Infinity Games’ André Miraldo on why Portugal is the perfect place to develop its soothing puzzling games

• Infinity Games creates relaxing, minimalistic games for players of all ages.
• The studio has over 250 million downloads across its portfolio.
• The studio is an active member of Portugal's eGames Lab consortium.
• Infinity plans to expand globally in the future.

If you’re anything like us, you’ll agree that there’s nothing quite as relaxing as kicking back on the sofa with your favourite video game.

We’re not alone in our opinion either: there have been numerous studies over the years into the potential positive impact video games can have on our wellbeing, with titles like Animal Crossing, The Legend of Zelda, and even Dark Souls being linked to improvements in mental health. 

One studio that knows all this all too well is Infinity Games. From its base in Lisbon, the award-winning game developer has amassed more than 250 million downloads through its extensive portfolio of relaxation-boosting puzzle games for mobile, PC, and console.

The last month has been busy for the studio, as it just launched Rail Rescue, a mobile puzzle game that invites players to draw tracks, solve challenges and rescue quirky characters in a playful train adventure.

André Miraldo, the marketing lead at Infinity Games, spoke to PocketGamer.biz about the company's approach to game design and shares the studio’s experiences developing titles within Portugal's burgeoning and highly supportive games industry.

PocketGamer.biz: Can you tell me about Infinity Games' approach to game design and development? What are some of the key principles or methodologies you follow?

André Miraldo: Infinity Games offers relaxing, minimalistic mobile games suitable for players of all ages. We aim to deliver experiences that are enjoyable in their own right and specifically designed to help improve your mood and overall well-being as you play.

We have quite a varied portfolio of different titles, from brain-teasing puzzle games like Rail Rescue and Pack & Match 3D, which help improve your focus, to more dedicated experiences tailored to promoting mindfulness like Chill, our dedicated all-in-one meditation and ASMR app built around soundscapes.

All our titles take a player-centric approach to design, specifically focusing on relaxation and accessibility. Given the diversity of our portfolio, what this approach looks like in practice can vary a lot from game to game, but one constant element that drives engagement and retention across all our titles is polish. Even on mobile, visual quality and smooth animation push a game from "good" to "great".

How does Infinity Games foster innovation within its teams, and are there any specific initiatives or programs you have in place to encourage new ideas?

Our teams engage in various collaborative activities, both in the office and remotely, to help improve communication across the studio and encourage everyone to share ideas. For example, we have a bi-weekly call where we all play a specific game, and then delve into questions like “What did we like?”, “What didn’t we like?” and “Suggestions to improve”.

As a studio, we also emphasise staying ahead of the curve, which means being open to experimenting with new and emerging technologies like artificial intelligence. Not only that, but we encourage our teams to actively share their breakthroughs and achievements with others to push others to exceed.

What advantages or opportunities does Portugal offer to a mobile game development and publishing company like yours?

Perhaps the biggest benefit of being based in Portugal is that it has allowed us to join the eGames Lab consortium and participate in an ambitious and exploratory project aimed at developing the region’s entire games industry. 

It has provided us with the funding and support to onboard projects that otherwise wouldn’t have happened, such as Chill, which was developed in collaboration with PhD students through the consortium.

Cooperating with the consortium’s Researchers and Research centres has been a major part of our partnership with eGames Lab, as we’ve worked with them to publish several research papers on our games, demonstrating the impact that video games can have on academia. 

Our membership has also helped us to expand our team and provided numerous opportunities to collaborate and gain insight from industry experts. It’s also allowed us to broaden our reach by visiting events like the Game Developers Conference and Tokyo Game Show.

How does Infinity Games integrate within Madeira's local tech and business ecosystem? Are there any specific collaborations or partnerships you've forged?

We are significantly involved with eGamesLab events in Madeira; we frequently send delegations, and our QA Manager, who lives there, often works from the eGamesLab headquarters at Matadouro. We also engage the local games companies and associations outside these events. Our goal is to establish a healthy and trustworthy relationship between the Portuguese industry and academies, so we try to integrate academic and corporate dimensions within our scope. 

Looking beyond Portugal, we have a multicultural team comprising talent from all over the world, which helps us broaden our perspectives and better understand how different markets behave. Understanding where our products work best allows us to find a suitable audience and new partners who can show our games to more players.

How do you think the Portuguese gaming industry will develop in the coming years, and what role do you think Infinity Games and eGames Lab will play in that?

We plan to expand our business globally over the next few years by leveraging the knowledge and growth acquired from eGames Lab. The consortium’s insights have enabled us to refine our development and publishing processes, and we’re eager to utilise our combined aesthetic and technical prowess to drive our studio into infinity.

Looking at Portugal as a whole, we expect the consortium to continue fostering the industry's growth. A key part of that will be bridging the gap between academia and game development, which should help ensure the region’s talent has a sustainable career path without looking overseas. 

What advice would you offer to other game developers considering establishing or growing their presence in Madeira and Portugal?

Just come! There’s a lot of talent with a hunger to perform, alongside excellent living conditions. The delicious food and sunny climate are particularly strong selling points. However, Portugal offers many other competitive advantages that other countries might not be aware of, such as its English proficiency and tech-savvy workforce.