Rob Hewson
Huey Games Ltd
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Rob Hewson","company":"Huey Games Ltd","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/802E169A-AE3F-C230-C370-A47E3969D242.jpg","titles":"LEGO The Lord of the Rings, LEGO Batman 3","TalkName":"Survive Long Enough to Get Lucky","TalkDescription":"Drawing on 20 years of experience in game development\u2014including time as a Game Director of LEGO games and running a successful small studio for a decade\u2014this session offers a unique, veteran perspective on navigating the current challenging landscape of the industry.\n\nThis talk centres on the crucial philosophy of \"Survive Long Enough to Get Lucky\", providing attendees with actionable strategies to maintain resilience during tough times, and to successfully create and capitalise on opportunities","description":"CEO & Creative Director Rob Hewson has been a Lead Designer and Game Director at TT Games and other studios, and has worked directly with the likes of Disney, Warner Brothers, Universal, DC Comics, Microsoft, Sega and Konami leading the design of hit games like LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens, LEGO Jurassic World, LEGO Batman 3, LEGO The Hobbit, LEGO Legends of Chima, LEGO The Lord of the Rings and Hydrophobia. At Huey Games he has secured major clients including Konami, Devolver, Marvelous Eu","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 11:00 - 11:50","AllSpeakers":"","CompanyLogo":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/023C408A-B3B8-99CD-6074-96FCAFE42DC0.webp"}
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Radomir Mirchev","company":"-","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/02710774-3AFD-A0B2-50D5-E3ED1FD4BBB3.jpg","titles":"Jagged Alliance 3, Surviving Mars, Bright Future","TalkName":"Jagged Alliance 3 Narrative: Designing Characters People Actually Remember","TalkDescription":"This talk is a post-mortem of the narrative work on Jagged Alliance 3, focusing on how to create memorable characters and make players actually care about their decisions.\nIt covers the challenges of building a sequel to a beloved franchise \u2013 expanding its world with more content, deepening its decision branches and consequences, and still staying true to the original\u2019s tone.\nThe session also includes practical advice on narrative design documentation and writing workflows.","description":"Radomir Mirchev is the narrative designer behind Jagged Alliance 3, responsible for the game\u2019s worldbuilding, story, NPC, and most of its quest content. \r\nHe has worked on multiple indie projects, including Surviving Mars at Haemimont Games. \r\nDesigner of the long-running Stalker Bulgaria live-action series (2009\u20132022). \r\nCreator of Bulgaria\u2019s first Kickstarter-funded board game and publisher of two successful KS titles.","jobTitle":"Narrative Designer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":"","CompanyLogo":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/0525D464-E847-9941-9B97-BAA6127C3345.png"}
Csaba Szilagyi
North Beach Games Prague
{"Filter":"Other","FilterValue":"Other","Name":"Csaba Szilagyi","company":"North Beach Games Prague","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/22D14A5B-72BE-D958-1846-4847BC1FD27D.jpg","titles":"Cyberpunk 2077, Metal Eden, Crysis 3","TalkName":"The Road to Cyberpunk 2077 and Building a Career Beyond the Dream Project","TalkDescription":"A behind-the-scenes look at how Csaba started his career and reached the Cyberpunk 2077 development team, what he learned along the way, and why he eventually chose a new direction. It\u2019s not just about the big project. It\u2019s about growth, change, and discovering what truly matters in your career.","description":"Csaba is the Art Director at North Beach Games Prague with 20+ years of experience, specializing in hard-surface modelling. He has contributed to major titles such as Cyberpunk 2077, The Witcher 3, Metal Eden, Crysis 3, Ryse: Son of Rome and many more.","jobTitle":"Art Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 16:00 - 16:50","AllSpeakers":"","CompanyLogo":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/9FFDFD80-6D58-634B-22D2-1C4951F9446D.png"}
Teut Weidemann
Freelance Consultant
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Teut Weidemann","company":"Freelance Consultant","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/95946A7B-0185-23DE-BAAD-787B87359538.jpg","titles":"Assassins Creed Black Flag, Settlers Online","TalkName":"Learnings from 40 years games industry","TalkDescription":"I have been making games for over 40 years. A lot of things changed, but many remained the same, so we can all learn from them. So, will walk through some of these key learnings which still apply today and also kill some myths I am hearing again and again just to show you how ridiculous they are from today. At last I try to show you where we are heading from now on in our awesome industry.","description":"Teut Weidemann is a game producer for nearly 40 years now and works as a freelance consultant for f2p & GaaS since 2007, with clients like Supercell, Ubisoft, Jagex, Rovio, Techland, CD Project among his clients. He ran his own dev studio for 10 years with an exit and was CEO of CDG AG. He worked on over 100 titles on most platforms since 8bit was born. \r\nHe is a well known & awarded keynote speaker and loves to share his passion for everything games.","jobTitle":"F2p & Gaas consulting","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 14:30 - 15:20","AllSpeakers":"","CompanyLogo":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/73CB0558-D9A0-B548-D566-6E897D3AFFA5.png"}
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Vlad Ceraldi","company":"Offworld","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/A593F03E-8318-9900-B24C-3C3D282ED30B.jpg","titles":"Simpsons Hit & Run, Kill Shot Bravo, Squad","TalkName":"The Long Game: Evolving from Startup to Sustainable Studio","TalkDescription":"In gaming, early success can be brief\u2014sustaining success long-term requires vision, resilience, and constant reinvention. Vlad Ceraldi offers insights from his career and on Offworld\u2019s 10-year journey from startup beginnings to a global studio, sharing valuable lessons on growth, community, leadership, and the business mechanics behind creative independence. Attendees will leave with practical tips to grow responsibly while staying true to their core values.","description":"Vlad is the CEO of Offworld and a gaming executive with over 25 years of experience building and leading companies, studios, and teams to deliver top-performing games across various platforms. He has held diverse roles throughout his career, including Lead Programmer, Technical Director, Producer, Executive Producer, SVP of Studios, and CEO.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 16:00 - 16:50","AllSpeakers":"","CompanyLogo":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/12\/3A7E8201-AC92-E19B-B21B-0FDA793ADCA4.png"}
Tobias Sjögren
Video Games Consulting
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Tobias Sj\u00f6gren","company":"Video Games Consulting","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/ACD249F7-B22A-39EE-0829-D6C95B32802D.jpg","titles":"Battlefield 1942, Rallisport Challenge, Payday 3","TalkName":"Lean Production - what can we learn from others","TalkDescription":"How come game budgets increased so much even though we have experience and tools to develop games more efficiently? The book The Toyota Way introduced the philosophy of Lean Production and in this talk we will challenge ourselves about how to think differently and learn from others in order to produce games faster and better.","description":"Tobias started as a games programmer in 1996 and has since been based in Stockholm, Sweden. He was studio head of DICE Stockholm where Battlefield 1942 was produced. Since then he held management and business development roles at companies line DDM, Paradox, White Wolf Entertainment and Starbreeze.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 11:00 - 11:50","AllSpeakers":"","CompanyLogo":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/44B12326-2AFE-CB13-A237-69F1CA45C9CC.png"}
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Anselm Pyta","company":"Studio Seufz","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/AD4E1071-5FF0-B42D-128D-506B217B0933.jpg","titles":"The Longing, Lucky Tower, Murder","TalkName":"Fireside Chat","TalkDescription":"Fireside Chat","description":"Anselm Pyta co-founded the German animation and games studio \u201cStudio Seufz.\u201d He is the creator of the idle-adventure hybrid \u201cThe Longing\u201d (2020), where he was responsible for artwork, writing, game design, and sound. He started out by making viral web games like \u201cLucky Tower\u201d (2010) or \u201cMurder\u201d (2014). Currently, he is working on \u201cLucky Tower Ultimate,\u201d a humorous roguelike set to be released from Early Access in 2026. His next project will be a spiritual sequel to \u201cThe Longing.\u201d","jobTitle":"Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 14:30 - 15:20","AllSpeakers":""}
Diego Ricchiuti
Focus Home & Caracal Games
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Diego Ricchiuti","company":"Focus Home & Caracal Games","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/A278E6BE-D843-D07C-A705-700D31563A02.jpg","titles":"Star overdrive, A Quiet Place and Dying Light 2","TalkName":"Leveraging AI And LLMs To Transform Collaboration In Teams","TalkDescription":"Discover how AI and Large Language Models can transform collaboration and communication in game development teams. This talk explores practical workflows.","description":"16 years of experience in the game industry, Diego worked in AAA and AA, he is aalso a published author by CRC press with a book on game design (Game Design Tools) and one about game publishing (The game business guide book). He works for various studios and publishers as creative director and consultant.","jobTitle":"Creative Director and Consultant","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 14:00 - 14:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Theodore Hilhorst
2K Czech
{"Filter":"Art","FilterValue":"Art\/Audio","Name":"Theodore Hilhorst","company":"2K Czech","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/4D12064A-978D-59A6-3E31-F9F00E33C443.jpg","titles":"Mafia the Old Country & Mafia Definitive Edtition","TalkName":"Mafia the Old Country | Seamless Cinematics Deep Dive","TalkDescription":"Join us for a deep dive into the creation process of seamless transition between gameplay and cinematics, as we developed them in Mafia: The Old Country. Learn how to keep players engaged and make cinematics feel like an integral part of the game world. Explore practical approaches, do's and don'ts, and how to avoid common but costly pitfalls, that will keep your producer happy. From narrative to planning, from design to tech, from mocap to animation, we'll break down how to get rid of the cut!","description":"Senior technical mission designer working on AAA titles, client-based work, and personal projects for over 10 years. \r\n\r\nAlthough recently I'm mostly known for my work on Mafia the Old Country doing missions 4 (Il Barone) & 10 (La Festa), building technically complex set pieces and of course the seamles stransitions.\r\n\r\nDuring this conference I'll present a talk about Seamless Transitions together with the cinematic artist: Igor Sobolev","jobTitle":"Senior Technical Mission Designer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Art","FilterValue":"Art\/Audio","Name":"Igor Sobolev","company":"Hangar 13","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/5DA89435-3C83-21BB-9B06-182588FE7FE5.jpeg","titles":"Mafia: The Old Country","TalkName":"Mafia the Old Country | Seamless Cinematics Deep Dive","TalkDescription":"Join us for a deep dive into the creation process of seamless transition between gameplay and cinematics, as we developed them in Mafia: The Old Country. Learn how to keep players engaged and make cinematics feel like an integral part of the game world. Explore practical approaches, do's and don'ts, and how to avoid common but costly pitfalls, that will keep your producer happy. From narrative to planning, from design to tech, from mocap to animation, we'll break down how to get rid of the cut!","description":"Cinematic Artist with the background in live action directing, and a gamer at heart. I have a strong grasp of the visual arts of film and video games, and knowhow to tell compelling stories that click with players.","jobTitle":"Senior Cinematic Artist","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Jiří Vašica
Perun Creative
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Ji\u0159\u00ed Va\u0161ica","company":"Perun Creative","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/8A2C2BE8-33B7-779A-A21A-8DFDB62DCD3F.jpg","titles":"Hobo: Tough Life, Kvark, Kromlech","TalkName":"Going from indie hell to AA chaos","TalkDescription":"What happens when a small indie team suddenly decides to \u201clevel up\u201d? This talk dives into our journey from a 4-person indie studio to nearly 30 developers, switching from Unity to Unreal, and from pure creative freedom to full-blown production chaos. I\u2019ll share what worked, what didn\u2019t, and what we wish we knew before taking the leap from indie to AA development.","description":"Ji\u0159\u00ed Va\u0161ica is co-founder and CEO of Perun Creative. Worked as the producer and lead programmer of the award-winning game Hobo: Tough Life. Currently is working on the upcoming next-gen game Kromlech.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 12:00 - 12:50","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Art","FilterValue":"Art\/Audio","Name":"Ivan \u010cerevko","company":"Hangar 13","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/187BA6E5-8115-7167-DCAA-21B78472AC1A.jpg","titles":"KCD:1, KCD:2, Mafia: The Old Country","TalkName":"Mafia: The Old Country: Using MetaHuman in a AAA Character Pipeline","TalkDescription":"Walkthrough of the Metahuman technology integration for Mafia: The Old Country, behind the scenes of the heads and hair assets creation.","description":"Ivan Cerevko is a Principal Character Artist with over 13 years of experience in the game industry. He began his career at Warhorse Studios, where he contributed to the critically acclaimed Kingdom Come: Deliverance and its sequel, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II. In his recent role at Hangar 13, he continues to push artistic and technical boundaries on the game Mafia: The Old Country.","jobTitle":"Lead Character Artist","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 13:30 - 14:20","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Art","FilterValue":"Art\/Audio","Name":"Mike Bodie","company":"Voice Actor","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/4601883A-DB91-F041-10F6-EB80DDB42C7F.jpg","titles":"The Division 2, Star Wars: BF 2, Borderlands 4","TalkName":"Casting Actors","TalkDescription":"Asking an actor to audition for your game is a complex process; even more so for the actor if they\u2019re given a less than ideal audition brief. Lack of context, information, and instruction can turn what could be a great performance into an MP3 destined for the desktop trash. In \u201cCasting Actors\u201d you\u2019ll see the breakdown process and then a live-audition by an actor leading all the way up to delivery from the actor\u2019s perspective.","description":"Mike is an Olivier-Award nominated, and 5 x One Voice Award-winning classically trained Actor\/VO, VO Director, Performance Capture artist based in London and Los Angeles. He has over +150 game titles as a VO, and is one of the founders and performers in the Olivier and Tony award-winning theatre company Mischief Theatre. Some of his previous AAA VO work in games includes WOLFENSTEIN 2, STAR WARS: BATTLEFRONT 2, THE DIVISION 2, CONTROL, GHOST RECON: BREAKPOINT, STAR CITIZEN, SEA OF THIEVES","jobTitle":"VO Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Pavel Barák
Czech Game Developers Association
{"Filter":"Edu","FilterValue":"Industry Support","Name":"Pavel Bar\u00e1k","company":"Czech Game Developers Association","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/769F8488-8CBC-7446-C45D-20A09B053CD7.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Ceremonial Signing of the Memorandum","TalkDescription":"The ceremonial signing of a memorandum to support the future development of the Prague Game Accelerator marks an important milestone for strengthening the game development ecosystem in Prague. The agreement reflects a shared commitment to fostering talent, education, and collaboration between academia and industry. It establishes a framework for long-term cooperation and the growth of future editions of the program.","description":"Pavel has been active in the game industry for more than 20 years. A co-founder and chairman of the Czech Game Developers Association (GDACZ). For the past ten years, he has been the director of the oldest independent game development conference in Europe, the Game Developers Session, which is also one of the largest game conferences in the region. In 2005, he founded Handjoy, a game development studio that specializes in mobile and advertising games and has released more than 10 titles.","jobTitle":"Chairman","TalkLanguage":"Czech","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 11:30 - 11:55","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Law","hall":"Summit Hall","start":"Friday 14:00 - 14:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Power-Up for Developers: Financing Games Through the New Czech Video Game Incentives Scheme"}]}
Patrik Beck
Sim Companies s.r.o.
