Page 20 - Issue263

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ـه1444 لاوس� ددـــــ ـــــعلا Forum 20
م2023 ويام

EDTECH CLUB

Sandsoft Games

Written by: Ayat Abodayeh (College of Computer and planning for long-term projects. The reason why
Science student, EdTech Club Editor) he highlighted the vision and the core values was to
advise attendees to look into them before considering
To indulge enthusiasts of the video gaming industry, employment since they will enhance their performance
EdTech Club organized a brilliant workshop presented in the job if they align with their needs as applicants.
by none other than the VP and head of the Sandsoft Sharing values is especially an important factor that
Games studio himself, Mr. Yahsir Qureshi. The workshop increases the likelihood of getting hired eventually. For
took place in Building-105, 2nd floor auditorium, as of instance, Mr. Yahsir explained how teamwork is the
February 13, 2023, and many people have attended primary skill they increasingly focus on; thus, they only
with curious minds from both campuses. It definitely hire people that could work best in teams. Finally, Mr.
was an extraordinary opportunity for everyone who was Yahsir talked about Sandsoft’s tribe system and how they
willing to network with important people in the gaming invest in teams not games, how it’s a mix of youth and
industry, and Mr. Yahsir was beyond eager to be of aid to experience, and about disruptors and opportunities.
students who wanted to go above and beyond.
Subsequently, he illustrated the game development
During the workshop, Mr. Yahsir talked about his process and the business-oriented aspect of game
experience and how he kept climbing to reach the lofty development. He gave many tips emanating from his
position he is at right now. It was surprising to everyone experience; for instance, he talked about how developers
that he graduated from law school, which is an indicator and publishers should have moderate expectations since
that anyone can reach their goal regardless of their not all ideas are successful. Indeed, there’s no standard
resources as long as they have set their mind on it. way for creating a game - it’s all about creativity and
Having more than 12 years of experience as he worked about the audience you’re targeting with your games.
on legendary franchises, Mr. Yahsir explained that he A lot of trial and error is made throughout the game
did not need technological skills but instead, he went development process, and it’s the primary method that
through a journey involving studio management which bolsters progress. Essentially, the ownership goes to the
definitely was the field he found himself in eventually. team. Hence, Mr. Yahsir advised the attendees to not
join the gaming industry unless they have the passion
After giving an introduction about his journey, he talked for it, for passion breeds creativity and resilience.
about Sandsoft Games itself and about its mission and People involved could invest in projects that are copycat
objectives, which aligned with Saudi Arabia’s Vision games, opportunistic games which enhance existing
2030. Sandsoft Games, a leading platform for video game games, and dreamer games that are brand new with a
developers and publishers, has recently established unique background.
its headquarters in Riyadh with an incentive to make
region-focused games for Middle Eastern players. The To conclude his workshop, Mr. Yahsir introduced the
company has massive ambitions with multiple offices Sansoft game jam for interested attendees who wish to
around the world. It publishes and invests in different compete in an event that gives them an opportunity to
video games and bolsters projects from different angles. get involved in the gaming industry. He also announced
Furthermore, Sandsoft Games has its own video game the Press Start program which is a paid internship
developers, and Mr. Yahsir encouraged students to opportunity for young and passionate game makers.
consider the company as a job opportunity to enhance The internship will assess their skills and based on that,
their skills in the field. Touching on its region-wide they are most likely to be hired since Sandsoft is looking
importance, he talked about the company’s visionary for professionals. He finally gave tips and helpful pieces
investors, the advisory board, and the team itself of advice to the attendees based on his experience and
including stakeholders like the popular Epic Games, Riot listened keenly to each of their inquiries. The workshop,
Games and Gameloft. He also introduced the stellar thus, was an incredible success for the EdTech Club and
leadership team and revealed to the attendees their a great opportunity for those who wish to achieve goals
outstanding achievements on an industrial level and the which can now no longer be deemed as unattainable!
amount of experience each member of the team has.
Mr. Yahsir took care to shed light on some of the
games the company has worked on and gave a
synopsis of each of them. He talked about how they
prioritize creating games for mobile phones since the
platform has the biggest number of players. Some of
the games he mentioned were Rambo Strike Force,
Sakkat Baloot, Fantasy Pick, and Infinite Drive. He also
gave the attendees insight about other games they’re
working on. After introducing their achievements, Mr.
Yahsir revealed the vision of the studio within Riyadh
especially: it is relentlessly player-focused with a
mission to bring the most compelling game experience
to ardent players. Some of the studio’s core values
he enumerated were: prioritizing the player since the
studio is game-focused not product-focused, having
unrelenting ambition in order to take bold risks, taking
interest in an entrepreneurial mindset, thriving together
as a team since teamwork is the basis of every project,