Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
After graduating from Lancaster University, where I was privileged to work on the BBC Micro:Bit project, I landed my first job in games at Traveller’s Tales. After a fair few years there, helping out on three released and cross-platform titles, I moved on to Wushu Studios. Two and half years and a bunch more experience later, we come to now!
Why d3t?
Why not d3t? It’s a studio with over a decade in the industry, multiple consecutive awards for just how good a place it is to work, and a varied history of interesting projects! Where better to go for a fresh start!
What do you love about games?
I love the stories. There are so many fascinating ways a game can present its world and characters, utilising the interactivity in combination with audio and visuals to really draw a player in to a tale.
Then you have the stories players create themselves using the medium. There are so many examples of this, ranging from using mechanics in unexpected ways to making the news for sheer scale of player dedication.
Finally, there is the stories players tell with your world, be it through fan fiction of their own head cannons as to why a character does what they did or through mods or novels telling entirely new stories that build off your lore.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
Currently, I’ve been waiting for Dragons Dogma 2 to release so I can spend an ungodly amount of hours in that. To tide me over in that interim, I’ve been playing Helldivers 2 to pass the time.
It’s hard to choose but I think Disco Elysium is my favourite game though, if we are measuring off hours played, it would have to be Skyrim!
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
One fun fact about me is I was once a world record holder. Only for about a week though!
I’ve recently also gotten into LARP’ing and honestly wish it had been something I’d got into sooner! It’s great fun to immerse yourself fully into your character and an evolving world, then hit things with foam weapons.
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
I originally started in localisation at a company based in Osaka localising Japanese to English and vice versa. When I returned from Japan, I knew that the gaming industry was for me, and I had to get in and live my dreams. I joined Sony PlayStation Liverpool on a temp contract hoping that I’d woo them into giving me a permanent position. It worked! 4 years later after working both in Compliance and Software QA, the pandemic layoffs were looming and that’s when I discovered d3t and production (the first time). I applied and my dreams became true, I was an Associate Producer working on VIDEO GAMES! Best day ever! A little over 3 years later, my thirst for exploration in the industry took over. I had a short but lovely few months’ working as a Senior Producer at Atomhawk Advance which was awesome but not quite what I wanted out of my career.
d3t were there poised and ready to have me back as a Senior Producer and I couldn’t think of a better decision. I’m now ready to take on my new role here and help my team smash through projects. Production and the wellbeing of my teams is my jam and let’s just say – I’m not a regular producer, I’m a cool producer.
Why d3t?
Let’s just say I’m back home and now they can’t get rid of me! There are so many incredible people here that all have the same care for each other and for the work we do. My first day back was probably one of the most overwhelmingly wonderful days of my life. I know that my career, health, and wellbeing is safe in d3t’s hands where every day will challenge and continue to forge me into the producer and people advocate that I want to be!
What do you love about games?
As for a lot of people, games were the escapism I needed from a lot of things that were wrong in the world. They taught me compassion, history, love, adventure and how…erm fragile your Sims family can be. They take me to places of creativity and give me glimpses into different cultures, different mindsets, and the beauty of people’s minds from all over the world. I love being on that journey and now part of that journey. Just know that everything we do at d3t has nothing but love and passion behind every single detail we touch!
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
My favourite games are Metal Gear Solid and Suikoden 2. They just hit the right spots for me, but I would consider myself rather eclectic.
However, I’m currently living my ‘oh a piece of candy’ best life bopping between several games such as Horizon: Forbidden West, Dead Island 2, Life is Strange 2, Surviving the Aftermath and the occasional Crusader Kings 3 session. There are too many games that I want to play at once for my spicy brain to handle!
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
Fun fact – You can learn a whole lot about people depending on the weird questions you ask them pre-coffee. Definitely not about toes…curious? Well join our team and find out!
I’ve also recently picked up whittling and woodworking which is really calming and by the end you have some adorable little trinkets which my goblin heart adores.
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
I’ve always had a passion for games and have always been keen to make them myself. I therefore couldn’t believe that I could not only study Games Development at University, but that after doing so that I’d actually get my first industry job working on racing games at Evolution Studios.
Whilst there I helped craft the chaotic driving stampede of the MotorStorm series, which was then followed by the professional racing AI of DriveClub. We then went on to expand the franchise with DriveClub Bikes and the DriveClub VR edition.
I then moved on to work with Codemasters on Onrush, which was a real career highlight because I had the chance to build a new engine from scratch, which allowed me to put into practise a lot of ideas we’d all been waiting try out!
