Meet Ukrainian Indie Developers: From AR/VR to MMORPGs

Hi everyone!

Do you think we’re all out of participants? Hold on, there’s more coming your way!

This post is about indie developers who are tech wizards, cooking up innovation and fun! Black Snow is working on a fully immersive mobile AR free-to-play-and-earn game, Twigames develops games for mobile, VR/AR, PC and all consoles, and Starni Games focus on hardcore strategy and RPG games. Also, there will be Gerillaz which develops a free-to-play cross-platform MMORPG World of the Abyss (WOTA) and OpenBiSea Studio, a Ukrainian Game Studio that specializes in creating play-to-earn games

We all, both the Ukraine Pavilion team and developers who take part in Gamescom, greatly appreciate the USAID Competitive Economy Program’s support for the Ukraine Pavilion at Gamescom and supporting the indie development section. The USAID Competitive Economy Program in Ukraine (USAID CEP) supports startups, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) aiming to provide support for competitive industries and firms on Ukrainian and international markets. We are so happy that independent developers now can receive such facilitation, which they need.

Fasten your seatbelts, as we are about to take off for another exciting journey!

Uncover the Hidden Gems: Here Are the Indie Studios!

Let’s dive into our fantastic lineup of indie participants and engage with their representatives who will provide us with deeper insights into their exciting games and ongoing projects!

Kyrylo, Black Snow: We are working on Black Snow: Battle for Earth — the world’s first fully immersive mobile AR free-to-play-and-earn game. Its main features are: AR game for mobile (iOS/Android), free-to-play, play and earn, Web2 and Web3 elements, as well as seamless onboarding of users to Web 3.0 space.

We are here at Gamescom, as being a part of the Ukrainian pavilion is a matter of great opportunity. It signifies unity, collective strength, and the ambition of Ukrainian game developers and it would be a great honor to become part of it.

Ukraine’s game development landscape has been thriving and shows great potential. The industry is characterized by talented developers, artists, and designers who bring creativity and innovation to the global gaming scene. Challenges persist yet also fuel our resilience and drive to push boundaries.

Margaret, Open Bi Sea: OpenBiSea Studio is a Ukrainian game studio that specializes in creating play-to-earn games, from a hyper casual game MotoDEX to our game with AR – DexGO. By the way, we’ll showcase both projects at Gamescom. In general, our mission goes beyond entertainment – we’re dedicated to bringing social value and promoting a healthy lifestyle through our games.

At Open Bi Sea, we are also on the lookout for new tech. I’m the Head of marketing and business development at the OpenBiSea Studio, and I already have 4 years of experience in blockchain, NFT and cryptos. The gaming industry is what smoothly aligns with all of those, and I really like this. I can say that people love such products too, as far as I see on our TikTok and Instagram.

Illia, Gerillaz: Founded by a team of passionate game developers and tech enthusiasts, Gerillaz stands at the intersection of creativity and innovation. The studio has its unique approach to MMORPGs, creating experiences that resonate with both veteran gamers and the new generation. Our mission is to give what is missed: a fun and exciting hardcore MMORPG with modern killer features on platforms. 

We are developing World of the Abyss (WOTA) – a very ambitious, free-to-play cross-platform Lineage-like MMORPG with very engaging game mechanics. At Gamescom, we will present WOTA for mobile and PC. The Beta of the game was awarded “The Best Mobile Game” @ Games Gathering 2022 and chosen as one of the top 3 indie games. So, we hope that people will love it!

Except for WOTA, we are also developing and implementing innovative AI-powered NPCs and UGC (user-generated content) for more engagement and fun. These features will also be presented as separate technologies.

Valerii, Twigames: Twigames is a game development company established in 2015 in Kyiv. We develop projects for different platforms – mobile, PC, Consoles and VR/AR. Some of them were created for other companies as contract work or co-production projects, other are our own games. Our main technology is Unity. We also have an experience in custom high-load backend development. 

At Gamescom, we’ll present our isometric narrative RPG game inspired by the events of the Russo-Ukrainian war Hollow Home. We’ll also present our development services. 

Oleksandr, Starni Games: Starni Games is a Ukrainian game development company, based in Kyiv, Ukraine. Our games are all based on Unreal Engine 4 yet we plan to use Unreal Engine 5 for future projects. Let me tell you more about all our projects that will be presented at Gamescom.

1. The key one is Headquarters: World War II – a fast-paced turn-based strategy game, set during the Normandy Landings. The game combines in-depth combat mechanics with highly-realistic graphics.

2. Another project is the Strategic Mind: Spirit of Liberty – a hardcore, turn-based, historically accurate strategy game featuring Finland throughout World War II. It is the fifth installment in the Strategic Mind series and will be released in the coming days – on 28th August 2023.

3. The third project is very special to our team. Ukraine War Stories is a fully free charity game that we made to tell the story of civilians on occupied territory in the first few weeks of the Russian Invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The game was released in October 2022 and is based on real events and eyewitness accounts. Our main goal was to draw international attention to the horrors of the war in Ukraine and call for worldwide support of Ukraine. The game has a Support Ukraine tab with links to key UA charity foundations. 

Gamescom To-Do List

While there are countless reasons to participate in Gamescom, joining a warm and welcoming gaming community is an essential experience for everyone, particularly for indie developers. Let’s extend a helping hand to these companies in their quest to find new friends and partners, as they are eagerly looking forward to doing that.

Oleksandr, Starni Games: It is our first time at an offline Gamescom event, and our goals are to showcase the projects, speak with other teams and interested parties and forge better relations with other companies or teams. Ultimately, we are looking for potential partners for our future games, as well as spreading awareness about our games and our team.

Illia, Gerillaz: We are participating in Gamescom to find profile strategic partners & investors in order to get funding and support to finish the development of a fully-featured PC version with HQ graphics and get an initial marketing boost on Global Launch in December 2023. We very much appreciate GDBAY and other organizers, USAID Competitive Economy Program, and all grantors and contributors who have provided us with this opportunity to participate in Gamescom.

Valerii, Twigames: Our main goal at Gamescom is to present the Ukrainian game development industry and support the first-ever Ukraine Booth.  

Margaret, Open Bi Sea: I would like to find solid partners and investors for our studio, as well as get acquainted with our Ukrainian projects.

Kyrylo, Black Snow: We are looking for networking. Connecting with other developers, industry leaders, and investors can open doors for collaboration and growth. Also, we are planning to increase our visibility to get us noticed by international publishers, potential partners, leads, and players.

 

Conclusions

Instead of the usual wrap-up, let’s let Kyrylo from Black Snow have the last word, as his words couldn’t be more fitting and warmly expressed:

I’d recommend to Ukrainian companies that we remain united, share knowledge, and uplift one another. The stronger each of us becomes, the more robust our industry will be.

If you represent a foreign company, please pay more attention to Ukrainian talents. We bring unique perspectives, unwavering dedication, and a rich cultural tapestry that can elevate the global gaming narrative. Let’s collaborate, share stories, and make gaming an even more inclusive and diverse space.