Alessandra Tomasina

Did you spend your childhood battling Pokémon in games or slinging cards? Pokémon is the No. 1 media franchise. What’s your favourite Generation? 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗜 • Region: Kanto • Themes: Science • Years: 1996 – 1999 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗜𝗜 • Region: Johto • Themes: Cultural Traditions • Years: 1999 – 2002 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗜𝗜𝗜 • Region: Hoenn • Themes: The Environment • Years: 2002 – 2006 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗜𝗩 • Region: Sinnoh • Themes: Time and Space • Years: 2006 – 2010 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗩 • Region: Unova • Themes: Truth and Ideals • Years: 2010 – 2013 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗩𝗜 • Region: Kalos • Themes: Life, Death and the Ecosystem • Years: 2013 – 2016 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗩𝗜𝗜 • Region: Alola • Themes: Day and Night • Years: 2016 – 2019 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗩𝗜𝗜𝗜 • Region: Galar • Themes: England and Its Culture • Years: 2019 – 2022 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗜𝗫 • Region: Paldea • Themes: Past vs. the Future • Years: 2022 – present My top pick? Generation I ❤️ Oddish /\/\ |\ \ \ \// / o_o\ \____/ /_\/_\ Sources: TITLEMAX®, Wikipedia

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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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The best way to find a job opportunity is when the job opportunity finds you. And it finds you because that opportunity goes in the same direction as your professional path. And when you are there, you won't be stressed about the layoff conditions of the market. In the first three years of my career as a game programmer and designer, I decided to do the things I believed were the right way. After all, I had a very large career as a developer, I was already a successful entrepreneur in another country, and I knew a lot. Man, was I wrong? It's a rhetorical question. Things started going a lot better once I started to build a professional presence not only on LinkedIn but also on Twitter and Instagram. But that presence was created strategically. It's not about sending 10 tweets, liking others' posts, or saying "Good Job." It's about adding real value based on your experience and perspective and it's about showing your work and progress. The usual post for a job position in the gaming industry requires several years of experience when you need to build the experience in the first place. The eternal dilemma about the kitchen and the egg. What you need to understand behind that is that studios don't want to invest in people who don't have knowledge. And guys, the real knowledge about creating video games is achieved when you start producing video games and get your hands dirty. What I'm discussing with my students is that you need to set a methodology to create fast and simple games to publish and establish a solid social and professional presence. If you want to continue this conversation, I'm interviewing people to create my next Education Program -NOT an online course- and you could be part of it. My calendar will be available for one more week of interviews, select your preference now here: https://lnkd.in/gPYJeadb Tony #GameDevelopment #GameDesign #IndieGameDev #GameDevCommunity #GameIndustry #GameArt #Unity3D #UnrealEngine #LevelDesign

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I've spent a large part of my career improving alignment of teams on the current reality in order to then plan "realistically" and predict a more accurate future reality. As Benjamin explains very well below, we so easily and willingly fool ourselves with wishful thinking and optimistic biases. Even if or when that bias is quelled, our different perceptions of reality can cloud judgement and lead to undesirable outcomes. We so badly want to be optimistic and have confidence in our capabilities (as well as those of our teammates)! I recently had a project scheduling discussion where someone said, to paraphrase, "yes, things are bad now, but once we get to Beta there won't be any bugs so we should be able to ship on time..." Now, giving some leeway for attempted dry humor, the fact is the intended schedule didn't change and, big surprise, milestones were missed. I have seen this kind of thinking happen all the time throughout my time as a Producer and project leader. My point is this: it is a never ending battle to assess and re-assess your team's biases and potential wishful thinking. I have many tools to fight this, but people must be willing to use them. For a few quick examples: - build in iteration time - build in bug fixing time - account for vacation and sick time - get 3rd party data to assess your current state - account for merging/build/code cleanup time - account for non-gameplay/technical certification features I could go on, but I'd rather hear from you - how do you assess your current reality and align your team toward realistic estimates which give you more accurate outcomes?

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How to join the gaming industry (without feeling overwhelmed): Here's how to get started ↓ My steps to industry:  https://lnkd.in/dRFeW7gY Overcome rejection: https://lnkd.in/dRdyhcKV The ultimate career guide: https://lnkd.in/dnxFQVyb Free Game dev resources: https://lnkd.in/dYebz8Sh Our industry needs you. Ready to join? Now let's hear from my expert colleagues PS. What is your tip for joining the gaming industry?

