Following the news that Two Men and a Dog is currently recruiting a game programmer for its Helsinki office, we got in touch with GM Ville Heijari to get the lowdown on exactly what sort of candidate he's looking for.
There's also a game artist role at Two Men and a Dog opening soon, so pay attention if that sounds like something you'd like to apply for.
PocketGamer.biz: Could you give us some background on Two Men and a Dog?
Ville Heijari: Two Men and a Dog was founded in 2013 by Matti Kallonen and Aleksi Räisänen in Helsinki, Finland.
Both have their background in the digital advertising industry, and before founding the studio, Matti was working on his own games, and Aleksi worked at Rovio as an artist.
Our first game, Zombie Catchers, was published on iOS in October 2014, and featured on the App Store over Halloween.
So far, Zombie Catchers has been downloaded more than 4 million times on iOS, and currently we're taking the game to Android and China.
We're still a small studio, but with the success of Zombie Catchers, we're in a good position to build up the team and keep creating more games.
What positions are currently vacant?
Right now we're looking for game programmers, and are looking to open up a game artist position in the near future.
We're also working with a number of tech partners in Helsinki, and always looking for great freelance specialists in different areas of development.
As you're overseeing recruitment at Two Men and a Dog, what do you look for in candidates?
It almost goes without saying that any new hires should be passionate about game development, have sufficient experience in different game development environments, and so forth.
No matter your experience level, keep building your portfolio!Ville Heijari
As we're still a very small team, the right attitude and mindset for building new things from the ground up is important.
This really is an exciting time, as we're getting started with a new project, and a great opportunity to get involved with the studio still early on.
Why do you think Two Men and a Dog is a good place to work?
I think the main thing getting this studio started and driving it forward is a particular sense of humour, naturally best demonstrated by Zombie Catchers.
For us, a great culture is all about finding the perfect balance between a fun, relaxed atmosphere and a disciplined way of working. When you have worked for both small startups and big corporations, you identify the main points of scale.
New, small companies are making it up as they go, and there's typically a lack of structure and support. On the other hand, a big corporation can give you a clearer role and better perks, but often at the cost of bureaucracy and endless bullshit meetings.
We try to reach that magical sweet spot of just enough process to keep our momentum with a sensible workload and realistic timetables, but not too much to stifle creative independence. Oh, and we all like fishing - but you don't have to!
What advice would you have for someone trying to get into the games industry?
Simple: No matter what area you're working in, or your experience level, keep building your portfolio!
When you're new to the industry, every project you participate in is a valuable showcase of your skills, whether commercial or not.
We still occasionally get applications with very slim work samples - actually showing what you can do is infinitely more valuable than telling what you've learned in school.
This is not to say your education isn't important, but we couldn't tell if you don't bring the goods. In short: always be shipping!
For more information on open positions, visit the firm's jobs page.