My latest role was with Avalanche Studios where I was code lead on Call of the Wild: The Angler. It was really interesting to work on something so different, where I had the chance of developing the new technologies needed for shipping a title on so many platforms!
Why d3t?
I found myself drawn to d3t because of how much positivity I’ve heard over the years about the studio’s attitude and values. I also really like the scope and range of projects, alongside the fantastic track record the studio has as a best place to work.
What do you love about games?
I love games for so many reasons. The way they can be immersive escapes, teach you new ways of solving challenges, be creative outlets or just simply be pure art, and so much more. I also love the fascinating technologies that drive games, and how it continues to be a space where we are all pioneers!
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
I love playing games with my family, and so I’m particularly drawn to all games with a good cooperative mode. We’ve found Sniper Elite to be a series we’ve come back to again and again, though with my daughter we spend more time on Minecraft!
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
Not everything I make is with a keyboard, I also love woodworking and have made many pieces of furniture dotted around our house. I also love whiskey, and so to combine these two loves I’ve built a 1920s themed prohibition bar in my shed!
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
I have enjoyed everything that I have worked on over the last 13 years, which has ranged from in-house engines to Unity and Unreal, and from gameplay and tools to backend and management. I am always looking for new challenges and different perspectives and am happy to learn and teach in equal measure.
Why d3t?
I’m looking forward to working on a variety of projects in different environments whilst collaborating with other experienced developers. d3t also has a reputation for employing good people and taking care of them, which was one of the main pulls to the studio.
What do you love about games?
They build a variety of skills and take us to a variety of places. Sometimes it’s nice to be immersed in a well-crafted setting, and other times it’s nice to have a challenging problem to solve or best performance to beat.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
I am currently playing Gladius and Dawn of War to scratch my Warhammer itch without buying new miniatures. It is difficult to pick a favourite game, but Civilization IV and StarCraft keep me coming back for more.
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
I like tabletop games and am running my first Mordheim campaign this year. I have been around competitive gaming since the 90s and it’s nice to see it continue to evolve. I also like gardening, painting, writing and philosophy. I’m also learning Italian (slowly).
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
Programming and making games are two things that I have been interested in my early years at primary school. Back then I used to play on the platform “ROBLOX” where the purpose was to develop experiences for other players and then share them with others. Even though I couldn’t understand it a great deal back then, it did put me on the track to start my programming career.
For the most part I have developed games in the Unity engine and have made use of C# to develop these games for my university projects. However, more recently I have taken a liking to C++ and the Unreal Engine. So, for my last year at University, I decided that my first Unreal Engine project would be my dissertation piece, which I found to be a great learning experience.
Why d3t?
I’ve always wanted to learn and better my skills as a programmer, and I feel like d3t will enable me to reach the goal of becoming a more experienced programmer.
With d3t being a co-development studio, I believe that this will allow me to gain a lot of experience in programming, not only from the varied projects that the studio is working on, but also from the experienced and talented team.
Furthermore, I’ve really enjoyed speaking to those that I have met at d3t so far and I believe that the studio offers a really great welcoming atmosphere.
What do you love about games?
One thing that I’ve always loved about games is trying to understand how things work. Most of the projects that I have worked on during my time at university have always been inspired by another game. This is because I enjoy trying to understand what it takes to make something great, and in particular something that I have loved sinking time into playing.
Furthermore, I really enjoy games because they offer the freedom that isn’t offered in the real world, you’re able to change who you are and experience many different stories.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
I never particularly stick to one game; I like to move between games a lot of the time. Though the genre that mostly interests me are racing games. Some of the racing games that I have played recently include the latest Forza Motorsport and EA’s WRC both of which have been great experiences. I really enjoy the fast-paced competitive nature of racing games because you always have to be on your toes thinking about every moment.
When it comes to my favourite game, this is a difficult one to choose. Warframe is one that always pulls me back, however, as a racing fan I also can’t forget to mention the early 2000 era of Need for Speed!
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
Other than playing video games, I like to go out and ride on my bicycle as I get to explore and see things as well as keeping myself in shape. I also enjoy vehicles and motorsports, rally in particular.
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
I started my career in 2011 working on a children’s TV programme for 10 months, after which I moved into the games industry. I worked at TT Games for just over 8 years in both their cutscene department on LEGO games and then in their R&D department developing game concepts as part of a small team.
I also spent 2 and a half years at Cubic Motion animating faces on some fun games like Until Dawn and Battlefield 4 and have just spent a year in Frontier Developments working on the cutscenes for Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin, and then in game animations for Planet Zoo: Eurasia Animal Pack.