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Everyone wants to know the salaries in the market. Companies need this information to determine adequate salary ranges for new positions and to review the salaries of current employees: it is crucial to remain competitive and not lose excellent employees because salaries or compensation and bonus systems are outdated and insufficient. Job seekers want to know their market value and “guess” what salary ranges potential employers will offer. Employed professionals want to know if their colleagues in the same profession are earning significantly more in other companies and whether they should initiate salary increase negotiations. Check out a list of sources with salary data https://lnkd.in/drR2Bsjx

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🚨15 MINUTES🚨 on the main stage! Talking about the state of toxicity in games and how to combat it! come, come! Reboot Develop

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Support changes everything No one feels alone. When I talk to colleagues who feel supported, they mention it every time. Starting with genuine connections. Getting back hope, strength, and opportunities every day. Just by being part of a caring community. And when they talk about the worst parts of the industry? Isolation is ALWAYS at the top of the list. Because, here's the deal: Support doesn't just change how we work. It changes how we heal. More unity, less struggle. That's the real value. And that's why more people NEED to get involved. Support affected colleagues by: • Sharing their posts, • Tagging people who are hiring • Offering your skills to support Volunteer in communities like Amir Satvat, just like I did. Follow and support amazing creators like: Alexander Rehm Alex Gombos Caitlin Cooke Hailey Rojas Kelly Bender Jordan Mazer Matt Barney Mirko Minenza Mayank Grover Ruty Rutenberg Thomas Woodhams If you want to sharpen your skills, check out my ultimate free resources to get started: https://lnkd.in/dqKM9ZSR Contribute to Industry recovery ♻️ Repost Today, let's ask: Are you ready to join this supportive community? Yes/No.

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💡 ERROR LOG #16: Team identity. Last time I wrote about creative identity and this time I want to give you my perspective on a team identity. First of all it’s worth to remember that a scale of your team and a fast-paced environment we work in are crucial aspects to think about while building identity as both are main potential obstacles. Why? I believe scale is self-explanatory but fast-paced environment is more tricky as it requires discipline and proper tool box to manage. In your tool box you should keep everything that referrs to building: ✅ trust ✅ culture ✅ cooperation ✅ shared purpose It is also important to remember what motivates individuals and how understanding these motivations can help create more cohesive and productive teams. Having strong identity is all about building and maintaining effective teams. 💡Long time ago my initial motivation for becoming a lead was literally helping others making calls, removing road blocks and keeping the vision. I didn't know why I felt it as I literally didn't know it! I neither had experience in leading and managing nor did’t read a single book about it yet. It was simply driven by my frustration of seeing people burning out and rejecting due to a fact of not having a strong purpose and being victims of weak choices. Overall subject is pretty broad and it requires time to learn, digest to be able to apply. As I’ve already recommended you one of my absolute favorite books „The Five Dysfunctions of a Team" by Patrick Lencioni which I treat as a must-read. Below I drop 2 more about it: 📘„Team of Teams: New Rules of Engagement for a Complex World" by General Stanley McChrystal and 📘„Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don't" by Simon Sinek These books offer valuable insights into building and maintaining effective and strong teams. Don't hesitate to comment and share your thoughts please. Stay tuned for more ⚔ 🐻

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Somewhere along the way the game producer role became a project manager role for many game studios, and no one really noticed. So what's the key difference between producer and PM? A core difference between Producers and Project/Program managers comes from the types of projects being worked on. - Soft work (creative, artistic, entertainment based) - Game content, co/full games dev - Hard work (IT, engineering based) - Optimisation, ports, eng solutions It’s common for creative teams to be motivated differently to IT and engineering teams. So accomplishing and delivering a project / product that’s primarily soft (creative) requires a different approach compared to a project that’s primarily hard (IT/engineering). Creative work more often involves non linear logic and process, where IT and engineering involves more linear/alphanumeric logic and process. Ultimately there are people who can do both, though more commonly I see people who have a preference, and what I see in the industry now is a disproportionate number of people with a preference for project management, believing it's production. Did you know Trip Hawkins (EA founder) is cited to have invented the game producer role? You can read an interesting post from his upcoming book here: https://lnkd.in/edDPzciE If you're in games, I hope you work with great producers! If you're thinking about becoming a game producer, remember it's not all about agile, scrum and the linear/alphanumeric logic that traditional PM work thrives on. #videogames #gamesindustry #innovation #bestadvice #careers

