and Intercept Games remain operational, emphasizing the company’s commitment to efficiency and strategic focus during its restructuring phase.https://loom.ly/A6AGByw 📱 - Mobile Gaming's Ascendancy: A significant shift has occurred in gamer behavior, with nearly one-third of players now exclusively engaging in mobile gaming, reflecting a move towards more accessible and versatile gaming options. https://loom.ly/nQlc-5U These developments not only highlight the dynamic nature of the gaming industry but also the strategic pivots companies are making to adapt to new challenges and opportunities. As we monitor these changes, NeuraNode remains committed to supporting developers with innovative tools and platforms that align with these evolving needs. Share your thoughts on these developments! How do you see these changes impacting the broader tech landscape? #GamingIndustry #NeuraNode #Innovation #MobileGaming #MentalHealthAwareness #GameDevelopment

Former Call of Duty devs David Vonderhaar and Chris Cowell are partnering with NetEase Games to form a brand new first-party studio. BulletFarm plans to create a decidedly different ethos for both its game and its culture. In contrast with BulletFarm's large-scale roots, its upcoming game will give its much smaller development team the freedom to create with guardrails. Vonderhaar wanted to mimic the smaller teams that created some of Call of Duty's most innovative additions. "I think you'll get better work out of people when they have a chance to touch more of the game than just their specialized niche thing, where they have to do that same thing 1,000 times. You'll see a much more diversity and creativity from a game built this way," Vonderhaar told GamesBeat in an interview. Of course, Vonderhaar and Cowell are part of a growing number of senior designers leaving established studios to build their own. This talent exodus has hit Activision Blizzard particularly hard. Some CoD examples include: 🔴 Midnight Society 🔴 That's No Moon 🔴 Ascendant Studios Similarly, NetEase has been rapidly investing in or building studios in Western markets. Since 2022, the Chinese company has added over a dozen Western studios to its portfolio. "As developers ourselves, we intimately understand the challenges of building exceptional games. Through our support framework, our studios can focus their efforts on creative development, while entrusting partners in the NetEase network to manage larger publishing elements. This ensures our creators can remain fully immersed in their craft," said Simon Zhu in a statement. Best of luck to BulletFarm as they challenge the status quo. And for job seekers, they're hiring #gaming #gamedev #netease #gamingindustry #gamingnews #callofduty #gamesindustry #gamestudio https://lnkd.in/gfdpXh_F

Hey, everybody! Level Up! As one familiar producer told us, and his acquaintance told him - gamedev is a business for the patient people! And I totally agree with him.  Level 1.  Once I already attracted a private investor for a small project, but the investor ran out of money and stopped financing. I was practically left without money with a team of 4 people. Level 2. But I did not put my hands down and moved the office to my house. In one room we put desks and computers, in the other room I slept and rested. Sometimes we even cooked meals together for the whole team. That's how we started making hyper casual games. And did them for about two years.  At this stage, I met my future business partner. Level 3.  We started doing outsourced projects and gaining experience and expertise. We started to make together our first project in which we wanted to attract investments. But publishers and investors turned us down because they thought that a robot shooter would not appeal to anyone, and we didn't know much about analytics at that time. Level 4. In search of our niche and desire to make cool projects, we immersed ourselves in studying metrics and numbers, and now we could argue why we chose this or that genre. We compared the project to our competitors, realizing what our difference and advantage was. But so far the numbers were not up to the required numbers, we lacked quality graphics. Level 5.  And now we have improved our project visually by our own efforts and the efforts of our new 3D lead, and thanks to the great fitback from friends who tested our game, we tried to improve it.  New Lewel Unlock. Now we continue to work on the project, increasing the meta, gameplay and scaling it. But we are also on the lookout for publishers or investors to take us to the next level with a newly pumped up hero to help us climb the ranks. And personally, I think this adventure is going to be exciting. You can see our project at the link: https://lnkd.in/dYD97zri #gaming #indygamedev #games #game #conquesttale #gamedevelopment #gamedevs #mobilegames #investment #gameinvest #publisher #gamepublisher #VC

Business of games: 10 biggest funding rounds, partnerships, and trends from the last week 🕹️ Investment round-up details for July 1st week, 250 1. Capcom acquires animation firm Minimum Studios 2. Indie publisher Mystic Forge raises €2m in funding 3. Nazara eyes full acquisition of Kiddopia in $36m deal 4. Daybreak acquires struggling Palia developer Singularity 6 5. Kwalee has announced a minority investment in Devolver Digital 6. Kids veteran Rob Doherty forms social gaming consultancy Relevant Content 7. Nazara Technologies’ unit to complete the acquisition of Ultimate Teen Patti in one month 8. Bitmagic raises $4M for AI platform that generates 3D games from consumer prompts 9. Keywords Studios to sell to EQT in £24.50-per-share buyout totalling £2.1 billion (follow-up news) 10. Tower Studios' arcade-style football game series Sociable Soccer has been acquired by Sporty Group Top trending news from last week: 1. Minimum Studios becomes Capcom subsidiary 2. Skillz suing Voodoo for unlawful conduct and false advertising 3. Apple Approved Epic Games Store in EU After Rejecting It Twice 4. Apple will apply fees to advertisers who purchase ads in-app on iOS, this is for ads on FB and IG too #gamingindustry #gamedesign #mobilegames #gamedevelopment #gamedev #videogames #gaming #useracquisition #growth #UA #revenue #data #icartic #gamedeveloper #indiedev #unity3d #madewithunity #businessofgames

