Jani Savolainen

Thank you to Dave Bradley for moderating such a great panel at PGC Helsinki! Here are some key points I touched on during the discussion: - AI's Expanding Role: No area in game development (marketing, art, development, analytics, QA, liveops, customer support...) will be untouched by AI's evolution over the next few years. - AI as an Aid, Not a Replacement: While AI will transform many processes, it will not replace the need for skilled professionals. For instance, a great artist will create even better work with AI than a less experienced artist. - A New Tool for Creators: AI is often just the new tool—similar to when Photoshop first came on the scene. - AI and Jobs: We often hear concerns about AI replacing jobs, but it’s more likely that someone proficient with AI will replace someone who isn't. In certain cases, AI will help current size teams accomplish more and with better quality, ultimately driving business growth. - AI and Team Dynamics: Since AI can be a polarizing topic, it’s important to discuss a job candidate's perspective on AI during the hiring process to ensure aligned expectations. #AIinGames #PGCHelsinki

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So here at LKHE we make games for gamers, and we support our devs fully. We are also about teaching and innovation, and will be opensourcing our games eventually, as well as the behind the scenes. This also means we don’t hide our code in a vault. It insures you guys get to bring your cool ideas to life, and it makes sure we’re always ready to take that extra step further into innovation. I noticed a lot of people are looking for this, and there isnt really a source out there that shows you how to do it. SOOOOoooo here it is (a Sin City Filter) for UE5. You can also use this for any post process, and bring an object, or character out and separate it from the post processing! Give us that Like and subscribe on the channel, and stay tuned. Out Pitch Demo is almost done for Project Kianna, and we'll be pumping out content via Discord, Facebook, LinkdIn, Twitter, Instagram, Tiktok and have our own fully operational Website! Once were up on social media, we will be releasing the official "Prototype: Kianna" which is the free (player built demo) where your input matters on how we proceed with our game! it will have 6 upgrades, based on player input, and will slowly uncover the origin story of Kianna. but for now, check it out my dudes https://lnkd.in/gPSUfjkh

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Game Industry Ecosystem ♻️ Yesterday, during dinner with three remarkable individuals from the Swedish game industry in Stockholm, we sparked a discussion about the current challenges in game industry education. We talked about how there are currently too many educational programs, and that many game industry teachers end up getting jobs themselves instead of helping students secure employment, leaving their teaching roles. Additionally, we highlighted the significant gap in the ecosystem—soon, we'll have an influx of newly graduated students who lack the necessary experience to be fully prepared and responsible candidates for companies. This is where organizations like Spelkollektivet and initiatives similar to game jams, summer game camps play a crucial role. They function like boot camps, where students can acquire practical skills necessary to become game developers, regardless of the category. I believe we will soon need more places like Spelkollektivet, where students can learn teamwork, hone their skills, and work on several actual projects. These experiences will help them build real portfolios and sharpen their raw talents. Moreover, such environments enable students to form valuable relationships, potentially leading to the creation of their own companies/startups/consult and freelance. Here are some suggested solutions to help solve this issue: 1. Enhanced internships and apprenticeships 2. Project-based learning 3. Industry-driven curriculum 4. Boot camps and workshops 5. Portfolio development 6. Networking opportunities 7. Career services 8. Soft skills training 9. Continuous learning 10. Entrepreneurial support #gameindustrysweden #gameindustry #gamedev #gameindustryeducation #gameindustrycommunity #futuregames

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Interesting report from VG Insights giving some hard numbers on the extra opportunity for building and growing game IPs through other types of media, be they TV, movies, books and more. Too often, game companies are only looking at the direct business opportunities of transmedia projects to determine whether they want to engage into it or not, but the real opportunity is indirect, it is through the engagement of new and existing players, and extra sales of existing games, even with very little is done on older titles. We've seen this on The Witcher, on The Last of Us, now on Fallout, and many more.