Why d3t?
The studio’s culture was a big draw for me. So far everyone I’ve spoken to through the interview and new starter process has been so kind and considerate, and I’ve only heard good things about the studio from people I know who work here. I love the idea of working on a wide range of games, and of course, the dogs that greeted me in the studio on my second interview were the icing on the cake!
What do you love about games?
Recently a close friend who hadn’t played games before asked me what games I thought they would enjoy. This made me think about just how many different types of games there are out there, which can provide so many different fantastic experiences depending on what you’re looking for.
Sometimes I want to switch my brain off and play something cosy, and on a different occasion I’ll want to be challenged with combat to the point of my heart nearly pounding out of my chest. I love that both of these things and everything in between I can get from a game.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
I’m currently playing a couple of different games – Balders Gate 3, Dave the Diver, and Super Mario Bros Wonder. I usually enjoy having a few different games on the go at once so there’s something to suit my mood at the time.
Soulsborne games are some of my favourite games, along with Hollow Knight, and recently I was completely obsessed with Inscryption.
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
I love hiking, especially with my DSLR when abroad, and I’m really excited about a trip to Japan I’ve got planned later in the year. I enjoy a lot of anime and manga, and this year I’ve started learning Japanese. I’ve got 2 cats and 7 cat beds (not counting me, my husband, the sofa, or our bed).
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
I’ve had ten years in the games industry, mostly as a QA at various levels, but I’ve also had a dabble at vehicle handling design.
I’ve only worked on racing games so far, Driveclub being my first title, and WRC (23) being the most recent – so racing is my bread and butter really, and I can bring some skills in that regard, but I’m also keen to explore other genres with d3t too.
Why d3t?
Several reasons really:
I have some good friends who already work at d3t, people I met in the old Sony Evo studio down the road – and they’ve only said good things about d3t and the people there.
It’s an ambitious studio that seems to really look after the staff, and the whole ethos of the place just sounded right to me.
I also saw that the team did some work on Shenmue, which has a big place in my heart and gets me pretty nostalgic. It’d be great to get hold of another classic and work on it.
The location is also perfect for me, it’s within throwing distance of my previous studio, so I can cycle in if I want to!
I was looking at several other studios when I interviewed, but I can honestly say that this was the one I really wanted. I feel so lucky and grateful to have been accepted and cannot wait to start!
What do you love about games?
I’m old…like, really old, so I’ve played many, many games over the years – starting with the likes of Pong and Pacman, right through to the present day – there has never been a time where I haven’t had at least one or two systems and played games.
I love the escapism of it, doing things that I could never do in real life, like blasting a 20 yard overhead kick on EA SPORTS FC 24 for example.
And I love seeing the constant advances in the technology, of which there have been many in my 40+ years of gaming.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
EA SPORTS FC 24 and Call of Duty Modern Warfare III currently (I have to fit in what I can right now, whilst powering through the heavy work that comes with a 7 month old baby).
Favourite game though? It feels unfair to pick one! There are so many…Zelda Breath of the Wild, both of the recent God of War Games, the GTA’s, the Battlefields…I could go on and on!
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
I’m a passionate Liverpool FC supporter.
I like to play a bit of football too.
I love DJ/Mixing dance music alongside attending music festivals.
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
I’ve been working in the creative and games industry for something like sixteen years (but hey, who’s counting), and have truly seen it all – if it’s weird or colourful and involves a computer, I’ve probably worked on it at some point.
I cut my teeth in the digital agencies of Manchester, before then working for quite a while at the BBC as a Senior Games Dev on many of their BAFTA-winning projects, plus a cheeky stint as a Research Technologist in their exciting R&D labs.
I then went freelance, working on client projects for the likes of Sky, TATE, The Commonwealth Games and a zillion others. Over time, I began to shift into narrative design slowly, culminating in doing an MA in Creative Writing at the Manchester Writing School, which was a lot of fun.
I also started an indie company, PASSENGER, putting out a major work of interactive fiction called Closed Hands, which picked up an IGF nomination for Excellence in Narrative. Most recently, I spent a year working as a Senior Narrative Designer for Deep Silver Fishlabs on all sorts of unannounced AAA projects, which ended unexpectedly during this tumultuous period of games industry shuffling and closures. The results of which has led me to d3t, where I am extremely excited to begin my next adventure!
Why d3t?
Although I’ve travelled and exhibited my work all over the world, home is where the heart is – I’m a fiercely proud northern creative, and so finding a studio full of lovely people working on killer AAA games right on my doorstep was too exciting to not get involved with.