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🚀 Optimizing Game Development with Object Pooling Object pooling is a fundamental technique in game development that holds significant value for optimizing performance. But what exactly is object pooling, and why do we use it? In the words of Unity, "Object Pooling is a great way to optimize your projects and lower the burden that is placed on the CPU when having to rapidly create and destroy GameObjects." Imagine a scenario where numerous objects need to be created and destroyed frequently, such as in a fast-paced shooter game where bullets fly and zombies swarm. Instead of repeatedly creating and destroying these entities, object pooling allows us to store them in memory and recycle them as needed, thus minimizing processing overhead. There are various approaches to implement object pooling: - In Unity, leveraging UnityEngine.Pool provides a robust and efficient solution suitable for most scenarios. - Alternatively, developers can create custom pooling systems using two lists—one for active objects and another for pooled objects. - For further optimization, a single list approach utilizing a structured class or struct to track object states can also be employed. In a recent prototype, I used Managed Enemy, a technique where moving enemies are placed in one system instead of each possessing its own MonoBehavior script. This optimization enhances performance and simplifies the management of numerous objects with similar behaviors. What lies ahead? Perhaps exploring Entity Component System (ECS) and Job Systems to push optimization even further! Curious to experience or modify the game? Download and test it here. I welcome any feedback or suggestions for improvement! https://lnkd.in/ecJ7z7dR #unity #unity3d #objectpooling #object #pooling #game #ai #Game #gamedevelope #game_development

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Early Access or not Early Access, that is the question. I communicate with various publishers and developers on Steam, and everyone is actively discussing Early Access, trying to understand whether it is necessary or not. Many are considering launching this way. However, they do not fully understand what Early Access on Steam means today. From what I observe and study, Early Access is a delicate tool that needs to be used very correctly. Otherwise, it can be harmful and reduce sales numbers. The median sales from the total number of wishlists one month after release is 0.29 for non-Early Access games, while for Early Access games, it is 0.19. Early Access games do not get into the new and trending section, they cause concerns among players, and possibly, Steam gives them less organic visibility, even without the new and trending section. This is compensated by the fact that when the game leaves Early Access, it can appear in the new and trending section and get an additional boost upon the 1.0 release. However, the 1.0 boost is usually lower in level than the release in Early Access, or about the same. When should you go into Early Access, then? When it is part of the game's development, and you can't do without it. You have such a complex game that you need a community to develop it. For example, BG3 was in Early Access for several years, and it was the perfect way to test and develop the game, given the amount of content in BG. Large sandboxes, for instance, can also be suitable for Early Access because it helps the authors figure out where to take and develop the sandbox. So if you can't imagine making a good product without a large, live community playing the game every day, then it makes sense for you to be in Early Access. For example, the authors of Slay the Spire believe they wouldn't have made such a good game without Early Access. Players helped them understand their own product better. But if you have a game that can be refined and improved with playtests and demos, it is better to do it that way. Early Access is not a playtest, it is not about gathering information about the game. It is a completely different approach to development. You are making the game together with the community. If you are making the game yourself but testing it on players and refining it based on their feedback, you can do this perfectly well with playtests. For indie developers, think ten times before going into Early Access. Because an initial sales failure can hit very hard. It can literally kill the studio. So think about your development path, what genre you have, what kind of game, and what role the community plays in development. I am a huge fan of playtests. I believe making games without playtests is harmful. But at the same time, I have big questions about Early Access. It is a separate way of making games, not an approach to gathering feedback. It is too expensive.

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As the gaming industry continues to flourish, the availability of entry-level positions is a beacon of hope for aspiring gaming professionals. The wide spectrum of roles, ranging from content management to game programming and QA analysis, underscores the myriad of opportunities that remote work brings to talented individuals around the globe.For newcomers eager to break into gaming, there's never been a better time to harness your skills and enthusiasm. Each position, whether it's a Software Engineer Intern at EA or a Media Content Producer, carries the potential to kickstart a vibrant career path in this dynamic field. Moreover, remote roles offer the flexibility to work from various locations, making these opportunities invaluable in today's global marketplace.Navigating the early career stages in gaming can be as challenging as it is exciting, yet the rewards—professional growth, community, innovation—are unmatched. I encourage everyone on the brink of their gaming career to seize these opportunities and actively contribute to the growth and evolution of our beloved industry.For those interested in starting their journey in gaming, remember, persistence coupled with passion paves the way to rewarding experiences and, ultimately, substantial career achievements.