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Adding a few more points: 1. The core goal of cross-platform from game apps to H5 mini-games is to reduce UA (User Acquisition) costs. In the past two years, Tencent’s H5 mini-games have brought significant benefits by lowering UA costs, while user payment and retention rates are not worse than those of client-based games. (For Mini Games on iOS, Tencent won’t charge developers; for Android, they charge 40% of revenue, rebate 10% for UA, so it’s a 30% cut of the revenue goes to Tencent, which is lower than Huawei, Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo’s 50% cut - pathetic right? lol) 2. From a cross-PC and mobile perspective, directing users to make purchases on PC is also aimed at increasing profits by secretly pocketing the 30% share that would otherwise go to Apple and Google. (PayPal only charges up to around 5%, which is significantly less than 30%) 3. The strategy of cross-platform development for consoles, PC, and mobile, combined with global multi-language and cross-platform simultaneous releases, aims to outcompete and bankrupt rivals who try to follow suit. (It’s a trap, but some CEOs love to be “brain washed”. They are fascinated by this global multiplatforms multi-languange regions launch thing, aiming 1 month ROI positive goal. (Copying Genshin Impact) Good luck!!

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Engaging with your community in between conferences is just as crucial as the event itself! Maintaining that connection after the conference can sometimes be challenging, but it is essential for the lasting success of your events. So how do we ensure that the connection remains intact even during the non-conference period? We at NBX keep our community on their toes by continuously surprising them with tweaks and new ideas for upcoming events. The goal is to spark curiosity and anticipation for what will come next. Furthermore, we value networking and inclusivity immensely. We design our conferences and telegram channels in such a way that conversations and networking become inevitable. It's almost impossible not to engage, and this has been creating a unique bond within our community. We also have a dedicated community for NBX women, known as women in Web3. Our aim is to ensure that every single member of our community feels valued, heard, and involved. 🙌 Remember, when your next conference rolls around, your loyal community members are the ones who will be there first in line to support you. They are the reason for repetitive success. 💪 Building a community isn't easy, but it's worth the effort.

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In my recent post, I reflected on how turbulence in the gaming industry impacts company culture and leadership. Conversations with insightful peers like Heidi Krohns-Välimäki and Kim Kupiainen highlighted just how tough things are for leaders right now. Here are some key challenges they face right now: 😶‍🌫️ They face the same uncertainty about their future as everyone else. 🎭 They need to project stability while staying authentic. ⚖️ Some must make difficult decisions that directly impact their teams. 🛠️ Some have no control over decisions but are responsible for implementing them. Each of these challenges demands resilience, emotional intelligence, and self-awareness—skills many leaders are learning in real-time, often without formal guidance. Leadership in times like these is less about having all the answers and more about staying open, adaptable, and willing to learn as you go. It’s not just about navigating these uncertain times personally, but fostering trust and connection within their teams as well. But staying open and adaptable is easier said than done, when you’re worried about the future of yourself and your team. I’ve been fortunate to learn from programs and efforts like Games Leadership Network, Leadership Day by IGDA Finland, and Rise and Play which are doing incredible work to prepare leaders for challenges like these. In case you’re unfamiliar with them, I fully recommend checking them out. What other resources or communities have you found helpful for leadership development in gaming—or beyond? I’d love to hear your recommendations! #leadership #gamedev #resilience #leadershipdevelopment 

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I more or less started this series of posts with what I called Dansky's First Rule of Game Writing, namely, that words are always the cheapest fix until suddenly they are the most expensive. That line got a lot of rueful laughter and a lot of agreement, but today I want to dive a little deeper into it and talk about what it means. First of all, I absolutely believe this is true. When something gets cut or changed or added, it is much easier and faster to add, edit, or cut dialog around it, or rewrite backstory (assuming it hasn't already been put in a player-facing format) than it is to change a character model or a map or an animation, at least early in the project. Narrative folks should understand this and be flexible, because it comes with the territory and pushing back against a solution that saves time and money is not a good look. But. Too often this gets taken to extremes. When narrative is constantly called on to paper over the cracks caused by others' decisions, certain things happen. One is that as a solution, it is easy to overuse. Yes, it may be less work for narrative than for other teams, but it's still work, and it still involves throwing out work that has been already done. That comes with multiple costs, not the least of which is a morale hit. Constantly asking one team to be the only ones who bend can feel a little like they're being picked on, or worse, taken for granted. And that's a great way to demotivate people. Because with that comes an inevitable devaluing of narrative work. I've heard "It's just words" too many times in my career. Nobody says "It's just pixels" or "It's just lines of code" to other departments. The assumption that rewrites are a cheap and easy fix is incorrect; it is cheap, not easy. It takes craft and skill to seamlessly close the gap in a narrative when an entire level gets cut. It takes craft and skill to turn around a rewrite immediately because a recording session is coming up and another department failed to read a character design doc so the character details have to change. And on it goes, and on and on. The other half of the statement is that words suddenly get expensive, which is also true. Once you record dialog, once you put stuff into localization, all of a sudden changing those words gets pricey. Want to make a tweak to a level that contradicts a line that's already been recorded? That means hiring back the actor, plus the studio, plus the director. plus plus plus. And while pickup sessions are a thing, there is not infinite time or money to keep going back to the well every time someone wants to fiddle with something that was supposed to be nailed down for script lock. "It's just words" isn't true any more at this point, and other departments need to be cognizant of upcoming recording session dates and script deadlines in order take their requests timely. Otherwise, everyone's going to be unhappy.