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Patrik Beck","company":"Sim Companies s.r.o.","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/C712F987-263F-C728-05EA-09BD25D1B4A7.jpg","titles":"Sim Companies","TalkName":"Evolving Passion Projects Into A Business","TalkDescription":"Patrik will share his journey of evolving his passion project into a business with thousands of users world wide. Sim Companies, an online business simulation game, boasts over 25,000 daily active users and 4.8\/5 rating with millions of downloads across mobile platforms.\n\nDo you want to know which challenges the project faced, and how we overcome them? Which marketing approaches worked, and which didn't? How to use data-centric approach to set up your project for success?","description":"Patrik started his career as a C\/C++ engineer in the finance industry in the UK and New York. Shortly after moving to Prague, he started working on a browser-based game hobby project, which eventually led to the founding of the multiplayer business simulation strategy game, Sim Companies.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 13:00 - 13:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Arnaud Briche
Unity Software
{"Filter":"Technical","FilterValue":"Technical","Name":"Arnaud Briche","company":"Unity Software","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/93FFE6EE-0E87-9A78-B0D8-3A2CEF13E320.jpg","titles":"Assassin's Creed: Nexus VR","TalkName":"Thread Lightly: Parallelizing Gameplay and Tools with the Job System","TalkDescription":"Learn how to leverage Unity\u2019s Job System outside ECS, from Editor baking to runtime logic. \r\nThis talk explores how to integrate parallelism into your existing workflows without adopting the full DOTS stack. We\u2019ll look at practical examples like baking static data and iterating through it, showing how Jobs can speed up editor-time, build-time and runtime operations while keeping your project structure clean, modular, and scalable.","description":"Senior Partner Engineer at Unity, empowering developers to maximize engine potential through technical guidance and optimization strategies. Previously Senior Gameplay Engineer at Ubisoft developing core parkour mechanics and VR interactions for the award-winning Assassin's Creed Nexus VR (Meta Quest Game of the Year 2023). Active gamejam mentor and performance optimization enthusiast, bridging technical excellence with community growth across C# and C++ development.","jobTitle":"Senior Partner Engineer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 16:00 - 16:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Mark Deuze
University of Amsterdam
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Mark Deuze","company":"University of Amsterdam","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/5641446E-F0B7-92CC-1FFC-1DC5E31C706F.jpg","titles":"Books: Media Work, Well-Being and Creative Careers","TalkName":"Well-Being and Working in Games: What Makes You Happy Can Also Make You Sick","TalkDescription":"The media industries generally, and games in particular, thrive on the passion, but that passion often comes at a cost. Behind the glamour of working in the media lies a growing crisis\u2014one of burnout, anxiety, abuse, and exhaustion. Why do so many professionals report feeling both deeply fulfilled and profoundly unwell? How did we get this far, and what can be done? Mark Deuze maps the systemic issues that make creative work both exhilarating and unsustainable, and offers a way out.","description":"Mark Deuze is Professor of Media Studies at the University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Awards include a Fulbright scholarship at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles (US), a Research Fellowship at Leeds University (UK), and several honorary appointments at universities in the UK, Australia, Portugal, Germany, and Russia. Publications of his work include 14 books, most recently \u201cWell-Being and Creative Careers: What Makes You Happy Can Also Make You Sick\u201d (Intellect, 2025).","jobTitle":"Professor of Media Studies","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 11:00 - 11:50","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Art","FilterValue":"Art\/Audio","Name":"Adam Sporka","company":"Embody","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/290A5191-050E-A7AD-17DB-8A6712876822.jpg","titles":"Kingdom Come: Deliverance I, II","TalkName":"The Essentials of Procedural Game Audio","TalkDescription":"You can sculpt sounds at the sample level! This session explores how designing custom synthesizers introduces creative constraints that foster originality. We\u2019ll cover the principles of coding audio generators and demonstrate how they can respond directly to gameplay parameters\u2014such as player speed, item state, or environmental cues. The underlying logic can be integrated into middleware like Wwise or FMOD, ensuring your game\u2019s audio remains distinctive, cohesive, and highly scalable.","description":"Adam Sporka is a game audio researcher, developer, and educator, specializing in interactive music and sound. He composed for Kingdom Come: Deliverance I & II, served as KCD II\u2019s technical music director, and created the Sequence Music Engine which handled the music in the games. He is a principal engineer at Embody, a spatial audio technology start-up. Adam also teaches game audio at University of California, Santa Cruz and holds a Ph.D. in HCI. You can reach him at Twitter @adam_sporka.","jobTitle":"Principal Engineer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 11:30 - 12:20","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Art","FilterValue":"Art\/Audio","Name":"Dominik Regec","company":"Hangar 13","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/3F6DA67F-2EF8-3025-715B-9B1BE5657B1B.jpg","titles":"MAFIA III, MAFIA: DE, MAFIA: The Old Country","TalkName":"Mafia: The Old Country: World & Biomes","TalkDescription":"In this session, Hangar 13 showcases how they created early 20th century Sicily nature through detailed landscapes and biomes in Mafia: The Old Country.\r\nWe will go through how the creation of the world proceeded through project lifetime. What were the major steps in videogame development from pre-production to finalization phases. Everything is accompanied by example references, images and graphs to help us understand the processes and challenges.","description":"As the Lead Environment Artist at Hangar 13, I am passionate about creating immersive and realistic environments, notably for the acclaimed MAFIA franchise. I have 15+ years of professional practice in 3D graphics, realtime rendering and game development, including 5 years of work experience in the USA.\r\nDuring my career I went through various art & tech-art disciplines: creation of props, vehicles, buildings, production of game city districts, mission set-pieces and even whole game worlds.","jobTitle":"Lead Environment Artist","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 12:00 - 12:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Jonathan Court
Grip Studios
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Jonathan Court","company":"Grip Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/BCF5A9D5-FD95-038C-5DED-03CB21C08AC3.jpg","titles":"Alien Isolation, Halo Wars 2, Bob's Bad Day: Amiga","TalkName":"How To Keep Your Project On Course When Plans Fall Apart","TalkDescription":"Every game starts with a vision \u2014 but the path from concept to launch is never straightforward.\nJoin Jonathan Court, Executive Producer at GRIP Studios, as he shares how to keep a project on course when plans fall apart. Learn how planning becomes a creative tool to adapt, anticipate change, and still deliver something extraordinary.\nPacked with real examples and hard-earned insights, this talk reveals what it takes to guide teams through chaos to success.","description":"BAFTA-winning producer Jonathan Court is a veteran game development leader with decades of experience delivering award-winning AAA titles across multiple genres and platforms. He has overseen more than 20 releases, including Alien: Isolation, Halo Wars 2, Spartan: Total Warrior, and Hyenas. Jonathan is currently Executive Producer at GRIP Studios, leading an unannounced project.","jobTitle":"Executive Producer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 11:00 - 11:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Tomáš Hoffman
Grip Studios
{"Filter":"Technical","FilterValue":"Technical","Name":"Tom\u00e1\u0161 Hoffman","company":"Grip Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/5A9C0826-69F9-FEF3-D13D-2498457A709A.jpg","titles":"Firefighting Simulator: Ignite, ATS, ETS2","TalkName":"10 Useful Tips for Porting Your Game","TalkDescription":"Making your game multi-platform by porting to consoles and online storefronts is a great way to reach a wider audience. Without proper preparation, however, the process can quickly become expensive, confusing, and time-consuming. Tom\u00e1\u0161 shares practical advice for a smoother porting journey, from engineering insights like managing crossplay, to production tips that help your team navigate platform requirements with confidence.","description":"With more than six years in game development, Tom\u00e1\u0161 has built his career around solving complex technical challenges in simulation games. On his last project, Firefighting Simulator: Ignite, he led the porting to PS5 and Xbox Series X\/S and now works as a Technical Producer at Grip Studios on an upcoming, unannounced title.","jobTitle":"Technical Producer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 15:00 - 15:25","AllSpeakers":""}
Vlad Baderca
Bohemia Interactive
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Vlad Baderca","company":"Bohemia Interactive","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/D5583A6D-7A82-9824-1C35-77B472A21281.png","titles":"World of Tanks, DayZ","TalkName":"To Lead or Not to Lead? Finding Your Path in Game Development","TalkDescription":"Are you a video game developer curious about advancing your career? \r\nAre you wondering about what it takes to be a department lead? \r\nWhat do leads even do anyways??\r\n\r\nThis talk will demystify how leadership roles compare to hands-on development, but most importantly will help YOU decide if it's the direction you want to take you video game career!","description":"Vlad is a Romanian-Canadian game developer who has turned a lifelong passion for gaming into a career in engineering and leadership. After working as a programmer on World of Tanks, he now serves as Engineering Lead on DayZ. Having lived and worked across Canada, the Nordics, and the Czech Republic, Vlad brings a global perspective and a deep love for games that connect players around the world.","jobTitle":"Engineering Lead","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 11:00 - 11:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Vadim Petrov
Warhorse Studios
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Vadim Petrov","company":"Warhorse Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/BDF097B6-DECA-2D25-3DEA-CBFF102E1ACB.jpg","titles":"Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2","TalkName":"Design For Everything In Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2","TalkDescription":"We will explore the relation of design and iteration on the example of NPC sight in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2. How we made NPCs see in a realistic, open world RPG, what we thought is going to work and what we actually had to do. What it takes to tune a system to behave in both scripted and emergent situations, to provide enjoyable but nontrivial gameplay and enhance immersion. We will be reminded of lessons that might seem basic but still could pose a challenge over 10+ years of development.","description":"Vadim Petrov is a game developer specializing in AI and audio programming, with a passion for creating responsive, immersive systems. From designing intelligent NPCs to implementing adaptive music and real-time sound behaviors, Vadim loves to create environments that draw the audience in. In his free time he develops custom software tools for live musical performance \u2014 crafting interactive environments and reactive visuals that respond to musicians in real time.","jobTitle":"AI Programmer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 11:00 - 11:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Martin Boháč
Allodium Games & Ionic Games
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Martin Boh\u00e1\u010d","company":"Allodium Games & Ionic Games","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/A780B8AC-4C38-8D06-3C4D-9EE478F799D2.jpg","titles":"Infinitum 1&2, Sazka Fantasy","TalkName":"Business Crash Course","TalkDescription":"Based on my lectures given in the Prague Game Accelerator and my 21 year of experience in running companies. I will tell you how to set up a company if that's really needed. We will look on how to spot good and bad people to do business with, how to avoid many pitfalls of doing bad decisions early and how to keep costs low and profits high. If you plan to start a studio or you are fresh to the scene, this talk will save you from a lot of suffering. All based on my actual experience.","description":"Martin founder Allodium in 2007 and led development of two big online MMO browser-based games and later Fantasy Sports game which led to Allodium becoming a major supplier of online scratchcards for national lotteries. Martin also founder GameDevHub, an online school for game professionals. Lately Martin launched a new studio called Ionic Games, which is developing a hex-based strategy game Cyberpolis.","jobTitle":"Executive Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 13:00 - 13:50","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Mat\u011bj Hlo\u017e\u00e1nek","company":"Herdek","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/DB69AC48-1488-73CD-72F2-F3D225F40352.jpg","titles":"Pr\u0161\u00ed, Fotr, Perpeter","TalkName":"Mechanics As Meaning","TalkDescription":"This talk will explore procedural rhetoric, a concept described by Ian Bogost as the way in which game mechanics communicate meaning and arguments. Drawing on my Master's thesis on metaphors of growth in game design, I will present practical examples from games to demonstrate how we, as creators, can engage with procedural rhetoric. We will then discuss how procedural rhetorics can be analysed, demonstrating how mechanics can symbolise and convey meaning beyond explicit narrative.","description":"I am a co-founder of Herdek, which develops the game Pr\u0161\u00ed (prshee) \u2013 a game that won awards at Games for Change in New York and the Aware Games at Blon, and was nominated for the Digital Moment Award at A MAZE Berlin. I studied game design at FAMU in Prague and focus on creating small, meaningful games with a socially critical dimension. I am particularly interested in what game mechanics can symbolize and how to work with metaphors in game design.","jobTitle":"co-founder","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 15:30 - 16:20","AllSpeakers":""}
