We’re excited to introduce two more standout participants from the Ukraine booth at Gamescom 2024: PlayToMax, a leading developer of HTML5 games, and UGI Studio, a full-cycle game development company.
Their teammates shared fascinating insights into their products, their motivation for joining the Ukrainian stand at this year’s Gamescom, and their perspectives on the future of Ukraine’s gaming industry.
New Games and Projects: Intros
Olga, PlayToMax:
PlayToMax is a leading HTML5 developer on the market. We create fun and enjoyable games for web, Instant Games, YouTube playables etc. We also produce playable ads for mobile games.
Even though HTML5 market has seen different times and at some point a lot of developers left it, we never lost our faith in the fact that web gaming is a separate market with a lot of opportunities, and we were right, which we can see for the past couple years when lots of mobile developers and publishers are actively porting their games to web and we’re gladly helping them with that.
Iryna, UGI Studio: We currently have two projects in development.
1. ‘Hunter: Age of Monsters’ is a game that combines deep RPG-style progression with simple, one-finger controls. Players explore a vast world, battle monsters, gather resources, and rebuild cities2.
2. ‘Zombie Race Survivor’ blends racing and survival elements, where players drive vehicles through hordes of zombies. The core mechanics revolve around upgrading and customizing cars to be more effective against enemies. It’s a fun arcade game that lets you enjoy both racing and zombie smashing at the same time.
Plans for the Ukraine Pavilion at Gamescom
Iryna, UGI Studio: Participating in the Ukrainian pavilion at Gamescom is a fantastic opportunity for our company to showcase itself internationally. It’s also a chance to forge new partnerships, expand our network, and gain valuable feedback that will help us improve our products.
We believe it’s important to support Ukraine’s image as a country with strong potential in the game development industry.
From Gamescom, we hope to establish new business connections—both with potential partners interested in our services and with those we plan to collaborate with on publishing our projects. Getting feedback from the industry is also a key goal.
Olga, PlayToMax: We were a part of the first Ukrainian booth last year and we saw lots of interest and support from companies all over the world. This year we have more fun games to present and to meet our old partners and get to know new people. The Ukrainian booth is a perfect place for such a task.
Global Trends: AI and Web Gaming
Olga, PlayToMax: One of the most important trends for us is that finally, web games are becoming serious, there is a lot of attention and new projects appearing every day, we’re happy to be the pioneers of this market and to stay there for so long.
We do believe that more and more gaming companies would consider their next platform to be web along with the others.
Iryna, UGI Studio: We can say that one of the most significant trends in the video game industry is the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into the development process. AI is increasingly used to create graphics and game design, which helps reduce costs and speed up game development.
Resilience in Crisis and Challenging Times
Iryna, UGI Studio: The war and the COVID-19 pandemic have undoubtedly affected the game dev market, presenting us with a series of tough challenges. From organizing remote work to ensuring business continuity, we’ve had to navigate many obstacles. Our focus remains on maintaining the quality of our services and managing resources effectively. The biggest challenge for us is keeping our team together, continuing to create high-quality content, and staying dedicated to what we love despite all the difficulties.
Despite the war, Ukrainian professionals continue to create high-quality content, showcasing the resilience and expertise of our industry. Ukraine has the potential to become an even more significant player in the global market, offering both original projects and high-quality outsourcing services. We hope that the government will create favorable conditions for the industry and the IT sector as a whole.
Future Peace and Progress
Iryna, UGI Studio: The first priority for the further growth of the game dev industry in Ukraine is the end of the war, which would lay the foundation for stability and attract investment. The state must play a crucial role by providing favorable conditions for business and infrastructure development. Active partnerships with international companies will also be key, helping Ukrainian game development elevate its position in the global market.
We wholeheartedly agree and hope for a swift end to the war, allowing Ukraine to grow and thrive in peace. But as reality shows, talented people rise above challenges and come out even stronger.
So, choose a date to meet our participants at the Ukraine Pavilion, and don’t forget to follow us on social media for the latest updates. All the links are on our homepage! 😉
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