As with many folks, COVID really pushed me into a lot of remote work, and I’ve properly missed having an actual office full of good folks (and good coffee) to come and hang out in whilst we make some magic!
What do you love about games?
The people making them, and the scope of the industry. By this I mean that videogames really feel like a medium where there’s room for everything, and as a player I can dive into such an unreal range of experiences so easily now.
Sometimes I want that big widescreen AAA brain-melter, and sometimes I want someone with a story to reach out through their work, and connect with me more quietly, giving me an experience I haven’t had before. At both ends of the spectrum I feel like we’re in a real golden age for the medium, and I adore being part of it.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
I’m a total RPG dork who got a PS5 recently, so I’m currently deeply engrossed in Final Fantasy XVI, which is stunning if you’re into sheer spectacle. Obviously FF12 is the best Final Fantasy game, a fact which I’m sure nobody can disagree with me on whatsoever. I’m still also in awe of Baldur’s Gate 3: as both a designer and writer the way that game is put together absolutely fries my noodle, it is a masterpiece. I also get regularly distracted by smaller fun-sized experiences, I really love games that give me the good stuff in smaller doses – Dredge was a recent gem, and Cocoon was stellar.
Favourite game ever? The one I’ve completed the most is Super Metroid, by far. The game series I’m best at is Tony Hawks Pro Skater – statistically speaking, it’s very likely I will destroy you at Tony Hawks, try me! RPG-wise I’d probably put Persona 4 up there too, I’m a sucker for a weird JRPG.
Best console ever? The Dreamcast, clearly. Give me vibrant experimental weirdness all day!
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
When I’m not making videogames, I love printmaking, running D&D and tabletop games with my equally nerdy children, and banging my head at noisy metal shows. And… I really, really, really like jigsaw puzzles! A 3000-piece puzzle with a good podcast and a brew is the best way to unwind your brain ever – try it!
I guess my coolest fun fact is that a couple of years ago I had an RFID chip implanted into my hand, which means I can now wirelessly store data on a little computer chip that lives snugly inside my right hand. Painful, but what a cool pub trick, eh!
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
I’ve been in the games industry for a little over ten years, the majority of that time in animation production. I started on the bottom rung of the ladder and worked my way up through the production team, going on to manage the entire animation department in my last role. I’ve been lucky to have been able to work on dozens of titles across my career so far and to have worked with some truly exceptional people, something I look forward to continuing!
Why d3t?
The biggest thing which attracted me to d3t is the culture. From reviews I’ve read of the company, speaking with the team I’ve met so far, and the multiple “Best Places to Work” awards, d3t is clearly a studio that knows its biggest strength is its people.
The varied nature of projects on which the studio gets to collaborate is another big plus. Being a co-dev studio means that you get to work on a huge variety of different titles, spanning multiple genres and platforms. No day is the same!
What do you love about games?
I love the inclusive nature of games, there’s something for absolutely everyone. Whether you’ve only got 20 minutes to jump online with your friends, want to spend the evening cosied up with a chill sim, or are hosting a horror night to amp up the Halloween spirit, there’s a game out there which fits the bill.
The engagement of games is something I love as well, when you’re playing a game you’re present in that moment and it can pull you in because you’re not just an observer like with a film or TV show, you’re actively there and can put yourself in the shoes of that character or situation more easily.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
I’ve been playing Starfield and Cities: Skylines most recently because I love a good RPG and sink too many hours into sim & strategy games. You could just as easily find me relaxing with some Stardew Valley or Animal Crossing, and I can’t resist something with a great story like Until Dawn or Life is Strange (especially if it has a great soundtrack!).
Picking a favourite game is so tough because it depends so much on my mood, but Red Dead Redemption 2 really blew me away with its world design and environments. I loved getting lost in the world and the story was fantastic. I ended up taking a break for a couple of months before picking up the prologue because the main story emotionally drained me so much!
Some of my older favourites include classics like Ocarina of Time and a lot of that era of Nintendo, plus The Simpsons: Hit and Run is a game I often find myself going back to.
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
I enjoy the outdoors, going for walks and hikes and taking the opportunity to be away from screens for a bit. I feel lucky living in the North West since we’re so close to so many national parks. If I want to go out into the countryside and I’m feeling too lazy to walk up a big hill, then chances are I’ll go for a pootle on my motorbike around some country lanes.
Closer to home, I have a couple of small hobby programming projects which, though gaming-related, aren’t your traditional “make a game” projects.
Recently, I’ve also become a keen DIYer, meaning I’ve spent far too much money at B&Q with not very much to show for it.
