As tensions continue in Russia and Ukraine, many game development teams in Ukraine are inevitably affected by escalating geopolitical conflicts. Recently, several Ukrainian game studios have spoken out through social media or given interviews to foreign media to chat about some of the current ideas.
Frogwares, developer of Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One, tweeted: "We can't just stand by and watch... Given the current situation, our (game) work will be affected and our lives may be disrupted. ”
French mobile game publisher Gameloft also tweeted: "Gameloft has two studios in Ukraine, located in Kharkiv and Lviv, and we want to express our support for them and all others affected by the current events in the country." Over the past few weeks, we have been closely following the development of the situation and maintaining a dialogue with our studio in Ukraine. ”
Alexey Menshikov worked for Action Forms, Ukraine's first game company, in the 1990s and later founded several game studios. Today, Monsikov is the head of Beatshapers, a studio with 20 employees in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. In search of funding and other resources needed to conduct an international business, Monsikov has emigrated to the United States and now lives in the California city of Los Angeles. According to Monsikov, members of the Beatshapers were temporarily safe, but he feared that employees would no longer be safe if the whole of Ukraine was drawn into war.
Historically, Ukrainian studios have tended to take on outsourcing projects as their main business, but today more and more Ukrainian teams are starting to create original games. Most of the gaming activity in Ukraine is concentrated in the capital Kiev, which, for example, has been the venue for the Eastern European station of the Casual Connect Game Developers Conference for many years. Last December, the GamesGathering Games Show in Kiev attracted more than 1,500 visitors. "We have witnessed the development of many companies, such as Wargaming, which are very influential in Ukraine." Monsikov said.
In conversations with foreign media, many Ukrainian game developers pointed out that the education system is one of the main factors driving the rapid development of the country's game industry: Ukrainian universities have trained a large number of excellent programmers and creators, which can continuously send talent to the game industry.
Meanwhile, several major game companies have branches in Ukraine, such as the acquisition of local studio Zagrava in 2019 and 2021, playrix, the mobile game publisher Playrix of Boolat Games, Ubisoft, which has formed a team in Kiev and the port city of Odessa, and Plarium, the Israeli developer who owns the best-selling mobile game Raid: Legends of Shadows.
In addition, eSports is also an important part of the Ukrainian gaming industry. In 2020, the Ukrainian government recognized esports as an official sport, and the country's professional esports teams regularly win titles in major events.
This is not the first time that Ukrainian developers have been affected by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. Previously, two large developers in Ukraine, 4A Games and Arkadium, had been forced to move their offices to Malta and St. Petersburg. At the recent Dice Summit summit, Yuri Deichssian, CEO of Thundermark, another Ukrainian studio with about 40 members, said the company was advising employees to move to the relatively safe western part of Ukraine.
Most of Ukraine's game studios are appealing for outside support. For example, G5 Entertainment, a Sweden-based leisure/mobile game developer, said: "G5 Entertainment is closely monitoring the escalation of the situation in Ukraine and is currently not receiving any reports of injuries to our employees. We recommend that employees stay at home and not relocate for the time being. Some of our employees have moved earlier, but most of them are still in their hometowns. ”
"Taking into account the current situation, we have given Ukrainian employees two days off so that they can take care of themselves, their families and friends. No matter where our employees are, we are committed to doing our best to support them. ”
Earlier this month, game development service provider Amber also opened a new studio in Kiev. Jamie Gline, CEO of Amber, said at the time: "By forming a team in Ukraine, we have not only been able to enhance our creative capabilities, but also expressed our strong willingness to support the Ukrainian game development industry. ”