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If you need to reclaim performance for other critical UE5 tasks, look into Havok Physics as a drop-in replacement for Chaos. Reach out for more info on how to start a no-obligation evaluation.

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🚀 A new monetization method for mobile? 🤞 We all know that the main pillars of mobile monetization methods are IAPs, Subscriptions, Ads, and Offerwalls. The issue is that IAPs and subscriptions are difficult to master, and Offerwalls and ads require many users to engage heavily with ads. BrightSDK is a new method to monetize your users via their bandwidth. ⚙️ How does it work? Bright SDK works with the largest e-commerce, travel, and social companies in the world to help them make decisions about products and pricing by analyzing Public Web Data. Turns out that large companies are willing to pay to know for example the average review score of a product in different geos and how an airline ticket between London and New York is priced in different geos. To do this at a large scale you need crawlers to get the data that the companies need. But as the web is built for people most of these programs are blocked. By using some of your users' bandwidth Bright SDK can get the data. 👏 How does it look in an app or game? Users can’t share their bandwidth without giving consent on iOS or Android to stay compliant—but incentivizing users to opt in is fair game. In Outlets Rush by Supercent, for example, players see a tempting pile of gems (premium currency) on the floor, which they receive if they agree to share a bit of their phone’s bandwidth while playing. Other approaches include offering fewer ads to users who opt-in or gifting a bundle of “skip” tickets as a reward for their consent. 💸 What’s the revenue potential? As Bright SDK is only active while users are playing a game thus earning potential depends on your session lengths, sessions per day, and the location of your users. If we take an app that has 50k DAU with 40% in the USA and 30% in T1 geos and around 10-minute session lengths per day this app would earn about $720/day or $21,600/month. 🧨 Keen to learn more about this new monetization method tune in to my conversation with Ofir Meir on two & a half gamers. 🎥 Youtube: https://lnkd.in/eZyaQMC3  ✉️ Ad Monetization Newsletter: https://lnkd.in/eRWRFiGf #MobileMonetization #BrightSDK #AdMonetization #MobileGames #growth #GameDev #RevenueGrowth #MobileGaming #AppGrowth Matej 🦩Jakub #monetization #mobilegames #mobileapps #new