Breaking the Cycle: The Battle for Creativity in an Era of Sequels (Part 2) Acknowledging the business imperatives of the industry is crucial; profitability cannot be ignored. However, we must remember that the music, film, and gaming sectors play a pivotal role in shaping our cultural landscape and providing an essential escape from the mundanity of everyday life. These industries owe it to their audiences—and to the legions of creative minds within them—to foster an environment where innovation can flourish. The industry's reliance on safe bets and sequels isn't just a business model; it's a missed opportunity to lead cultural innovation and inspire new generations of gamers. However, the tides can turn. Developers and publishers, big and small, have the power to change the narrative. By allocating resources to not just blockbuster hits but also to experimental projects, the industry can cultivate a diverse ecosystem where creativity and innovation are not just welcomed but celebrated. Ultimately, the evolution of the gaming industry lies not just in the hands of developers and publishers, but in the collective will of its audience. Each choice we make, every game we purchase, and the feedback we share, shapes the market. By actively seeking out and supporting games that break the mold—those that dare to innovate in narrative, gameplay, and technology—we send a clear message about the value we place on creativity. It's a call for an industry-wide shift towards fostering originality and taking risks. This is not just about enjoying the next big game; it's about ensuring that the games of tomorrow offer new, enriching experiences that inspire and engage us all. #gamedevelopment #gamedev #gamedeveloper #indiedev #videogames #gamedesign #indiegames #gamingcommunity #layoffs #indiegamedev

I was talking to a friend over at NetEase Games and they said something exciting: "Due to publishers and AAAs investing in fewer games, anyone who can release a strong title by the end of 2024 has a good shot at money." 💰 The heresy of one smart dude does not an accurate picture of an industry make. That said, it makes a lot of intuitive sense. The amount of funding going around is on a frankly depressing trend line. Back in 2022 we invested about $14.6 billion dollars into games, and yet in 2023 we only invested $4.1 billion, a Year over Year drop of 72%. This line appears to be stabilizing, but still dropping. And as a result, it looks like we're in for a 1-2 year period of chronic under-investment. The silver lining, especially for indies, is that this means a lot of the big dogs are making far fewer games. Which means there is a lot less competition, and suddenly, a much greater consumer demand for whatever games do get released. Now, don't get lazy. Because the big companies can spin up teams REAL fast if they think there's an opportunity. This is why my friend suggested this opening is only until the end of 2024. That said, I would bet we have at least some sense of market opportunity for another year or so past that date, even if it's not as extreme. And why do indies benefit from this more than others? Because we are experts in building excellent games with no capital. Yes, it's hard to run a company with no money. But we CAN do it. Side hustles are a thing. And the market sure does seem ripe for a bunch of wonderful indie studios to win out of this period, and become immortal legends to our cause 😉 Behold, for the indie revolution cometh #indierevolution ✨ ✨ It is time. I declare 2024 the year of the indie ✨ ✨ #indiedev #indiegames #indiegamedev #indiedeveloper #indiegaming #gamedev #gamedeveloper #gamedevelopment #gamedevelopers #gameindustry #gaming #gamingindustry #videogames #gamer

I am super proud to be able to announce Season 3 of the Indie Game Academy, *Founder's Beginnings!* Every 3 months our magical online game dev school announces it's latest Season. Much like a live services game akin to Apex Legends or Deep Rock Galactic, we like to flavor what we teach each quarter. This Season, our third ever, will focus on the mounting frustration many feel for the hiring process in games. 86% of you responded that you are either actively starting your own game studio, or plan to one day. So we said "Screw it!" If the hiring market is so volatile and all this latent talent is sitting around, let's put ya'll to work! For the next three months, we'll be focusses on helping YOU start your own Indie Game Studios, or at least teach you what you need to start one in the future. ➡ Watch the full reveal with class reveals and more here: https://lnkd.in/e2hvnFzp 🎮 Join the Discord for classes and announcements: https://lnkd.in/ej7AQDJR Let us know in the comments what you'd like us to cover this season, and repost if you're pumped! 🚀 #gamedev #gamedevelopment #gamedeveloper #founder #startup #indiestudio #gamestudio #businessfounders #indiegames #indie #indiedev #indiegamedev #gameindustry