Milan Hrycjuk
Perun Creative
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Milan Hrycjuk","company":"Perun Creative","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/49D30789-4D56-803A-50AB-2ECE62D57D9C.jpg","titles":"Kromlech, Hobo: Tough Life","TalkName":"Kromlech: Between Sword and Myth \u2013 How to Build Fantasy That Respects History","TalkDescription":"Fantasy often borrows from history, but rarely understands it. Kromlech draws from the material culture of La T\u00e8ne Europe \u2014 from real weapons, garments, and architecture \u2014 and reshapes it into a world of sword & sorcery. This talk explores how historical accuracy can strengthen both authenticity and atmosphere in a fictional world, and why history should be treated not as a backdrop, but as a tool for world-building identity. In short, how to design a world where magic and ritual feel believable","description":"Milan Hrycjuk is a game designer at Perun Creative, currently working on the roguelite action RPG Kromlech. With a background in film directing and UX\/UI design, he approaches games as a dialogue between story, space, and player intent. Years of LARP design and Celtic La T\u00e8ne reenactment shape his view of authenticity and myth as two sides of the same creative process.","jobTitle":"Game Developer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 15:00 - 15:25","AllSpeakers":""}
Ondrej Sakači
Warhorse Studios
{"Filter":"Technical","FilterValue":"Technical","Name":"Ondrej Saka\u010di","company":"Warhorse Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/B0E94F04-DEC7-5D4E-CD85-E3AB859F4E45.jpg","titles":"Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2","TalkName":"Unforseen Consequences - The Caveats of Planning and How to React to the Unplanned","TalkDescription":"Talk about planning for release, finishing and polishing, and about the fact that anything that can go wrong will go wrong. But that doesn't mean it has to stay that way. There is just one question remaining: How to approach this?\r\nSmall post mortem by the tools developer and kind of \"man Friday\" about the last two years of development of the Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 and the difficulties we faced and how we overcame them.","description":"Technical artist working for Warhorse Studios with broad scope of skills but mainly focused on Enviromental Art. Finished Software Engineering at CTU in Prague and tried a bit of Graphics Programming and UX\/UI studies. Helped primarily prior to \/and with the release of Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2.","jobTitle":"Technical Artist","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 14:30 - 14:55","AllSpeakers":""}
Emanuele Ardolino
Bohemia Interactive
{"Filter":"Edu","FilterValue":"Industry Support","Name":"Emanuele Ardolino","company":"Bohemia Interactive","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/96E11D7C-B0E4-1F50-10EB-D0907AE42969.jpg","titles":"Arma Reforger","TalkName":"The 3 Core Principles Of A Successful Educational Program In A Game Studio","TalkDescription":"In today\u2019s evolving game industry, impactful learning isn\u2019t just about courses or tutorials\u2014it\u2019s about building an environment where creativity and innovation thrive, both internally and in your player community. Drawing from my journey at BUas and Bohemia Interactive, where I organized game jams and modding boot camps, I\u2019ll share a distilled framework: Accessibility, Engagement, and Sustainability.","description":"Emanuele Ardolino, Producer at Bohemia Interactive currently working on Arma Reforger and Arma 4. With a background in art history and exhibition curation - he moved to the gaming industry aiming to create engaging video game experiences blending art, entertainment and fun.","jobTitle":"Producer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 13:30 - 13:55","AllSpeakers":""}
Michal Karzynski
Monster Couch
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Michal Karzynski","company":"Monster Couch","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/9C3495D8-5C84-C71B-F1D4-1875DFEA2E39.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"The Effective Hiring At Monster Couch And Why It Works","TalkDescription":"The first step of recruitment is the decision not to hire at all. If you, however, decide on recruitment, come and listen to how an indie studio can do it while staying focused on great people and keeping its retention high. In this talk, it will be shown how the book \"The Effective Hiring Manager\" is put into practice in Monster Couch, with strong emphasis on the team manager's role in the recruitment process.","description":"Operations Manager in the Polish studio Monster Couch. With years of experience in developing the Pyrkon Fan Festival and building up other organisations, I am currently focusing on all operational procedures and employee growth in Monster Couch.","jobTitle":"Operations Manager","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 15:00 - 15:50","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Alex Tarren","company":"HotA Crew","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/E26BE8BA-08DB-4E42-9E82-3BEF58DA4FAF.jpg","titles":"Heroes of Might and Magic III: Horn of the Abyss","TalkName":"Behind-the-Scenes \u2013 Factory Faction in Heroes of Might & Magic III","TalkDescription":"Horn of the Abyss (HotA) is a meticulously crafted fan-made expansion for Heroes of Might and Magic III, designed to seamlessly integrate with the original game's mechanics and aesthetics. The talk aims to unveil behind-the-scenes stories from the development process of the long-awaited Factory faction, inspired by steampunk & blending together technology and nature. The talk covers multiple topics \u2013 ranging from art and design, music and sound, to single and multiplayer content.","description":"Alex T. is a developer at HotA Crew, deeply passionate about the HoMM series and its legacy. He joined the team a few years ago, contributing to a project with nearly two decades of history. Throughout the period, HotA Crew has consistently delivered updates and enhancements to their beloved game, preserving its essence while expanding its horizons.","jobTitle":"Developer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
David Bobek
Warhorse Studios
{"Filter":"Technical","FilterValue":"Technical","Name":"David Bobek","company":"Warhorse Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/7581B61F-3B59-3C74-C519-F21E28510EFA.jpg","titles":"Kingdom Come: Deliverance II","TalkName":"Automated Testing Of Quests In Kingdom Come: Deliverance II","TalkDescription":"As quests in Kingdom Come: Deliverance II are not linear and the player has freedom in how to approach them, there are a huge number of combinations that need to be thoroughly tested. That is why we have incorporated automated testing into our processes. In this talk we will go over how we approached automated testing in KCD2, what the process looked like from test creation to iterations during active development, what worked for us and what didn\u2019t, focusing mainly on automation of quest testing","description":"David Bobek joined Warhorse Studios in 2022 as a QA Tester, where he worked on automated testing and compliance testing of Kingdom Come: Deliverance II.","jobTitle":"QA Lead","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 11:00 - 11:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Filip Ondras
vector virtuoso
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Filip Ondras","company":"vector virtuoso","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/676000BD-31DB-84E7-9385-4452D5A101A6.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Gamedev Studios Are Businesses - Treat Them Accordingly","TalkDescription":"Publishers and investors focus on three pillars when investing in a game studio: 1) game experience, 2) financial health, and 3) internal processes for growth. Studios handle the first, we handle the rest.\nOur talk covers the two often-overlooked pillars crucial for investors, publishers, and EU grants application validators.\nWith experience in consulting and banking, we help studios prepare for investor talks, EU grants, and sustainable business development.","description":"I\u2019m Filip Ondras, a finance and process expert based in Vienna. With experience from KPMG and Erste Group, I help creative teams and game studios turn great ideas into profitable businesses.\r\nMy background in consulting and banking taught me how to bring clarity to complexity, building financial systems, investor strategies, and workflows that fuel growth without killing creativity.","jobTitle":"Founder","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 16:30 - 16:55","AllSpeakers":""}
David Wurczel
Warhorse Studios
{"Filter":"Art","FilterValue":"Art\/Audio","Name":"David Wurczel","company":"Warhorse Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/7A7E107F-F721-4D67-0722-66BF1D5A1845.jpg","titles":"Kingdom Come: Deliverance II.; Volcanoids","TalkName":"Music System Case Study - The Many Faces of FMOD","TalkDescription":"On this rather short talk, I'll try to show you how I use the internal logic of FMOD middleware to deliver a specific music system functionality through two different approaches. An event structure can look different and have different means of control while still achieving the same goal. \r\nIn short, I will showcase FMOD's visual verstaility and adaptability to one's personal preferences. We will compare the capabilities of parameter sheet timeline versus the event timeline, in mere 25 minutes.","description":"Don't really enjoy writing about myself! Gonna make it short. I'm a gamer, music composer, classical guitarist, sound designer and technical audio designer in games. If you played KCD:2 or Volcanoids, you might have already heard some of my work. I spend most of my time at Warhorse Studios but I'm also writing music for Crimson Capes (Poor Locke), last year's GDS Best Pitch winners and a few other smaller game titles like Magna Regna or Knightcraft.","jobTitle":"Composer, Technical Music Designer, Sound Designer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 16:00 - 16:25","AllSpeakers":""}
Anna Pačesová
Warhorse Studios
{"Filter":"Art","FilterValue":"Art\/Audio","Name":"Anna Pa\u010desov\u00e1","company":"Warhorse Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/9A98F887-2B99-D3BC-D3C2-0959931EEA64.jpg","titles":"KCD I and Kingdom Come: Deliverance II","TalkName":"Bringing Characters to Life in Kingdom Come: Deliverance II","TalkDescription":"Creating characters for Kingdom Come: Deliverance II meant finding the balance between historical authenticity, artistic expression, and technical limitations. This talk offers a glimpse into how character artists bring the medieval world to life \u2014from refining the faces, crafting diverse outfits to tackling the challenges of the game\u2019s intricate clothing system with so many, many layers... and yes, there will be also some animals.","description":"Anna Pa\u010desov\u00e1 is the Lead Character Artist at Warhorse Studios. She started in QA 11 years ago before moving to the 3D environment team, where she spent six years creating assets and landscapes for KCD I and II. She later joined the character art team and was soon offered the opportunity to lead it, shaping the visual identity of the series together.","jobTitle":"Lead Character Artist","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 15:00 - 15:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Jan Vaněček
Bohemia Interactive
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Jan Van\u011b\u010dek","company":"Bohemia Interactive","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/BC288807-8293-2D56-74DC-16E212A9391C.jpg","titles":"Smashing Four, Space Engineers, Shuffle Heroes","TalkName":"Designing Across Changing Dimensions","TalkDescription":"Giving players real-time control to switch between dimensions\u2014each changing how the world looks, behaves, and plays\u2014creates unique design and technical challenges. This talk explores how our team tackled these during the development of Cosmo Tales, sharing key problems, solutions, and insights for keeping constantly shifting game states fun, clear, and cohesive.","description":"Jan began his career designing board and card games before moving into video games at Geewa, where he designed the mobile RPG Smashing Four. He later joined Keen Software House, leading the live operations of Space Engineers and initiating development on its sequel. Jan now works at Bohemia Interactive, developing a brand-new space adventure titled Cosmo Tales.","jobTitle":"Creative Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 14:30 - 14:55","AllSpeakers":""}
Filip Fischer
Charged Monkey
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Filip Fischer","company":"Charged Monkey","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/3E93BED8-0812-AA45-2F85-FA8BF0624718.jpg","titles":"What The Hen, Train King, Pocket Necromancer","TalkName":"Riding The Game Dev Rollercoaster For 10 Years","TalkDescription":"These are our stories (and learnings!) from riding up and down the indie game dev rollercoaster for more than a decade. We survived near death situations - almost closed the studio several times - but each time we respawned from the ashes to rise. And then we repeated it again and AGAIN and...","description":"Over more than 20 years, I co-founded and\/or led studios like Pixelfederation and Geewa. The last 10 years, I am co-building Charged Monkey, a Czech and Slovak mobile game studio. I also co-founded the Slovak Game Developers Association more than 10 years ago and have been active ever since as board member.","jobTitle":"Co-Founder & COO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 13:00 - 13:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Martin Labuť
Warhorse studios