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🎉 Exciting news from Ruckus Games! Transcend is thrilled to announce that our portfolio company, Ruckus Games, has successfully raised a $19M Series A round, led by KRAFTON, with strong support from BITKRAFT Ventures, Hypergryph, and Transcend. This is a remarkable achievement in today’s funding climate and a testament to the visionary team at Ruckus Games, who are redefining the multiplayer gaming experience with their debut title. 🚀 Just over a year ago, Transcend led a $5.5M Seed round to invest in Ruckus Games' ambitious vision. Today, we are incredibly proud to continue our partnership with the exceptional Ruckus team—Paul Sage, Scott Kester, Carl Shedd, Kevin Penrod, Keith Schuler, Christofer Strasz, Jesse McIntyre, Alexandra Takei, Devann McCarthy to name just a few—as they build a game that is set to disrupt the multiplayer landscape with its unique blend of fast-paced action, deep RPG elements, and a whole lot of "stupid weapons" (in the best way possible). 🔫 The newly expanded squad includes: - Hyeri Maria Park, Vice President, Head of Corporate Development and Mike Hong 🎮 🔜 G-Star, Director of Corporate Development at KRAFTON Inc. - Jasper Brand, Partner at BITKRAFT Ventures - Clare Yang, Head of Investments at HYPERGRYPH - Ed Fries, General Partner at 1Up Ventures - Andrew Sheppard, General Partner and Lirui Ding🔜 G-STAR Ding, Principal at Transcend. The momentum behind Ruckus Games is undeniable, and we couldn't be more excited to see how they’ll craft their way to the top of the looter shooter genre. For more color on that, please follow along in the comments. ➤ VentureBeat: https://lnkd.in/dvhDM3qK ➤ GamesIndustry.Biz: https://lnkd.in/dxERRMWK ➤ PC Gamer: https://lnkd.in/dKAFtZ9J ➤ Mobidictum: https://lnkd.in/d36NKJAB ➤ Massively OP: https://lnkd.in/dXNEKSBH ➤ Gematsu: https://lnkd.in/dnbQuQzX ➤ PC Games N: https://lnkd.in/dYuKwSgk ➤ PSX Brazil: https://lnkd.in/dW9Mn5PJ ➤ La Pause Geek: https://lnkd.in/dxj22Db2 ➤ Gamereactor: https://lnkd.in/deFYN7TK ➤ Video Games Chronicle: https://lnkd.in/dBwuUa4F ➤ WCCF Tech: https://lnkd.in/dV7z5bd6

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🎮🔍The gaming industry needs generalists and specialists. How should this be considered in games education? 🎙️ Tune in to the second episode of the DGC podcast, where Teemu Vilén from Makea Games and Jere Lamberg from JAMK University of Applied Sciences join Expa's chairperson, Valtteri Lahti, to explore the balance between generalists and specialists in game development education. 🔊 Listen to the episode here: https://lnkd.in/dhFBDMGQ 🎮 This podcast is proudly presented by Peliosuuskunta Expa (Expa Game Business Co-operative) Expa and Jamk. Join the conversation and gain insights into the evolving landscape of games education!

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I definitely didn’t plan for this… The realities of game development in Finland 🥸 The local game dev market here isn’t that big. Sure, giants like Supercell, Remedy or Rovio are from Finland, but beyond that, the industry is small. You keep running into the same people at networking events hosted by different companies. While some studios earn, others either struggle to survive or are just trying to make it through. Our company is no exception. 9 were let go, and 16 were put on furlough. A furlough is basically a kind of “non-firing” where you’re technically still employed (your contract remains active), but you’re not getting paid. It’s what companies do when they run out of money but still want to keep going somehow. Essentially, it’s an unpaid leave that often ends in full termination. In my 3.5 years at Redhill Games, I’ve experienced a lot. Besides constant growth on a rollercoaster, strategic planning and producing art, I worked on co-development projects with Blizzard - stuff we weren’t even allowed to talk about! Then there’s the marketing, where we had to sell “something” without even knowing what it was to attract candidates to join us. How about that? I’m grateful for everything I’ve learned at Redhill and the amazing team I worked with. I firmly believe that a company’s problems shouldn’t become your personal problems. My furlough started yesterday, but I don’t plan to spend this time searching for myself or discovering new meanings in life. After all the ups and downs of the game dev world, I’ve grown used to change. In my life changes happen every two years - it seems this is the way! Our new reality. Consistency is my passion. So perhaps my passion is constant change! I’m excited to see what new opportunities this passion for change will bring. By the way, what’s your passion? #lookingforwork #writingposts

