Interview

PGC Helsinki: Matti Palosuo will be part of a panel discussing how to keep games alive

"Getting started with game development is not that hard, but you cannot really just study it"

PGC Helsinki: Matti Palosuo will be part of a panel discussing how to keep games alive

Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki 2019 will take place on October 1st to October 2nd. To give you a taste of what to expect, we'll regularly be publishing interviews with the speakers at the show.

For more details on PGC Helsinki and to book a ticket, head to the website here.

In this speaker spotlight, we caught up with Matti Palosuo. Palosuo is Studio Technical Director at tracktwenty, EA's mobile game studio in Helsinki, Finland. The studio's first title, SimCity BuildIt, was released in December 2014 and has more than 200 million downloads to date. Matti is a game developer with more than 15 years of experience in the games industry. As a Technical Director Matti has been focusing on designing and engineering highly scalable backend architecture.

At Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki 2019 he'll be part of a panel on live ops that'll be discussing how to keep games alive.

Pocketgamer.biz: Could you tell us a bit about your company?

Matti Palosuo: EA tracktwenty is mobile gaming studio located in Helsinki, Finland with just over 50 employees. The studio is most known for the mobile hit game SimCity BuildIt. EA tracktwenty is part of Electronic Arts worldwide studios.

What does your role involve?

Overseeing and managing the engineering team, designing and architecturing our mobile game platform from tech POV.

Why did you want to work in the games industry?

When I was younger, making games was a hobby. Later on it turned into work.

What advice would you give to anyone looking to get into making games?

Learn by trying things out. Participate in game jams. Getting started with game development is not that hard, but you cannot really just study it.

What are your thoughts on the industry in the last 12 months?

Everything is getting so big - even on the mobile game dev side, which used to be where small and nimble teams were working.

What major trends do you predict in the next 12 months?

Mobile will keep growing.

How has the games industry changed since you first started?

Nowadays it's a lot more professional. People have grown up and have families.

Which part of Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki are you most looking forward to?

Connecting with other game developers.