{"Filter":"Technical","FilterValue":"Technical","Name":"Martin Labu\u0165","company":"Warhorse studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/AB4FAB6F-A2BE-198B-4C97-99E817E52499.jpg","titles":"Kingdom Come: Deliverance 1 & 2","TalkName":"Modding support in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 1 & 2","TalkDescription":"For KCD1 and 2, we wanted to give players as much freedom as possible to modify the game. Along the way, we ran into various issues \u2014 from releasing our internal tools, to loading the mods themselves, to integrating new data into the game. More problems came after release: using mods with incompatible versions of game, failure to follow recommended practices, corrupted saves, etc. In this talk, I\u2019ll present several specific problems we dealt with \u2014 including some we never managed to solve.","description":"Martin Labu\u0165 has worked in Warhorse studios for 9 years, on both Kingdom Come: Deliverances. Among other things, he oversaw the release of modding tools for both games.","jobTitle":"AI Programmer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 12:00 - 12:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Martina Daněk
Warhorse studios
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Martina Dan\u011bk","company":"Warhorse studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/5996F848-CAC8-5700-03FC-988B9D77AFE5.jpg","titles":"Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2","TalkName":"The Hidden Complexity of Branched Dialogues in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2","TalkDescription":"A look into the process of creating branching dialogues in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2. What makes them feel realistic, how players can influence what NPCs (don\u2019t) tell them, where unexpected complications arise, what to avoid, and what remains hidden from the players.","description":"Narrative Designer at Warhorse Studios, Voice-Over Director, and Editor. I joined Warhorse in 2020 as a Junior Quest Designer on a secret, codenamed project that was released this year under the title Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2. During my time on the game, I helped craft immersive stories for various quests, wrote dialogue, and oversaw some of the romantic plotlines. Later in development, I also directed the English voice-overs.","jobTitle":"Narrative designer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 14:00 - 14:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Martin Matouš
Warhorse Studios
{"Filter":"Technical","FilterValue":"Technical","Name":"Martin Matou\u0161","company":"Warhorse Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/DB877A5E-8937-95AE-DE71-DA18A1DBCC35.jpg","titles":"Kingdom Come: Deliverance II","TalkName":"Kingdom Come: Deliverance II \u2013 Chasing 60 FPS In An Open-world RPG","TalkDescription":"This talk shares lessons learned from optimizing Kingdom Come: Deliverance II to meet its performance targets. We will look at how we profile and measure performance in a large open-world game, the pitfalls we hit when trying to understand how the game actually runs, and the approaches that proved most useful. The second half of the session walks through a mix of optimization tips and techniques that proved effective for us in practice.","description":"Martin Matou\u0161 is a programmer at Warhorse Studios with seven years of gamedev experience. He initially worked on core gameplay systems, contributing to features such as the dialogue and quest systems, and later focused on engine improvements, optimization, and overall game performance.","jobTitle":"Engine Programmer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Michal Roch
Honestly Games
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Michal Roch","company":"Honestly Games","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/D1F05A31-D52C-6D9F-0167-C44F67806695.jpg","titles":"Lords & Villeins, Miner Wars 2081","TalkName":"Demystifying Marketing: The Art Of Making Your Games Seen And Bought","TalkDescription":"Many indies, when faced with the necessity of marketing their games, are often intimidated by the mysticism surrounding it. What do we even do? A typical first thought is to start a social media account, post about your game and maybe go viral, or contact a few influencers and hope for the best. But the reality is simpler than you might think. In this talk, we will remove this mystical veneer and discuss marketing for what it really is: a lot of research, good planning, a strong identity, and a lot of hard work.","description":"Michal is in the industry for more than 15 years, starting his career in Keen Software House and eventually kickstarting his own studio Honestly Games and launching a successful indie title Lords & Villeins. He spent several years in Swedish incubator Spelkollektivet, met hundreds of indie devs all around the world and currently works with the Czech Gamedev Association, helps organizing the GDS Prague and manages the Prague Gamedev Accelerator.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 15:00 - 15:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Edu","hall":"Panorama Hall","start":"Saturday 11:00 - 11:25","name":"Prague Game Accelerator"},{"Filter":"Edu","hall":"Creative Hall","start":"Saturday 15:00 - 15:50","name":"Panel Discussion - How To Grow And Develop Sustainable Game Industry Clusters"}]}
Vítek Mičke
Warhorse Studios
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"V\u00edtek Mi\u010dke","company":"Warhorse Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/24CD1C5A-38F9-E615-F6DC-56D226F3C23F.jpg","titles":"Kingdom Come: Deliverance II","TalkName":"Cutting Through Creatively In Gaming Campaigns - Kingdom Come: Deliverance II","TalkDescription":"If you don\u2019t have insanely large media budget, your trailers, reveals and other key campaign assets need to be something very special.\n\nAn honest peak behind the curtain of the creation of hero assets for the advertising campaign of Kingdom Come: Deliverance II.","description":"V\u00edtek Mi\u010dke is part of the global brand team behind the Kingdom Come: Deliverance II advertising campaign, serving as the lead writer and director of hero assets and commercials - Trailers, Game Reveals, Showcases, Live Action and more.","jobTitle":"Trailer Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
David Šosvald
Charles University
{"Filter":"Edu","FilterValue":"Industry Support","Name":"David \u0160osvald","company":"Charles University","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/9EC67E48-1D3D-68E9-D14B-9745235A75D8.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Gamebadges - Educator Stakeholder Meeting","TalkDescription":"Gamebadges \u2013 a European-wide, competence-based badge ecosystem designed to align education with industry demands \u2013 has reached its piloting phase! We are happy to invite any game develpment educators to this meeting to find out more about how this project can improve their teaching and help their students on their journey.","description":"David \u0160osvald graduated from Charles University in 2023 with a degree in Visual Computing and Game Development. Now pursuing a PhD, he focuses his research on the impact of adaptive game elements on players' attitudes in video games. He also takes part in the Gamebadges project, developing a badge ecosystem for the European game industry. He's a proud organiser of the GDS game jam.","jobTitle":"PhD student","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 16:00 - 16:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Anton Romanenko
SCS Software
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Anton Romanenko","company":"SCS Software","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/F691E223-1FFC-3C5B-6012-82E7CC4E7404.jpg","titles":"American Truck Simulator: DLC Road Trip","TalkName":"Between the Sign and the Referent: The Semiotics of Videogames","TalkDescription":"This presentation explores the semiotics of reality representation in videogames. Semiotics, the study of how meaning is created through signs, provides a compelling framework for understanding how game worlds are constructed and how players interpret them. The talk examines how different types of signs shape not only the representation of reality in videogames, but also the cognitive processes that allow players to perceive a game as an aesthetic and interactive object.","description":"Anton Romanenko is a game designer at SCS Software and a Ph.D. student at Charles University. He has contributed to several projects, including work as a researcher on American Truck Simulator: Nebraska and as a UX and gameplay designer on American Truck Simulator: DLC Road Trip. His academic and design work both focus on how players interpret meaning in interactive worlds, with a particular interest in multilingual literature and narrative structures in video games.","jobTitle":"Game Designer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 14:00 - 14:25","AllSpeakers":""}
Anna Bartošková
Creative Europe MEDIA Desk CZ
{"Filter":"Edu","FilterValue":"Industry Support","Name":"Anna Barto\u0161kov\u00e1","company":"Creative Europe MEDIA Desk CZ","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/BD57176B-F252-AE49-19F0-3E7A0C5B055C.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Funding Opportunities For Video Games Developers In 2026 - The Creative Europe Media Program","TalkDescription":"Creative Europe is the European Union\u2018s programme to support the culture and audiovisual sectors. Its MEDIA strand supports the development of new films, video games, TV productions and online formats, distribution, film festivals and markets, training programmes for audiovisual professionals, cinemas and VOD platforms. What are the funding opportunities available to developers and professionals from gaming industry? What projects are eligible to receive support and under which conditions?","description":"Anna Barto\u0161kov\u00e1 graduated from the Faculty of Arts at Charles University with a major in cultural studies. Before joining the Creative Europe MEDIA Desk, she worked for the Forum of Independents at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. She also collaborated with the festival Days of European Films and regularly organized the Prague Quadrennial.","jobTitle":"Project manager","TalkLanguage":"Czech","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 13:00 - 13:25","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Jari-Pekka Kaleva","company":"EGDF","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/C2C142FE-D250-7447-D88B-9285C457B00C.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Get Funded! How to benefit from national funding in other EU countries?","TalkDescription":"How can you benefit from national public and private funding opportunities in other EU countries? In this panel, EGDF board members will discuss the funding instruments available in their countries and how you can benefit from them.","description":"Jari-Pekka Kaleva is an institution nerd helping the game industry geeks to revolutionise the world we live in. At the moment, he works as Managing Director at the European game industry umbrella organisation EGDF and as Chief Policy Advisor at Neogames Finland association. He has more than a decade of experience tracking both national and EU level political decision making from the game industry\u2019s point of view.","jobTitle":"Managing Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Christian Fonnesbech
Leverage
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Christian Fonnesbech","company":"Leverage","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/8DF3D14F-E67C-E4B5-1EA0-D46101672318.jpg","titles":"Working with Plaion, Bandai Namco, Supermassive","TalkName":"Build Your Franchise Vision Early: 10 most common mistakes","TalkDescription":"Building a franchise is important if you want a sustainable studio. It is also the potential investors and publishers look for. Is there an ownable and protectable IP? Does it connect emotionally? Will it stand out? Is it protectable? Christian Fonnesbech will share the most common mistakes found from working with many developers and publishers across the world.","description":"Founder and Head of IP Development at Leverage, partnering with games companies to develop lasting franchises and brands. Recent clients include Bandai Namco, Raw Fury and Funcom. Christian focuses on crafting the roots of a project into lasting global properties and brands. With a background spanning 35+ game projects, 100s of consulting projects, and leadership roles at Nordisk Games and Interactive Media Arts, Christian brings practical insights into IPs & franchises.","jobTitle":"Founder & Head of IP","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 13:30 - 14:20","AllSpeakers":""}
Gediminas Tarasevicius
No Brakes Games
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Gediminas Tarasevicius","company":"No Brakes Games","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/D6C9AB1E-EFB2-7350-A794-FC8686D24032.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Get Funded! How to benefit from national funding in other EU countries?","TalkDescription":"How can you benefit from national public and private funding opportunities in other EU countries? In this panel, EGDF board members will discuss the funding instruments available in their countries and how you can benefit from them.","description":"Gediminas Tarasevi\u010dius is a flagbearer of the Lithuanian game industry, one of the founders and long-time leaders of the Lithuanian Game Developers Association, with over 20 years of experience in multimedia and game development. Gediminas has been leading the game development studio \u201cNo Brakes Games\u201d for five years, the creators of the global hit \u201cHuman Fall Flat\u201d, and is a board member of the European Game Developers Federation.","jobTitle":"Studio Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Alec Shea
Alec Shea - Music / Voice / Sound