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The games industry is undergoing an unprecedented transformation today. With news of layoffs and team restructuring dominating our channels almost every other day, the question I often get - 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠? The normalization of unprecedented gains during COVID, overestimated future demand, inflation, challenges in user acquisition post-IDFA/privacy changes, an overcrowded market, rising costs, and the complexity of game production and live services are all contributing factors. Additionally, Gen AI forces everyone to rethink production to stay competitive. 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐋𝐚𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 Over the years, the risk-to-reward ratio for new game launches has been shifting unfavorably. Increasing costs, red ocean markets, and the complexity of live services make capturing, engaging, and retaining players to achieve profitable outcomes incredibly challenging. Efficiently translating game ideas/IPs into successful games is tough. Highly experienced teams equipped with cutting edge technology and tools are more likely to create great games. In contrast, inexperienced teams often end up over-iterating, learning on the go, stretching timelines, and/or diluting quality. Great talent is essential today and in the future to build great games. Period. 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐄𝐱𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 & 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐀𝐌  This is a safer, more predictable, and an incremental risk path for companies with successful games. Doubling down on existing games is a no-brainer part of every company's strategy. However, due to talent bandwidth constraints, companies often focus on their top games while many high-potential games in their portfolio are deprioritized and forced to die a slow death. In my years of experience in the industry, this is a massive untapped opportunity highly worth leveraging! Expanding TAM (Total Addressable Market) can provide significant gains for successful games. This complex task depends on a deep understanding of market differences and motivations that drive engagement and monetization behaviors, applying these insights to game and live services operations to unlock growth. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐋𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 This is undoubtedly a massive event on the games industry timeline. But time will reshape how games are designed, produced, and shipped to global audiences in meaningful ways. Gen AI and other technologies will make game production more efficient, high-quality, and predictable. 𝑃𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑔𝑎𝑚𝑒𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔, 𝑎𝑠 𝑎𝑙𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑤𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘 𝑖𝑛 𝑛𝑒𝑤, 𝑢𝑝𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠, 𝑐𝑟𝑎𝑓𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑔𝑎𝑚𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑏𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑠 𝑤𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑢𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒!

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How Finland's games industry is weathering the storm. Neogames Finland ry director KooPee Hiltunen discusses past successes, current industry problems, and what the future holds for the country's games hub.

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Did you know these 6 facts about Valo Motion? 😎👇 ✅ Founded in 2016 by Raine Kajastila, Leo Holsti and Joni Vähämäki. 🧗‍♀️ Already after the first year, we were operating in 30 different countries. In 2024, the number is even bigger: our games are moving people in over 65 countries. 💜 Our team has 45+ employees globally, from 11 different nationalities – and ofc the team is growing in the future! 🙌 The secret to our success is the skilled team of professionals with curious and playful mindset building these mixed-reality games. 🕹️ 220,000+ Valo Motion games are played daily around the world 🗺️ 😍 The goal for 2030 is to have 1 million plays per day around the world What else would you like to know? Let us know in the comments 👇 #ValoMotion #MoveTheFuture #SeriousAboutFun

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#Gamescom24 Why should we meet at Gamescom? - Come see me on stage on Gamescom Congress talking about AI, Games and Propaganda in the new age - You are an investor, Angel, VC, or a Publisher that can help us with our games and Transmedia ongoing projects (Games, TV, Toys) - You are an event organizer / speakers scout, that want an experienced speaker on stage talking about AI, Mental Health, Social impact and how we can fix our potentially great world (currently kinda sick world) - You are an indie in need of an advice, BizDev help, Game design insights - You are one of my close Gaming family, which i always love to meet everywhere in this world, sharing battle stories and development scars over a cup of coffee, beer or fresh juice! Peace and Love, Live long and prosper! here is a link to Meet2Match, send me an invite there (or just DM) https://lnkd.in/d9w26Xxz #AI #mentalhealth #gamedesign #gamedev #socialimpact #propaganda

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Creating a game in a very small team of just two people is an interesting journey as you get to dabble in many different areas. I've even dipped my toes in the Unreal Engine 5 node programming - but we shall not speak of that... eh-heheh (I got tons to learn there). But as a generalist I definitely thrive when I get to play with and problem solve in many different tasks and roles. Going through the whole pipeline of creating a character from Sketch to alive and moving inside a game. Sketching ideas, creating concept art, key art, Logos, 3D objects, environments, compositions, mood, light, sound work, vfx, UI, UX, story work, record footage, edit together videos, social medias, marketing, and also taking care of the company, the team as well as growing and becoming a good leader and boss. (Here I also got a long way to go). I've probably forgotten some things. Cause there is definitely A LOT to do, and there is no wonder people burn out. Cause on top of this - we need to take care of life. And that's SO easy right? #easypeasy #gamedev #generalist #indie #life

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Learn from those who’ve been there, done that - real experts who’ve faced the challenges, made mistakes, and gained wisdom. Skip the fake gurus and get the guidance that truly matters! At Unikon, we connect you with experts who understand the journey and are genuinely here to help you build a solid foundation. No fluff, just practical advice and support that actually works. Choose real guidance, choose Unikon. Unikon.ai

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