How hard times are making game developers more creative and resilient

• With its “strong history in producing globally successful games”, the Nordic game sector is attracting worldwide attention for its innovative and resilient culture.
• Learn from experts representing companies like Tencent’s LightSpeed Studios, Yarnhub, Burny Games, and InnoGames.

Ahead of Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki’s 12th anniversary on October 7th to 8th, we’ve asked industry experts, who are speaking at the event, to share their take on the state and impact of the Nordic games sector.

Long a leading game innovation hub, the Nordic region boasts a vibrant combination of global studios and smaller indie teams brimming with creative talent.

But, despite being underpinned by strong public ecosystem support, the sector has faced increasing complexities alongside broader global industry headwinds in recent years. Those in the know are still confident in the combined strengths the regional industry displays, however.

“From Rovio and Supercell with their chart topping mobile games, to Remedy and Avalanche with their immersive story and action driven experiences, Nordic games have consistently had a strong presence on the global stage," says Jacob Thomas, the senior engineer at Lightspeed LA, part of Tencent's LightSpeed Studios.

“They have shown that game developers don't have to 'go big or go home' to make it, with triple-A and indie studios co-existing and thriving."

Currently working on narrative-driven open-world action game Last Sentinel, Thomas says “with stakes in Funcom, Supercell, Remedy, and many others, Tencent is, in my understanding, invested in the future of Nordic gaming”.

The Nordics' global footprint

Speaking at PGC Helsinki provides an opportunity to share his experience of building a sustainable career in game development, and “expand my knowledge on the region and dive deeper into the unique culture and perspectives of Nordic game development”, he adds.

This characteristic Nordic culture has attracted worldwide attention. Now an established game development team in Finland, Yarnhub originated as something entirely different.

It was founded in 2021 as a creator of 3D military history films on YouTube, eventually hitting a monthly audience of 35 million. Identifying that many of its viewers were also gamers, Yarnhub expanded into games with in-development title Brass Rain, a free-to-play WWII co-op and PvP shooter.

“The Nordics are especially interesting to us because of their strong history in producing globally successful games. We’ve recently established a base in Finland to grow our development team,” explains Yarnhub head of games Cyril Barrow. 

“From pioneering studios in mobile and PC to innovative design thinking, the region has proven it can create hits that resonate worldwide. For us, it’s also a hub of talent and government support, which makes it a natural place to build an ambitious studio with global reach.”

Calling it one of the key European games events, Barrow says attending PGC Helsinki is a chance to connect with the local community and showcase Brass Rain.

Inspiration for the future

Highlighting some particular areas in which Nordic studios stand out, Elena Lobova, the head of strategic partnerships at Ukrainian game company Burny Games, says the region “sets the trends from game mechanics to business models and player communications strategies. What starts here often becomes a global standard, so following this market is like getting a preview of the future of gaming".

She is also impressed by the close relationship between the Nordic industry and its governments, which results in opportunities for young talent. “This model could inspire other regions.”

A maker of mobile puzzle games, Lobova says Burny Games is joining PGC not only to share its own experiences, but also “to hear fresh ideas from industry leaders”.

“Events like this are where collaborations are born and where we find new inspiration for our future projects.”

Attributing global games market trends to the Nordic games sector, InnoGames senior performance marketing manager Deniz Kekec agrees it has a broader creative and innovative impact, “with several companies proving their ability to quickly adapt to shifting industry conditions".

Based in Hamburg, Germany, InnoGames has seen long-running success with games like Tribal Wars and Forge of Empires. Recently, it has faced the same market challenges as many Western developers. 

Kekec remains confident, however, saying, “Like InnoGames, the Nordic games industry has also shown remarkable resilience in recent years, managing to deliver successful titles across different platforms despite challenging times.”

Creativity growing through challenges

As for the key challenges, she mentions market saturation and discoverability, “with many similar games competing to deliver comparable value to the same audience”.

Along the same lines, Barrow sees the biggest challenge as being retention. Due to “so many games competing for attention”, he means it’s harder than ever to keep players engaged long term.

Another challenge is sustainability. Thomas says this makes it “more important than ever to make sure game developers have the tools and mindset necessary to adapt, and also advocate for adoption of sustainable practices across the industry”. 

Although these challenges can make the future seem bleak, there are plenty of reasons to remain hopeful. One of the main opportunities in the process of fundamentally changing the games industry is generative AI. 

“The biggest opportunity lies in leveraging new technologies – especially AI – to build more personalised, engaging experiences and to accelerate both development and marketing processes,” says Lobova.

Kekec agrees, highlighting that current challenges are in fact what pushes “companies and experts to think more creatively than ever”. Regarding AI as both a “blessing and a curse”, she sees it as a valuable accelerator to help keep up with the fast-paced industry while maintaining quality, “but its impact ultimately depends on how it is applied”.

Focusing more on its own unique experience of springing from making successful animations, Yarnhub’s Barrow says the biggest opportunity lies in building communities “before the game even launches”. Applying this strategy to its own game, he says “every video we release is effectively a user acquisition and retention engine for Brass Rain".

Democratisation is another big opportunity, made real through free and open-source game engines like Unreal Engine 5 and Godot. Thanks to these “traditional pipelines like animation have been brought in-engine, and creator tools have achieved first-party status,” Thomas says.

“I think there has never been a better time to innovate and shape the evolution of game technology.”

Learn more about the Nordic games industry at Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki on October 7th to 8th.