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Alec Shea","company":"Alec Shea - Music \/ Voice \/ Sound","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/25D19633-6006-BF8D-99B9-64C73FE7C15F.jpg","titles":"PVKK, Corpse Factory, EcoGnomix","TalkName":"Don't Push The Narrative - Improvise!","TalkDescription":"One of the beautiful things about game narratives is their ability to give the player choices. But very often, the choices we're presented with can be trivial, pointless, obvious, or just leaving you questioning why they're there at all. In this talk, we will explore a new frame of mind for designing choices in game narratives \u2013 inspired by the art of improv (improvised theatre), with interesting and varied examples from projects we've worked on and ones we haven't, and some we'll improvise!","description":"One of the beautiful things about game narratives is their ability to give the player choices. But very often, the choices we're presented with can be trivial, pointless, obvious, or just leaving you questioning why they're there at all. In this talk, we will explore a new frame of mind for designing choices in game narratives \u2013 inspired by the art of improv (improvised theatre), with interesting and varied examples from projects we've worked on and ones we haven't, and some we'll improvise!","jobTitle":"Composer \/ Voice Director \/ Sound Designer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 12:00 - 12:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Martine Spaans
Dutch Games Association
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Martine Spaans","company":"Dutch Games Association","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/602D59ED-06B7-90EF-B5FE-E53806604F61.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Get Funded! How to benefit from national funding in other EU countries?","TalkDescription":"How can you benefit from national public and private funding opportunities in other EU countries? In this panel, EGDF board members will discuss the funding instruments available in their countries and how you can benefit from them.","description":"Martine is founder of Tamalaki Publishing, specialising in casual F2P games. She is active in the game industry on a national and European level for the Dutch Games Association (DGA) and European Game Developer Federation (EGDF). As such she is involved with organizing events such as INDIGO and the Dutch Game Awards.","jobTitle":"General Manager","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
David Rabineau
Homo Ludens
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"David Rabineau","company":"Homo Ludens","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/2BDF2194-7334-3F9E-8021-5566A22202E4.jpg","titles":"Anarcute","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Get Funded! How to benefit from national funding in other EU countries?","TalkDescription":"How can you benefit from national public and private funding opportunities in other EU countries? In this panel, EGDF board members will discuss the funding instruments available in their countries and how you can benefit from them.","description":"David Rabineau is the CEO of French indie studio Homo Ludens. After experiences as both Game Designer and Producer on titles of various scopes in a development or publishing setting, he moved on to found his studio in Paris. Aside from this, David serves as President of Capital Games, the games cluster of the Paris area and a Board member of EGDF.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
KooPee Hiltunen
Neogames Finland ry
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"KooPee Hiltunen","company":"Neogames Finland ry","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/24C8CA87-5A40-2222-CE1F-F9A091784366.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Get Funded! How to benefit from national funding in other EU countries?","TalkDescription":"How can you benefit from national public and private funding opportunities in other EU countries? In this panel, EGDF board members will discuss the funding instruments available in their countries and how you can benefit from them.","description":"KooPee Hiltunen is the Director of Neogames Finland Association, Finnish Hub of Game Business, Research and Education.\r\nKooPee has been working in digital media industry since the beginning of 90\u00b4s and with games since 2004.\r\nKooPee is specialized in games industry development, games business and games exports. KooPee Hiltunen is also the spokesperson of Finnish Game Developers Association and one of the founding fathers and board member in EGDF (European Games Developer Federation).","jobTitle":"Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Radosław Klasa
Fighting Dreamers
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Rados\u0142aw Klasa","company":"Fighting Dreamers","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/755CA87C-42F2-C388-FBAE-B8F890FF153E.jpg","titles":"Jars, Halo Infinite, Shrapnel, Junkyard (TBD)","TalkName":"Old narrative tropes unexplored even today","TalkDescription":"Ways of narration: Old narrative tropes unexplored even today. Players love things that are familiar yet somehow unknown. But have you asked yourself: What is the unknown to the modern world? During the talk, you will learn multiple tropes in narration that intrigued us were called innovative yet we don't see them present in most of the games. This tool might give you leverage to check if your game has something unique to offer or create new ideas based on the presented thinking patterns. The partner of the talk is the Creative Europe MEDIA Desk CZ.","description":"I have worked both in small indie companies and AAA companies since 2017. Co-creator of the Gamedevowe Pogaduchy initiative, which integrates the Polish community. \r\nAdvisory Board member for Game Industry Conference (GIC). Always keen to promote the game dev industry to new generations and help the broken, the beaten and the damned. Passionate about exploring new and original mechanics that enhance game narration and aesthetics.","jobTitle":"Design Consultant","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 16:30 - 16:55","AllSpeakers":""}
Nikolai Hilz
Narreme Works / Aesir Interactive
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Nikolai Hilz","company":"Narreme Works \/ Aesir Interactive","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/0CF3A28B-E6D5-AF61-995B-B3978A4FDA8E.jpg","titles":"The Legend of Khiimori, Star Dynasties, Travian","TalkName":"Don't Push The Narrative - Improvise!","TalkDescription":"One of the beautiful things about game narratives is their ability to give the player choices. But very often, the choices we're presented with can be trivial, pointless, obvious, or just leaving you questioning why they're there at all. In this talk, we will explore a new frame of mind for designing choices in game narratives \u2013 inspired by the art of improv (improvised theatre), with interesting and varied examples from projects we've worked on and ones we haven't, and some we'll improvise!","description":"\"Games and stories are like lasagna and pizza: f@!*ng delicious.\"\r\n\r\nNikolai is a game and narrative designer with 12 years of experience, including 5 years running indie companies. His playground is that electric space where gameplay and story spark off each other, creating experiences that feel deeply personal and unique to the medium of games.","jobTitle":"Game & Narrative Designer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 12:00 - 12:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Hendrik Lesser
remote control productions
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Hendrik Lesser","company":"remote control productions","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/58776C03-F756-A9EC-70F3-C063CEA6E6DE.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Get Funded! How to benefit from national funding in other EU countries?","TalkDescription":"How can you benefit from national public and private funding opportunities in other EU countries? In this panel, EGDF board members will discuss the funding instruments available in their countries and how you can benefit from them.","description":"Entrepreneur and founder Hendrik Lesser is the CEO of the international production house remote control \nproductions. After starting out more than 20 years ago in the industry, he has built a global family of independent development studios, which today consists of 15 teams in six countries with more than 400 passionate game makers. Most recently, he founded the politically conscious game publishing label Lesser Evil.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Business","hall":"Hangar 13 Hall","start":"Friday 12:00 - 12:50","name":"20 years building game companies. - learnings, anecdotes and what this had to do with being an industrial artist"}]}
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Petr Kub\u00ed\u010dek","company":"KUBI Games","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/401F5EBF-D239-65F0-A045-7787CBF559EB.jpg","titles":"1428: Shadows over Silesia","TalkName":"The Quest for Blind-Inclusive Game Design","TalkDescription":"In this talk, I share my unexpected journey during the development of 1428: Shadows over Silesia, where I coincidentally found myself diving deep into accessibility for blind players despite having no grand ambitions or extensive experience. Join me to uncover the lessons learned from this endeavor and explore whether your indie or AAA game can be made accessible to blind players and whether it\u2019s worth doing.","description":"Self-taught game designer and programmer with several years of experience. Creator of the medieval action adventure game 1428: Shadows over Silesia.. Currently, besides his own projects, he also works at Bohemia Interactive. Some of the games Petr worked on: Crime Boss: Rockay City, Arma 4, Vigor, 1428: Shadows over Silesia, Kubikon 3D","jobTitle":"Indie Developer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 14:00 - 14:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Yaraslau Kot
EHU / Bajka Games
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Yaraslau Kot","company":"EHU \/ Bajka Games","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/CDFDCACC-409F-7241-4A94-1213169A31F0.jpg","titles":"Chernobylite; Raccoon Mania; It Lurks Below","TalkName":"Sources of narrative craft from industry's best","TalkDescription":"This report is reflection of personal experience and over 40 interviews with top narrative experts of the industry conducted as part of the bigger project. We will discuss what hints and tips are used by many interviewed Narrative designers, what software is their favorite and why, what books do they advice to use and what do they advice to colleagues the industry. Together we will discuss insights and learn from industry veterans.","description":"Game designer and narrative designer since 1996. Is PhD, LLM, MPsych. Works in Bajka Games studio and at A little Bit Different Studio, Research Fellow at European Humanities University. He worked on many tabletop, larp and video games. Among them such titles as: Eastern Frontier: 1581; It Lurks Below; RhyDin; Lands of Evermore; Vampires the Masquerade: St. Louis by Night Online; Chernobylite 1-2; Proze; Replaced; Raccoon Mania; Green City Harvest, etc. Author of books and articles.","jobTitle":"Researcher \/ Narrative Designer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 14:00 - 14:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Lukáš Kolek
Charles Games s.r.o.
{"Filter":"Indies","FilterValue":"Sticks, Ropes and High Hopes","Name":"Luk\u00e1\u0161 Kolek","company":"Charles Games s.r.o.","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/3A8F4111-509F-E2EB-F878-507ED357C72F.jpg","titles":"Beecarbonize, Playing Kafka, We Grew Up in War","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - current situation of the indie game industry in Czech Republic ","TalkDescription":"Together with GDA CZ, Fuchs+Dachs game dev studio is organising a small one day EVENT that would be a part of this year\u2019s Game Developers Session Conference, in Prague. We have one whole day specially organised for small teams, students and young game dev enthusiasts that we would like to greatly benefit from GDS 2025. \nThe event is aimed for anyone interested in working in small teams, studying game design or small indie game dev teams and studios.","description":"Luk\u00e1\u0161 Kolek is the co-founder and CEO of Charles Games, the studio behind 10+ indie titles including the award-winning Playing Kafka, Svoboda 1945: Liberation and Beecarbonize, enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of players worldwide. Charles Games creates experiences that tackle serious themes, from historical trauma to the climate crisis.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Indie Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 14:00 - 14:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Design","hall":"Lecture Hall","start":"Saturday 12:00 - 12:25","name":"We Grew Up in War: Designing a Different Kind of War Game"}]}
David Šemík
Státní fond audiovize
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"David \u0160em\u00edk","company":"St\u00e1tn\u00ed fond audiovize","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/EF119607-E537-3B20-7481-55EB6ED0D37E.jpg","titles":"Mafia, Monzo, Happy Game","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Power-Up for Developers: Financing Games Through the New Czech Video Game Incentives Scheme","TalkDescription":"The Czech Republic has introduced a new incentive scheme for video game development under the Czech Audiovisual Fund. This panel will unpack how the program works, who will it benefit, and its potential impact on the Czech gaming ecosystem. Join leading experts as we explore eligibility, timeframe, positive and critical voices on the scheme and whether this initiative can truly level up the Czech gaming industry.","description":"Game developer, designer, programmer, and artist. He is the co-author of Mafia I and II, the author of the virtual model kit Monzo. For the last ten years, he has been a member of Amanita Design. After this year\u2019s transformation of the Cinematography Fund into the Audiovisual Fund, he is a member of the council for the support animated films and video games.","jobTitle":"Radn\u00ed pro podporu animace a her","TalkLanguage":"Czech","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 14:00 - 14:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Edu","hall":"Panorama Hall","start":"Friday 12:00 - 12:50","name":"Czech Audiovisual Fund and new video games support"}]}
