My.Video games has had an attention-grabbing few years, after persistently being one of the vital profitable recreation firms in Russia and Europe, the Ukraine battle threw it and lots of different firms into disarray. Nonetheless, My.Video games gained a brand new lease on life when unique house owners, Russian social-media big VK, offered the corporate to new house owners in 2022 which marked a interval of serious restructuring and a brand new course for the corporate.
My.Video games at all times had a powerful footing within the European market, with workers and studios all throughout the continent. This has allowed the corporate to divest totally from any Russian operations and concentrate on a brilliant new future with a global; focus. The transfer has paid off, with the corporate noting key milestones for his or her video games reminiscent of Hustle Citadel and Rush Royale in 2023.
We received the prospect to talk with CSO of My.Video games, Elena Grigoryan about a few of the difficulties that the corporate has confronted, how they overcame them and what’s subsequent for My.Video games.
PocketGamer.biz: After divesting from the Russian market, My.Video games has sought to increase into each Europe and the broader world. How has that been going for you?
Elena Grigoryan: We’ve been targeted on worldwide progress and creating merchandise that gamers all all over the world will love since day one. The change in possession has solely strengthened this technique.
Most of our workforce work remotely, so it’s essential for us to have the suitable infrastructure and assets in place for our workforce. We now have two foremost places of work, in Amsterdam and Limassol, Cyprus, and because the buyout we have now opened co-working areas in Turkey, Armenia and Georgia.This 12 months, we plan to open new places of work and hubs in areas the place we plan to spice up our presence, such because the Center East, the place we see large potential.
Our workforce loves the distributed workplace strategy we adopted across the time of the pandemic. We’ve discovered the suitable setup that gives alternatives for our workers to develop, whereas creating enjoyable locations the place workers can meet and collaborate. This has been a driver in attracting new expertise from everywhere in the world.
What’s the most important problem My.Video games confronted, and the way did you overcome it?
Throughout our restructuring, an important factor was to create the infrastructure, processes and stability to make sure the transition was as seamless as doable for each our gamers and our workers. Contemplating that greater than 90% of our workers work remotely, it was a tall order to ensure they didn’t face any interruptions of their each day work. It concerned a whole lot of work and energy on the backend – most of which went unseen – and I feel our entire workforce did an incredible job.
Does My.Video games have any large plans within the near-future?
I’m excited to share that we have now some formidable plans within the works. We now have a wealthy growth pipeline with a number of initiatives to be launched this 12 months. A few of them are model new IPs, and a few associated to our present franchises reminiscent of Conflict Robots: Frontiers, a PC and console third-person multiplayer mech shooter that’s an enlargement of the unique Conflict Robots cell recreation. The sport was launched on the finish of 2022 and runs on Unreal Engine 5, which allowed us to introduce new thrilling options, and is an lively growth for the time being delivering common updates with the total launch on PC and consoles scheduled for later in 2023.
The opposite focus level for us is increasing our world presence, coming into new markets, enabling gamers entry high quality entertaining content material and supporting gifted recreation builders throughout the globe. We now have fashioned a number of partnerships with gaming associations in Europe on this respect to create extra alternatives for native builders and we may even launch the third season of the Sport Drive program in partnership with key business leaders to proceed supporting gifted groups.
What developments are you most excited to see within the cell recreation business in 2023?
The final couple years have been fairly difficult for the cell recreation business, and one factor we’ve discovered at My.Video games is how necessary it’s to have a diversified portfolio. With the intention to keep aggressive and supply customers compelling content material, it is important for gaming firms to supply a various vary of video games throughout a number of platforms, genres, and monetization fashions.
In 2023, gaming firms will probably be searching for methods to convey new merchandise to market and appeal to new audiences to present ones. The established UA mechanisms are not working as successfully as they used to, and everyone seems to be searching for new alternatives – and creating a powerful recreation model will probably be one among them.
Cross-platform video games will allow gamers throughout totally different platforms to play collectively extra seamlessly. Firms that create an incredible cross-platform consumer expertise could have a powerful aggressive benefit and larger attain.
As competitors for consumer consideration intensifies, recreation firms are going through new challenges reminiscent of adjustments in consumer acquisition methods and decreased buying energy amongst purchase gamers, all of which might have a major influence on their backside line. With the intention to navigate this panorama, it is changing into more and more necessary to make data-driven selections that prioritise optimization in each advertising and marketing and operations. With the applying of AI, recreation firms can leverage superior algorithms to streamline artistic content material manufacturing and cut back prices, whereas nonetheless offering partaking experiences for his or her customers. Moreover, centralization of companies and unification of platform options can assist cut back prices, streamline operations, and enhance general effectivity, offering additional alternatives for firms to optimise their operations and enhance profitability.
