AAA, Indy and Mobile - Game Developers Network

Is it hard for programmers who work for mobile or indie companies to get a job in an AAA studio due to the difference in project scope? Does this lead to their experience being considered inferior to that of AAA developers?

Ask a Game Dev

MARCH 12, 2024

I've seen plenty of programmers who had experience working at smaller or mobile studios move to AAA games and many go in reverse. When we hire engineers for game dev, be it AAA or indie, we look for candidates who can work with a team and have a knack for solving problems with performant, legible, and elegant code.

AAA

AAA Indy Mobile Mobile

Former EA devs' Simply Sweet Games aims to "raise the bar for the entire industry"

GamesIndustry.biz

MARCH 7, 2024

Headquartered in British Columbia, Canada, Simply Sweet Games is a fully remote studio that is currently developing its inaugural mobile title – the roguelike word puzzle Criss Cross Castles. Merry and Kom have over thirty years of experience in AAA, mobile, and indie game development.

Electronics

Electronics AAA Puzzle Mobile

Pushing Unity to the Limit: How to Optimize Performance for AAA-Quality Gameplay

iXie gaming

APRIL 21, 2025

Unity, once synonymous with indie development, now stands as a serious contender for console-quality game builds. ASTC for mobile, DXT5 for PC), and eliminate over-resolved images. URP is tailored for performance-sensitive titles such as mobile or VR, while HDRP enables cinematic fidelity for high-end PC and console games.

AAA

AAA Asset Texture Baking

Survey finds more than half of game developers experience crunch

GamesIndustry.biz

SEPTEMBER 5, 2023

As reported by IGN , the entertainment union known as the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) collected data from hundreds of AAA, mobile, and indie developers between March and mid-August 2023. 57% of those surveyed said they most recently worked on an AAA game.

Game Developer

Game Developer Game Development AAA Development

Know How Much It Costs to Make a Game Before Investing!

Big Games

OCTOBER 10, 2023

Keep reading this blog to understand how mobile game development costs differ from AAA games. Will it be a 2D puzzle or an AAA game like Grand Theft Auto V? It may include– mobile devices like Android and iOS or other systems like PS and Xbox. Depending on these, you can make a budget-friendly game or the next GTA.

AAA

AAA Games Mobile Gaming Mobile

Introducing AWS GameTime – a new AWS Twitch show

AWS Games

MAY 12, 2023

In 2023, gaming is for everyone and we are proud to support the game developer community Video game creators are now able to share their vision and journey with a growing, global audience and gaming has been transformed by innovations in mobile devices, Augmented Reality / Virtual Reality and realistic, high-fidelity graphics.

Game Development

Game Development Game Developer AAA Development

On the topic of cutscenes, do you think we will get to the point where fully pre-rendered cutscenes will be phased out entirely? Are there any other advantages to having a cutscene be pre-rendered rather than in engine besides the cutscene being “prettier” than the base graphics?

Ask a Game Dev

NOVEMBER 1, 2023

As in-engine rendering improves, AAA games will likely move away from pre-rendered cutscenes but AAA games are far from the only games that use cutscenes and have engines that can render high quality cinematic visuals (e.g. mobile, consoles with weaker hardware specs, indie games) for important parts.

Cutscenes

Cutscenes Render Cinematics Engine

Predicting the Future of Supercell’s Brand New Studio

Deconstructor of Fun

DECEMBER 13, 2022

TWiG #212 - Apple's New Price Points / Game Genre Taxonomy pt 2 / Nintendo's Mobile Strategy ? As the Supercell blog post stated a year ago, “ We are establishing this new team to pursue a specific goal: assemble and enable the best talent in North America to create what’s next across any platform, not just mobile. Subscribe here!

Studios

Studios Mobile Mobile Console

The Three Game Industry Trends to Watch in 2024

Deconstructor of Fun

MAY 13, 2024

Post-lockdown, the demand for games dropped due to two key factors: Firstly, people are spending more time on outdoor activities and consuming more media on platforms like social media and streaming services, affecting gaming engagement, especially on mobile devices. Most AAA simply cannot afford the team sizes of today.