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Nav Sunner","company":"Navatron","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/9C2D4312-C997-E122-897D-E92E7CB16ACF.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - How to Prepare for Negotiations with a Publisher","TalkDescription":"Getting your game developed is one thing, getting it funded and published is another. We will unpack what really goes into a publishing agreement: revenue splits, IP ownership, and who controls what. You will also hear what to prepare before talks begin, when to bring in a lawyer, and get some hard-earned tips from real negotiations. Whether you are pitching your first title or expanding your studio, this practical session will help you walk into publisher meetings ready to play smart.","description":"Nav Sunner is the founder of a video games legal and business consultancy called \u2018Navatron\u2019. Has been involved with the video games industry since early 90\u2019s. Has acted as both in-house counsel and external adviser for a variety of companies in the industry including some of the largest developers, publishers and service companies. Nav also holds advisory and board positions for some video game developers and publishers and gets involved in the acquisitions and IPO's of video games businesses.","jobTitle":"CEO & Founder","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 13:00 - 13:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Law","hall":"Summit Hall","start":"Friday 12:00 - 12:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Legal Basics for Indies"}]}
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Nick Allan","company":"Legal","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/0E940B0D-F7A2-0FCD-1CAC-F78B454A0135.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Safe Mode Activated: AI in Games Without Breaking the Rules","TalkDescription":"AI is transforming the way games are developed. But as AI becomes integral to creative pipelines, it also raises tough legal and ethical questions. We\u2019ll explore how studios are integrating AI into their daily workflows, not only to accelerate production but to build practical governance approaches that support responsible use. Expect a clear, practical look at IP risks, emerging regulatory expectations, and the concrete steps developers can take to stay compliant without slowing innovation.","description":"Nick is a video games lawyer and a partner at Mishcon de Reya in London. Nick\u2019s practice focuses on the $200 billion global video games industry, including PC, console, mobile, web-browser and VR\/AR games. Has been recognised by Chambers and Partners and the Legal 500 as a leading practitioner in respect of video games. Nick specialises in contract negotiations, including development, publishing and licensing deals, as well as advice in respect of intellectual property and regulatory matters.","jobTitle":"Partner","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 16:00 - 16:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Kostyantyn Lobov
Harbottle & Lewis
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Kostyantyn Lobov","company":"Harbottle & Lewis","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/45BFB712-8C6A-E043-48BE-8E971E4FDBD4.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Clone Wars","TalkDescription":"Where does homage end and cloning begin? Join industry experts as they unpack the hottest controversies in look-alike games, reveal how far inspiration can legally go, and spotlight the creative and business risks every studio should watch for. A sharp, energetic session for anyone in an industry where originality is both a challenge and an opportunity.","description":"Kostya is a partner and co-head of the interactive entertainment practice at Harbottle & Lewis. He works extensively with clients in the video game and esports sectors, including studios and publishers of all sizes. His client base also includes brand owners, production companies and tech startups. They range in size from SMEs to multinational corporations. Kostya is recognised as a leading lawyer in The Legal 500, IP Stars and Chambers and Partners.","jobTitle":"Partner","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 15:00 - 15:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Martin Pernica
Flying Rat Studio
{"Filter":"Technical","FilterValue":"Technical","Name":"Martin Pernica","company":"Flying Rat Studio","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/D1F97198-B2CF-4B07-43A1-376F0C14F416.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"CPU Architecture Internals: x86, ARM, and Performance Basics","TalkDescription":"A grounded overview of how modern CPUs (x86-64 and ARM64) execute code. Introduces pipelines, caches, branch prediction, SIMD, and hybrid P\/E-cores, with practical examples from game and engine code such as data layout, branch-less logic, multi-threading, and cross-architecture pitfalls.","description":"CTO by day, developer by night. He has been working in the game industry for quite some time and has a passion for anything technology related that helps his teams make their dreams come true.","jobTitle":"CTO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 12:30 - 13:20","AllSpeakers":""}
Maciej Konstańczak
Flying Wild Hog
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Maciej Konsta\u0144czak","company":"Flying Wild Hog","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/62CD1A1D-0C84-7F93-C81D-9497B308F82F.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Safe Mode Activated: AI in Games Without Breaking the Rules","TalkDescription":"AI is transforming the way games are developed. But as AI becomes integral to creative pipelines, it also raises tough legal and ethical questions. We\u2019ll explore how studios are integrating AI into their daily workflows, not only to accelerate production but to build practical governance approaches that support responsible use. Expect a clear, practical look at IP risks, emerging regulatory expectations, and the concrete steps developers can take to stay compliant without slowing innovation.","description":"I'm a legal professional with a background in civil, commercial, and intellectual property law, currently working at Flying Wild Hog \u2014 a company where creativity and technology come together in exciting ways. With an LL.M. and several years of experience, I help navigate legal challenges in the gaming industry, making sure ideas can move forward with confidence and clarity.","jobTitle":"General Counsel","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 16:00 - 16:50","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Indies","FilterValue":"Sticks, Ropes and High Hopes","Name":"Daniel Mr\u00e1zik","company":"Indie team","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/E3342435-6C39-4297-4D58-D8B29841F43F.jpg","titles":"Ma\u0159ena, Icaropolis, Hlubiny","TalkName":"The creation of Ma\u0159ena","TalkDescription":"Ma\u0159ena is an absurd dungeon crawler about a perpetually drunk heroine who is a bit out of control in her life \u2013 and yet she keeps going. The game was created out of pure joy of creation and friendship: we met at a gamejam, sat down with a human and creative approach, and our joint project spontaneously grew out of that. The lecture is about everything that went into the creation of our first long-term project.","description":"Daniel Mr\u00e1zik is a student in the Design and Digital Technologies studio at UMPRUM. In his work, he focuses mainly on graphics for video games, illustration, and animation, with a specialization in character design. As a guy from central Slovakia - a region full of castles and chateaus, he is fascinated by the connection between folk symbols, cryptids, and medieval mystique with game art, which is fully reflected in his latest project, Ma\u0159ena.","jobTitle":"Student","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Indie Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 13:00 - 13:25","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Art","FilterValue":"Art\/Audio","Name":"Clemens Amon","company":"atmoky","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/454BBB83-2772-4661-7195-CD27ABD6646B.jpg","titles":"atmoky trueSpatial, atmoky trueAcoustics","TalkName":"Interactive Spatial Audio in Games. How it conveys emotion and impacts perception","TalkDescription":"What makes spatial audio immersive isn\u2019t just how it sounds, but how it responds. In this session, Markus Zaunschirm and Clemens Amon from atmoky explore the real-time nature of interactive spatial audio and how it fuels immersion, engagement, and presence in games. They connect psychoacoustic concepts like transportation and plausibility with practical game engine and middleware implementation. The talk will include live demos and a behind-the-scenes look at atmoky\u2019s upcoming acoustics engine.","description":"Clemens Amon, MSc, is Co-Founder and Head of Growth at atmoky, driving adoption of next-generation spatial audio tooling for games and XR. With a Master\u2019s in Electrical and Audio Engineering focused on digital signal processing, he combines technical depth with strategic insight into the immersive audio market. Before atmoky, he spent eight years in applied audio research. His work focuses on how interactive spatial audio and 3D acoustics shapes emotion, perception, and presence.","jobTitle":"Head of Growth","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 11:00 - 11:25","AllSpeakers":""}
Zuzana Darjaninová
FAMU Game Design
{"Filter":"Indies","FilterValue":"Sticks, Ropes and High Hopes","Name":"Zuzana Darjaninov\u00e1","company":"FAMU Game Design","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/0EDF1728-C2F2-7EB7-0B70-1256D39F0365.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"The creation of Ma\u0159ena","TalkDescription":"Ma\u0159ena is an absurd dungeon crawler about a perpetually drunk heroine who is a bit out of control in her life \u2013 and yet she keeps going. The game was created out of pure joy of creation and friendship: we met at a gamejam, sat down with a human and creative approach, and our joint project spontaneously grew out of that. The lecture is about everything that went into the creation of our first long-term project.","description":"Zuzana Darjanov\u00e1 is a game design student at FAMU, focusing on the visual aspect and artistic context of games. She mainly works on hand-drawn 2D art and asset creation. She is currently working on the project Ma\u0159ena \u2013 a game that explores the Czech myth of Morana with absurdity and poetry. She is also involved in lighting design.","jobTitle":"Student","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Indie Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 13:00 - 13:25","AllSpeakers":""}
Mikuláš Petrík
Mařena dev team
{"Filter":"Indies","FilterValue":"Sticks, Ropes and High Hopes","Name":"Mikul\u00e1\u0161 Petr\u00edk","company":"Ma\u0159ena dev team","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/E97C9D3A-DEF8-31C2-76A6-6B3C7095BDCC.jpg","titles":"Ma\u0159ena","TalkName":"The creation of Ma\u0159ena","TalkDescription":"Ma\u0159ena is an absurd dungeon crawler about a perpetually drunk heroine who is a bit out of control in her life \u2013 and yet she keeps going. The game was created out of pure joy of creation and friendship: we met at a gamejam, sat down with a human and creative approach, and our joint project spontaneously grew out of that. The lecture is about everything that went into the creation of our first long-term project.","description":"Mikul\u00e1\u0161 Petr\u00edk (Miky)\r\n\r\nhas been self-studying game creation for over 5 years, focusing primarily on the technical and design side of things. In his projects, he tries to expand the concept of video games as art and forms of expression in an accessible way through non-standard design and visuals. All of this is reflected in his latest project - a dungeon crawler with the main character, who represents the absurd incompetence of all of us in everyday life, Ma\u0159ena.","jobTitle":"Student","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Indie Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 13:00 - 13:25","AllSpeakers":""}
Mikoláš Tuček
Cyber Sail Consulting
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Mikol\u00e1\u0161 Tu\u010dek","company":"Cyber Sail Consulting","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/9DFBC51B-3832-1FB4-0236-DFB4E2BCE51D.jpg","titles":"SCORE, Re-Play, Game Page:)","TalkName":"Sail.Game: How to Find the Right Publisher in the Vast Sea of the Gaming Industry","TalkDescription":"Cyber Sail Consulting focuses on connecting developers with publishers. Gaming veteran Mikol\u00e1\u0161 Tu\u010dek will share his tips, insights on the current market situation, and introduce the brand-new matchmaking platform Sail.Game.","description":"Industry veteran whose gaming career officially spans two millennia (well... he started in 1999). He has been the editor-in-chief of SCORE magazine, the host of the Re-Play TV show, and he currently runs the pop-culture podcast Posledn\u00ed podcast. One of the true gaming evangelists, he has joined Cyber Sail Consulting and is now helping developers find the right publishers. Get in touch if you are Developer struggling to find Publisher, or Publisher\/Investor looking for new addition to portfolio!","jobTitle":"BD Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 12:30 - 13:20","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Indies","FilterValue":"Sticks, Ropes and High Hopes","Name":"Miroslav Prokop","company":"Indie","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/8854219B-EEBE-2B81-B767-771007024121.jpg","titles":"MAW, BlightFog","TalkName":"Sticks, Ropes and high hopes - Intro","TalkDescription":"Together with GDA CZ, Fuchs+Dachs game dev studio is organising a small one day EVENT that would be a part of this year\u2019s Game Developers Session Conference, in Prague. We have one whole day specially organised for small teams, students and young game dev enthusiasts that we would like to greatly benefit from GDS 2025. \nThe event is aimed for anyone interested in working in small teams, studying game design or small indie game dev teams and studios.\nThe first part will be about the upcoming game MAW.","description":"Hi, I'm M\u00edra, but usually I go by the nickname Zakroutil. I'm an indie developer from Czechia, I study game design at FAMU and I'm also helping out with some secret stuff over at Fuchs+Dachs Games... And I'm developing my own noir adventure called \"MAW\" as well.","jobTitle":"Out of the job wizard","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Indie Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 11:00 - 11:25","AllSpeakers":""}
Vladimír Geršl
Cyber Sail Consulting