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Absolutely shocked to hear about more layoffs today, this time impacting CI Games, with around 30 employees across its production teams affected - all of this after CI Games CEO Marek Tyminski lauded the studio for amassing annual revenues of $60 million, making it the best year in their history... The company specified that HEXWORKS, the team behind Lords of the Fallen, has been unaffected and remains at work on 'Project 3,' its new action-RPG. Meanwhile, CI Games' second internal developer Underdog Studio has been given an extended period to finish the vertical slice for 'Project Survive' before that game enters full production. To those affected by the layoffs, please find a comprehensive list of resources, below: 🥇First, Discipline Games Jobs Resources: Over the past weeks I have created nine 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 #cigames

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Imagendary Studios, founded by former Blizzard artist Wei Wang, has unveiled a cinematic trailer for their project. Astropulse: Reincarnation is a single-player sci-fi third-person role-playing shooter, set in a distant future on a war-torn Earth. Additionally, the developers plan to release short films and comics based on their game, which will expand the Astropulse universe. The release date for the game is currently unknown. In my opinion, the trailer looks really cool! It's very much in the style of Blizzard's projects. Let's see what awaits us in the game. #Astropulse #VideoGames #Games #Gaming #GameDevelopment #Blizzard #GameTrailer

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Happy Monday everyone! Hope you all had a relaxing and restorative weekend. Here's your news round-up to kick off the week. 1. Unfortunately starting with more layoffs, the entire UK-based QA team for Apex Legends was reportedly laid off, with EA shutting the UK branch down unexpectedly. Managers were expecting to see contracts renewed in a few weeks time, and now there's another 40 people scrambling to find work in a crowded market. Hopefully all those impacted can land on their feet soon. https://lnkd.in/g9JvyVTF 2. Rockstar has quietly raised the prices on its GTA+ subscription service, a service that really only applies to you if you're a huge, and I mean HUGE GTA Online person. I'm curious, if you are that person, do you feel the service is worth it? Would you pay more for it than the price hike that's already happened? I suspect Rockstar will raise prices again, this time a little closer to a certain big release. https://lnkd.in/gTSGCXwb 3. The BAFTA's were last week, and you can check out all the winners here. Personally, I'm just ecstatic that Toronto-based dev Visai Games took home the award for Best Debut Game for "Venba," a very well deserved win. https://lnkd.in/g3zFPjTg 4. The IGDA is calling out studio leaders to "prioritize sustainable efforts to prevent layoffs," and studio leaders should listen. https://lnkd.in/g-hmNKVD 5. Lastly, a repost from Friday but just incase you missed it, Prytania Media shutdown another of its studios, closing Possibility Space and laying off the entire staff. It definitely wasn't a clean break, and it looks like Jeff and Annie Strain (husband and wife co-founders of Prytania) have a lot to answer for, while they try to put the blame on everything but themselves. https://lnkd.in/gHpYy-d8 That's all for now, I have quite a few articles brewing that I think you'll want to read, so keep your eyes peeled for those. In the meantime, hope everyone has a good Monday, and let me know what games industry happenings have you talking. Until next time!

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Hello, Today I'm happy to finally release the framework I've been using to do my animation paper study videos. You can have a look at the package at https://lnkd.in/e6q2tsxi It allowed me to release the source code of the videos also at https://lnkd.in/euwivcux Hope it will be useful to some. #gamedev #python #jupyterlab #openusd #3danimation

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Awful news again today, with us finding out about more layoffs in the games industry. This time it is affecting Mighty Kingdom: CEO David Yin announced in the early hours this morning that around 28% had to be laid off (you can find this post here: https://lnkd.in/eZhb3PwM) To those impacted by these layoffs, 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 #mightykingdom

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🕹Today in Gaming History!🎮 10 years ago today Transistor released for PC and PlayStation 4 from Supergiant Games #TiGH #GamingHistory #Gaming #History #SupergiantGames #Transistor #Action #Roleplay #Games #Game #VideoGames #VideoGame #GamesIndustry #VideoGameIndustry

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