AI

AI Games AAA Media

5 Tactics for the Volatile PC/Console Market

Deconstructor of Fun

AUGUST 26, 2024

This evolving landscape presents opportunities for agile developers to thrive, even as AAA studios grapple with extended development cycles and rising costs. Mobile Opening Up: mobile gaming is set to grow by 3%, driven by improving economic conditions, platforms opening up, and increasing the success of existing big hits.

Console

Console PC AAA Cross platform

The Golden Age of Handheld Gaming

iXie gaming

FEBRUARY 23, 2024

Each device left an enduring mark on the gaming landscape, contributing to the evolution of portable gaming and influencing subsequent evolutions in the industry including today’s multi-billion-dollar mobile gaming landscape. Why are handhelds not as popular today? Handhelds have taken many different forms today.

Console

Console Games Fantasy Mobile

Goodfirms interview with Moonmana COO Iana Tkachenko

Moonmana

OCTOBER 31, 2022

Moonmana’s expert developers have created games for companies such as Warner Brothers, Azerion, Glu Mobile (parent company EA), Laguna Games, Rollic (parent company Zynga), Gameforge, Saber Interactive (parent company Embracer Group), Ruby Games (parent company Rovio), and a few others. “It

Concepts

Concepts Game Development Game Developer Development

The Showdown: Unity Vs. Godot Vs. Buildbox Vs Unreal Engine

SOVEREIGN MOON

OCTOBER 11, 2020

We’ve talked with many students in our online game development course for beginners , and we’ve seen great examples of beginners using all four of these game engines to produce spectacular indie games. Unity has a reputation for being a complex game engine designed to help developers make AAA games. Do you love game design?

Engine

Engine Engineering Visual Scripting Scripting

The top 22 mobile games of 2022

Game Analytics

DECEMBER 28, 2022

Masters of simulation, this studio is renowned for making popular sim games for mobile. But not only is it the first to make it to mobile, it’s also the first one to be free to play. Summoners War: Chronicles is yet another MMORPG to make it to mobile. It’s tricky taking any game from PC and Console to mobile.

Mobile Gaming

Mobile Gaming Mobile Mobile Games

Three Minutes to Eight developer Chaosmonger Studio “Multiple stories moving parallel”

PreMortem.Games

OCTOBER 27, 2023

The market is so saturated, that every little defect becomes an ‘elephant in the room’ for players that often compare a low-budget indie title to AAA games. The more you raise the bar, the more you risk disappointing somebody, especially if you don’t have AAA budgets.”

Pixel

Pixel Studios Development Film

Unity vs. Unreal: What to Choose for Your Game? | Moonmana

Moonmana

APRIL 7, 2023

Both Unity and Unreal are popular choices among giant game development studios as well as indie developers. Some say Unreal is better just because it’s a common choice for AAA studios. Unity is considered the best solution for mobile game development. Unity is the best option for indie developers and mobile game projects.

Engineering

Engineering Engine Game Engine Games

Game Developers Network

Is it hard for programmers who work for mobile or indie companies to get a job in an AAA studio due to the difference in project scope? Does this lead to their experience being considered inferior to that of AAA developers?

Former EA devs' Simply Sweet Games aims to "raise the bar for the entire industry"

Trending Sources

Pushing Unity to the Limit: How to Optimize Performance for AAA-Quality Gameplay

Survey finds more than half of game developers experience crunch

Know How Much It Costs to Make a Game Before Investing!

Introducing AWS GameTime – a new AWS Twitch show

On the topic of cutscenes, do you think we will get to the point where fully pre-rendered cutscenes will be phased out entirely? Are there any other advantages to having a cutscene be pre-rendered rather than in engine besides the cutscene being “prettier” than the base graphics?

Predicting the Future of Supercell’s Brand New Studio

The Three Game Industry Trends to Watch in 2024

5 Tactics for the Volatile PC/Console Market

The Golden Age of Handheld Gaming

Goodfirms interview with Moonmana COO Iana Tkachenko

The Showdown: Unity Vs. Godot Vs. Buildbox Vs Unreal Engine

The top 22 mobile games of 2022

Three Minutes to Eight developer Chaosmonger Studio “Multiple stories moving parallel”

Unity vs. Unreal: What to Choose for Your Game? | Moonmana

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