{"Filter":"Edu","FilterValue":"Industry Support","Name":"Vladim\u00edr Ger\u0161l","company":"Cyber Sail Consulting","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/A470E5A4-51E1-5FC2-5F81-604BE909C62B.jpg","titles":"Frantics, Cabela's Hunting Series, The Last Oricru","TalkName":"GDS Prague Pitching Session","TalkDescription":"The best and bravest of GDS Prague Indie Expo will present their pitch decks in lightning rounds of presentations, followed by questions and discussions with a professional jury. All to compete for a prime spot of the most appreciated pitch of GDS Prague 2025!","description":"Vladim\u00edr Ger\u0161l is a game producer, entrepreneur, and CEO of Cyber Sail Consulting. He has nearly 25 years of experience in the games business and has worked long-term with companies such as Activision, Sony, and Plaion. He directly led eight premium titles and helped dozens of studios secure publishing or investment. He runs one of the globally leading consulting agencies in the games industry and is actively involved in industry lobbying in both the Czech Republic and the EU.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 16:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Business","hall":"Panorama Hall","start":"Saturday 15:00 - 15:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Global Game Publishing Today: Strategies, Risks & How to Succeed"},{"Filter":"Law","hall":"Summit Hall","start":"Saturday 13:00 - 13:50","name":"Panel Discussion - How to Prepare for Negotiations with a Publisher"}]}
Milos Endrle
Good Friend Games
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Milos Endrle","company":"Good Friend Games","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/624EBC1B-4437-D09E-BC9A-F1F3DACC8B7D.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Deals That Define the Game: Inside the World of Gaming Transactions","TalkDescription":"From billion-dollar acquisitions to strategic investments, M&A is reshaping the gaming landscape. But are these deals a launchpad to global success or a shortcut to losing creative control? This session brings together top experts who have been behind some of the most influential gaming transactions, including deals involving Embracer Group, Geewa, Warhorse or Tripledot Studios. If you are a rising studio eyeing growth or an investor scouting the next breakout hit, this is must-attend session.","description":"Milos Endrle founded the mobile gaming studio Geewa in 2005 and sold it to AppLovin in 2021. Geewa created hits such as Smashing Four, one of the world\u2019s TOP 300 highest-grossing mobile games, and the Facebook hit Pool Live Tour, played by more than 80 million users.\r\nToday, Milos leverages his experience from mobile games to build an application that motivates people to stay active and maintain healthy everyday habits.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Per Strömbäck
Dataspelsbranschen Swedish Games Industry
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Per Str\u00f6mb\u00e4ck","company":"Dataspelsbranschen Swedish Games Industry","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/D7192EE1-CF82-491B-8FDA-73C6CF6940DB.jpg","titles":"Nordic Party, For Devs, Invest in Games","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Get Funded! How to benefit from national funding in other EU countries?","TalkDescription":"How can you benefit from national public and private funding opportunities in other EU countries? In this panel, EGDF board members will discuss the funding instruments available in their countries and how you can benefit from them.","description":"Per Str\u00f6mb\u00e4ck heads the secretariat for Swedish Games Industry. He has worked in games since 1996, first as developer, then as publisher and since 2005 running the trade body. He is at level 986 on Candy Crush.","jobTitle":"Managing Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Tomas Oliva","company":"4Boars","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/6D87F517-1062-BA91-1FC8-F9591D884A29.jpg","titles":"Assassin's Creed Shadows, Star Wars: Andor, Halo","TalkName":"Game Trailers 101: How to Hook Players and Publishers Alike","TalkDescription":"A deep dive into what makes a game trailer truly work - and what makes it fail. We\u2019ll explore the anatomy of a good trailer, the storytelling power of music, and the common mistakes that ruin first impressions. Beyond just editing and pacing, we\u2019ll discuss why trailers matter, how to strategically use different types of trailers throughout your marketing campaign, and how the right trailer can attract not only players but also investors and publishers alike.","description":"Co-founder at 4Boars, an acclaimed collective of trailer and advertising industry professionals. Recognized for successful advertising campaigns for Assassin's Creed Shadows, Starfield, Star Wars: Andor, Jurassic World: Dominion, Tekken, and numerous other high-profile projects.","jobTitle":"Co-Founder","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 16:00 - 16:50","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Martin Hatas","company":"4Boars","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/2590763D-A099-BABA-6F2D-59D9BCB14FB2.jpg","titles":"Assassin's Creed Shadows, Star Wars: Andor, Halo","TalkName":"Game Trailers 101: How to Hook Players and Publishers Alike","TalkDescription":"A deep dive into what makes a game trailer truly work - and what makes it fail. We\u2019ll explore the anatomy of a good trailer, the storytelling power of music, and the common mistakes that ruin first impressions. Beyond just editing and pacing, we\u2019ll discuss why trailers matter, how to strategically use different types of trailers throughout your marketing campaign, and how the right trailer can attract not only players but also investors and publishers alike.","description":"Co-founder at 4Boars, an acclaimed collective of trailer and advertising industry professionals. Recognized for successful advertising campaigns for Assassin's Creed Shadows, Starfield, Star Wars: Andor, Jurassic World: Dominion, Tekken, and numerous other high-profile projects.","jobTitle":"Co-Founder","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 16:00 - 16:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Jakub Marszalkowski
Indie Games Poland
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Jakub Marszalkowski","company":"Indie Games Poland","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/BEEF1C90-EE0C-11B4-920F-0CF8456C030E.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Get Funded! How to benefit from national funding in other EU countries?","TalkDescription":"How can you benefit from national public and private funding opportunities in other EU countries? In this panel, EGDF board members will discuss the funding instruments available in their countries and how you can benefit from them.","description":"For 20 years in the game industry and 12 years supporting Polish developers as organizer of GIC and a key figure in IGP. Grew GIC from a student event into Europe\u2019s largest. Author of The Game Industry of Poland reports and many studies. Frequent speaker and jury member. Honored with the Minister of Culture\u2019s award. Since 2024 on the board of EGDF. Researcher at PUT focused on AI\/ML in gamedev and lecturer in game design.","jobTitle":"Board Member","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Anton Ravin
Fulqrum Publishing
{"Filter":"Edu","FilterValue":"Industry Support","Name":"Anton Ravin","company":"Fulqrum Publishing","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/A8CD2012-C9AA-A608-9A0C-081A99D5F5C2.jpg","titles":"Men of War, King's Bounty, Space Rangers","TalkName":"GDS Prague Pitching Session","TalkDescription":"The best and bravest of GDS Prague Indie Expo will present their pitch decks in lightning rounds of presentations, followed by questions and discussions with a professional jury. All to compete for a prime spot of the most appreciated pitch of GDS Prague 2025!","description":"Game industry executive and speaker with over 20 years of experience. Currently serve as Commercial Director at Fulqrum Publishing. As Commercial Director, I oversee product development; identify new market opportunities; determine content, marketing strategy. \r\nSome of the games that I worked on: https:\/\/www.mobygames.com\/person\/353293\/anton-ravin\/","jobTitle":"Commercial Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 16:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Business","hall":"Panorama Hall","start":"Saturday 15:00 - 15:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Global Game Publishing Today: Strategies, Risks & How to Succeed"}]}
Tomas Psenicka
North Beach Games
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Tomas Psenicka","company":"North Beach Games","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/672570DC-A48C-2055-C2CA-4F71F4FC3A02.jpg","titles":"Space Eng., Medieval Eng., Stranded Deep 2 ....","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Global Game Publishing Today: Strategies, Risks & How to Succeed","TalkDescription":"The panel brings together leading experts from global publishing to discuss the realities of today\u2019s games industry. Vladim\u00edr moderates a deep dive into securing a publisher, releasing your game, and what both developers and publishers must know in 2025+. Joining him are directors Anton Ravin (Fulqrum Publishing), Mario Gerhold (ex-Koch Media\/Plaion, My.Games), Guillaume Jamet (ex\u2013Plug In Digital), and Tom\u00e1\u0161 P\u0161eni\u010dka (North Beach Games), who will share their perspectives on current challenges.","description":"Kickstarting his fulltime career in games business in Keen Software House Tomas continued to work on multiple positions in the gaming business as a producer, project manager, business development manager, General Manager etc. \r\n\r\nNow heading the North Beach Games Prague studio which is in charge of development of Stranded Deep 2 and other unannounced projects. \r\n\r\nBig fan of Space Games, RPGs, Survival games and MMOs. Gaming since 1982.","jobTitle":"General Manager","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 15:00 - 15:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Mario Gerhold
MYGAMES/Knights Peak, ex-Deep Silver/Koch, ex-CDV
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Mario Gerhold","company":"MYGAMES\/Knights Peak, ex-Deep Silver\/Koch, ex-CDV","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/C71A7DED-4B2B-7BD0-E849-B6FE7B358347.jpg","titles":"Kingdom Come Deliver.,Tempest Rising, Iron Harvest","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Global Game Publishing Today: Strategies, Risks & How to Succeed","TalkDescription":"The panel brings together leading experts from global publishing to discuss the realities of today\u2019s games industry. Vladim\u00edr moderates a deep dive into securing a publisher, releasing your game, and what both developers and publishers must know in 2025+. Joining him are directors Anton Ravin (Fulqrum Publishing), Mario Gerhold (ex-Koch Media\/Plaion, My.Games), Guillaume Jamet (ex\u2013Plug In Digital), and Tom\u00e1\u0161 P\u0161eni\u010dka (North Beach Games), who will share their perspectives on current challenges.","description":"Mario Gerhold is a industry veteran with over 24 years in the Games Industry working on the publisher's side. As a dedicated and focused Brand & Marketing professional he combines the passion for Games, a deep knowledge of and network within the global Games Industry, with the lessons of advertising agencies. He is most known in Czech for his collaboration with Warhorse Studios for years, when he led the global Brand & Marketing for Kingdom Come Deliverance (KCD) on the publisher end.","jobTitle":"Global Brand and Marketing Director (Premium Games","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 15:00 - 15:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Katarzyna Kouba Sanojca
Creative Prague/ Pražský inovační institut
{"Filter":"Edu","FilterValue":"Industry Support","Name":"Katarzyna Kouba Sanojca","company":"Creative Prague\/ Pra\u017esk\u00fd inova\u010dn\u00ed institut","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/4E24DB7B-06C1-2D1D-15CF-069A06029C2D.jpg","titles":"Prague","TalkName":"Ceremonial Signing of the Memorandum","TalkDescription":"The ceremonial signing of a memorandum to support the future development of the Prague Game Accelerator marks an important milestone for strengthening the game development ecosystem in Prague. The agreement reflects a shared commitment to fostering talent, education, and collaboration between academia and industry. It establishes a framework for long-term cooperation and the growth of future editions of the program.","description":"Katarzyna Sanojca works at Creative Prague, focusing on creating the right conditions for the growth of creative professions. As a RIS developer for the CCSI at the Prague Innovation Institute, she is responsible for the city\u2019s game development acceleration program supporting local emerging teams. Her work focuses on innovation, education and talent development across the cultural and creative industries.","jobTitle":"Development of cultural and creative industries","TalkLanguage":"Czech","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 11:30 - 11:55","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Edu","hall":"Panorama Hall","start":"Friday 11:00 - 11:25","name":"Prague Game Accelerator"},{"Filter":"Indies","hall":"Indie Hall","start":"Friday 14:00 - 14:50","name":"Panel Discussion - current situation of the indie game industry in Czech Republic "}]}
{"Filter":"Edu","FilterValue":"Industry Support","Name":"Guillaume Jamet","company":"Eikin","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/BE9A1450-EC70-041C-35D3-7039612E1693.jpg","titles":"Dear Villagers, Plug In Digital, PID Games","TalkName":"GDS Prague Pitching Session","TalkDescription":"The best and bravest of GDS Prague Indie Expo will present their pitch decks in lightning rounds of presentations, followed by questions and discussions with a professional jury. All to compete for a prime spot of the most appreciated pitch of GDS Prague 2025!","description":"Guillaume Jamet is a seasoned veteran in the French video game industry with 20 years of expertise in publishing, communications, and business development. As former VP at Plug In Digital, he built its publishing division, launched the Dear Villagers label, and oversaw more than 60 releases across all platforms. Today, he runs Eikin, providing strategic guidance to emerging studios and new ventures such as Sail.game and Indiesche Partners.","jobTitle":"CEO & Head of Strategy","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 16:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Business","hall":"Panorama Hall","start":"Saturday 15:00 - 15:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Global Game Publishing Today: Strategies, Risks & How to Succeed"}]}
Jarek Kolář
INGAME STUDIOS, a.s.
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Jarek Kol\u00e1\u0159","company":"INGAME STUDIOS, a.s.","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/DBEECFCB-4EE3-A8E4-A42E-DC28C59CF50C.jpg","titles":"Crime Boss, Vietcong, Mafia 2","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Power-Up for Developers: Financing Games Through the New Czech Video Game Incentives Scheme","TalkDescription":"The Czech Republic has introduced a new incentive scheme for video game development under the Czech Audiovisual Fund. This panel will unpack how the program works, who will it benefit, and its potential impact on the Czech gaming ecosystem. Join leading experts as we explore eligibility, timeframe, positive and critical voices on the scheme and whether this initiative can truly level up the Czech gaming industry.","description":"Jarek Kol\u00e1\u0159 is a veteran game producer and designer with over 30 years of experience, specializing in leadership and management. He excels at guiding creative teams and optimizing the development process to achieve clear goals. With a diverse background working on various games (such as Vietcong and Mafia 2), Jarek leads INGAME STUDIOS, the team behind Crime Boss: Rockay City.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"Czech","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 14:00 - 14:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Law","hall":"Summit Hall","start":"Friday 12:00 - 12:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Legal Basics for Indies"}]}
Daniel Vávra
Warhorse Studios
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Daniel V\u00e1vra","company":"Warhorse Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/249A6F81-D79E-F7D7-F337-46BDA47BF276.jpg","titles":"Mafia series, Kingdom Come series","TalkName":"How to create your masterpiece","TalkDescription":"How to come up with an idea for an exceptional work, how to cultivate it, push it through, execute it, and bring it to completion.","description":"Daniel V\u00e1vra is a Czech video game writer, director, designer and co-founder of Warhorse Studios. He is best known as the lead writer of the video games Mafia (2002), Mafia II (2010) and Kingdom Come: Deliverance (2018) and upcoming Kingdom Come 2.","jobTitle":"Creative Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 13:30 - 14:20","AllSpeakers":""}
Michal Kandráč
Tripledot Studios
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Michal Kandr\u00e1\u010d","company":"Tripledot Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/7E6C2441-A20E-950E-C46B-691D4443464D.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Clone Wars","TalkDescription":"Where does homage end and cloning begin? Join industry experts as they unpack the hottest controversies in look-alike games, reveal how far inspiration can legally go, and spotlight the creative and business risks every studio should watch for. A sharp, energetic session for anyone in an industry where originality is both a challenge and an opportunity.","description":"Michal is Senior Legal Counsel at Tripledot Studios, one of the world\u2019s largest mobile gaming companies. He previously spent more than a decade at leading Czech law firms, advising major global and local clients across the technology, video game, and film industries, and has been repeatedly recognized as a Rising Star in the prestigious Managing IP rankings. A lifelong gamer, movie buff, and bookworm who can debate Star Wars trivia for hours.","jobTitle":"Senior Legal Counsel","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 15:00 - 15:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Law","hall":"Panorama Hall","start":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Deals That Define the Game: Inside the World of Gaming Transactions"}]}
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Jan Wosiura","company":"Nova Sphere","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/51B994AB-7F7F-0A31-B9A5-D00AD7F73DE1.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Legal Basics for Indies","TalkDescription":"Legal stuff isn\u2019t just for the big studios, indies need it from day one. This panel brings together top video game lawyers, consultants, and Czech game veterans to give you clear practical guidance on running your indie studio the smart way. We will cover setting up your business, protecting your IP, licensing, and protecting your brand - all in plain language, no legalese. Expect lots of real-life stories, lessons learnt, and tips you can actually use to stay creative, safe and one step ahead.","description":"Jan Wosiura is a General Counsel at Nova Sphere. Specialist in legal aspects of free-to-play and live service games. Typical lawyer with no sense of humour. In the software and games industry for more than 10 years. RPG enthusiast of all kinds. Academically affiliated with the Faculty of Law of the University of \u0141\u00f3d\u017a \u2013 conducts research on industry monetisation practices, in particular in the context of personal data protection and the use of AI.","jobTitle":"General Counsel","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 12:00 - 12:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Tereza Roller-Sabella
Plan A Collective
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Tereza Roller-Sabella","company":"Plan A Collective","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/5D058F5A-1872-5113-D4AF-41208EC7FB90.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Power-Up for Developers: Financing Games Through the New Czech Video Game Incentives Scheme","TalkDescription":"The Czech Republic has introduced a new incentive scheme for video game development under the Czech Audiovisual Fund. This panel will unpack how the program works, who will it benefit, and its potential impact on the Czech gaming ecosystem. Join leading experts as we explore eligibility, timeframe, positive and critical voices on the scheme and whether this initiative can truly level up the Czech gaming industry.","description":"I work at the intersection of creative direction, production, narrative, and strategy, in games but also in film and TV. I\u2019ve helped build Plan A, a co-dev studio, from the ground up. Have worked on titles like Devil May Cry V, Warhammer Vermintide II or Battlefield 2042. I\u2019ve led the creation of original IPs, pitched projects and managed partnerships. My passion lies in transmedia-how a strong idea, be it a world, character, or tone, can live across formats without getting lost in translation.","jobTitle":"Creative Director","TalkLanguage":"Czech","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 14:00 - 14:50","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Luk\u00e1\u0161 Mr\u00e1zik","company":"Kinstellar","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/905291A8-BEB4-96B7-8230-473AF027FDC2.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Safe Mode Activated: AI in Games Without Breaking the Rules","TalkDescription":"AI is transforming the way games are developed. But as AI becomes integral to creative pipelines, it also raises tough legal and ethical questions. We\u2019ll explore how studios are integrating AI into their daily workflows, not only to accelerate production but to build practical governance approaches that support responsible use. Expect a clear, practical look at IP risks, emerging regulatory expectations, and the concrete steps developers can take to stay compliant without slowing innovation.","description":"Luk\u00e1\u0161 Mr\u00e1zik is a Managing Associate in Bratislava office, the co-head of the firm-wide Data & Cybersecurity service line and a member of Kinstellar's Interactive Entertainment & Gaming group . He focuses on technology law, with particular expertise in data protection. Luk\u00e1\u0161 also enjoys playing World of Tanks and is a listed legal advisor to the Slovak Game Developer Association.","jobTitle":"Managing Associate","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 16:00 - 16:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Martin Frývaldský
Warhorse Studios
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Martin Fr\u00fdvaldsk\u00fd","company":"Warhorse Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/06639F7D-AE34-C78A-7A5F-F757D51879B4.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Deals That Define the Game: Inside the World of Gaming Transactions","TalkDescription":"From billion-dollar acquisitions to strategic investments, M&A is reshaping the gaming landscape. But are these deals a launchpad to global success or a shortcut to losing creative control? This session brings together top experts who have been behind some of the most influential gaming transactions, including deals involving Embracer Group, Geewa, Warhorse or Tripledot Studios. If you are a rising studio eyeing growth or an investor scouting the next breakout hit, this is must-attend session.","description":"For more than 12 years, he has been at the helm of Warhorse Studios, one of the most successful Czech game studios. He came to Warhorse as one of the few people outside the game industry with expertise in the transformation of large companies, including the restructuring of the European railway carrier AWT or managing investments at Bakala Capital. He set a long-term strategy that contributed to the success of Warhorse Studios, which became part of the Embracer Group in 2019.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Tomasz Gadomski
11 Bit Studios
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Tomasz Gadomski","company":"11 Bit Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/9A01C855-9556-727C-C095-E89E07FF7CF2.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - How to Prepare for Negotiations with a Publisher","TalkDescription":"Getting your game developed is one thing, getting it funded and published is another. We will unpack what really goes into a publishing agreement: revenue splits, IP ownership, and who controls what. You will also hear what to prepare before talks begin, when to bring in a lawyer, and get some hard-earned tips from real negotiations. Whether you are pitching your first title or expanding your studio, this practical session will help you walk into publisher meetings ready to play smart.","description":"Legal Expert at 11 bit studios and lecturer of MBA class on Management of IP at PJATK Academy in Warsaw. Being a games, movies and TV addict combines his hands-on experience with intellectual property law with passion for media and pop-culture. What brings him the most joy is the ever growing list of movies on IMDB.com he was legal advisor for.","jobTitle":"Legal Expert","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 13:00 - 13:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Law","hall":"Summit Hall","start":"Friday 15:00 - 15:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Clone Wars"}]}
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Petr Bratsk\u00fd","company":"Kinstellar","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/032A20FB-894C-16CB-6346-58DFD4E0F415.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - How to Prepare for Negotiations with a Publisher","TalkDescription":"Getting your game developed is one thing, getting it funded and published is another. We will unpack what really goes into a publishing agreement: revenue splits, IP ownership, and who controls what. You will also hear what to prepare before talks begin, when to bring in a lawyer, and get some hard-earned tips from real negotiations. Whether you are pitching your first title or expanding your studio, this practical session will help you walk into publisher meetings ready to play smart.","description":"Head of the Interactive Entertainment & Gaming practice at Kinstellar and founder of the GDS Legal Summit. Advises both major global and indie studios on all legal aspects of video games. Petr is a member of the Video Game Bar Association, an international organisation bringing together lawyers with experience in video games, and has been recognized by both Legal 500 and Chambers rankings. Passionate about creative industries, Petr is also a dedicated LP collector and enjoys live music.","jobTitle":"Head of Interactive Entertainment & Gaming group","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 13:00 - 13:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Law","hall":"Summit Hall","start":"Friday 12:00 - 12:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Legal Basics for Indies"},{"Filter":"Law","hall":"Summit Hall","start":"Friday 14:00 - 14:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Power-Up for Developers: Financing Games Through the New Czech Video Game Incentives Scheme"}]}
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Pavel Hrd\u00fd","company":"Kinstellar","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/29C5E77A-D1DA-2160-F524-56C695282F6B.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Deals That Define the Game: Inside the World of Gaming Transactions","TalkDescription":"From billion-dollar acquisitions to strategic investments, M&A is reshaping the gaming landscape. But are these deals a launchpad to global success or a shortcut to losing creative control? This session brings together top experts who have been behind some of the most influential gaming transactions, including deals involving Embracer Group, Geewa, Warhorse or Tripledot Studios. If you are a rising studio eyeing growth or an investor scouting the next breakout hit, this is must-attend session.","description":"Pavel Hrd\u00fd is an Associate in the Prague office of Kinstellar. He is a member of the M&A and the Technology law team. He specialises in data governance, consumer protection and video games law. Pavel is an avid fan of video games and outside of work he enjoys playing Dota 2, God of War, Jedi Survivor and the Lego series.","jobTitle":"Associate","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Panorama Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 17:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Antonín Dvořák
Kinstellar
{"Filter":"Law","FilterValue":"Legal Summit","Name":"Anton\u00edn Dvo\u0159\u00e1k","company":"Kinstellar","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/8F159CB7-7D55-5EED-3615-0C26C23DC9B7.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - Clone Wars","TalkDescription":"Where does homage end and cloning begin? Join industry experts as they unpack the hottest controversies in look-alike games, reveal how far inspiration can legally go, and spotlight the creative and business risks every studio should watch for. A sharp, energetic session for anyone in an industry where originality is both a challenge and an opportunity.","description":"Anton\u00edn Dvo\u0159\u00e1k is a member of the Interactive Entertainment & Gaming team at Kinstellar. His work includes legal support to developers, publishers, and technology companies across Central and Eastern Europe. In 2025, Anton\u00edn captained Bucerius Law School (Hamburg, Germany) team at the Games Industry Law Summit high-profile moot court competition, where his team achieved 3rd place worldwide.","jobTitle":"Junior Associate","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Summit Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 15:00 - 15:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Law","hall":"Summit Hall","start":"Friday 16:00 - 16:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Safe Mode Activated: AI in Games Without Breaking the Rules"}]}
Sanja Čežek
Fuchs+Dachs s.r.o.
{"Filter":"Indies","FilterValue":"Sticks, Ropes and High Hopes","Name":"Sanja \u010ce\u017eek","company":"Fuchs+Dachs s.r.o.","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/247E8DB1-3B0E-EBEA-9B10-CC92D25E361E.jpg","titles":"Ministry of Broadcast, Jeff (&) the Vampire, Brute","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - current situation of the indie game industry in Czech Republic ","TalkDescription":"Together with GDA CZ, Fuchs+Dachs game dev studio is organising a small one day EVENT that would be a part of this year\u2019s Game Developers Session Conference, in Prague. We have one whole day specially organised for small teams, students and young game dev enthusiasts that we would like to greatly benefit from GDS 2025. \nThe event is aimed for anyone interested in working in small teams, studying game design or small indie game dev teams and studios.","description":"Fuchs+Dachs studio is led by Sanja \u010ce\u017eek, a Serbia-born, Art-schooled hybrid creative, who started her career as a freelancer and since 2007 she won awards in many industry fields, such are app and web development, mobile game dev, advertising & marketing, graphic design and premium game design. \r\nAfter releasing Ministry of Broadcast game - Sanja profoundly fell in love with writing strong game concepts and game directing. Currently in full production with Jeff (&) the Vampire game.","jobTitle":"Founder \/ Game Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Indie Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 14:00 - 14:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Tom Roller
Plan A Collective
{"Filter":"Business","FilterValue":"Business","Name":"Tom Roller","company":"Plan A Collective","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/A6B48A23-D959-4A78-5D84-D8ADB3C54A07.jpg","titles":"Battlefield 6, Dragon's Dogma 2, MS Flight Simulat","TalkName":"From the Fuckup Files","TalkDescription":"\u201eFrom the Fuckup Files\u201d is a fast, honest look at the key lessons from 25 years in game development. The talk covers three themes: allocating and growing talent, what makes a strong co-dev partner, and how the industry has changed. No sugarcoating\u2014just practical insights shaped by real mistakes and the progress they created.","description":"Tom Roller is the CEO of Plan A and a 25-year veteran of game development and co-dev production (Battlefield 6, Dragon's Dogma 2, MS Flight Simulator). He specializes in building high-performance teams, scaling talent, and shaping partnerships with top AA\/AAA studios. His leadership style is direct, practical, and rooted in one belief: growth comes from mistakes - if you know how to turn them into progress.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Lecture Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 14:00 - 14:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Roman Hladík
Hangar 13 / 2K Czech
{"Filter":"Edu","FilterValue":"Industry Support","Name":"Roman Hlad\u00edk","company":"Hangar 13 \/ 2K Czech","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/49A169E3-CBB3-AE0E-C1F0-538FC22E1F9B.jpg","titles":"The Mafia series and boardgame Karak","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - How To Grow And Develop Sustainable Game Industry Clusters","TalkDescription":"GAME-ER is a 36-month research project funded by HORIZON Europe and UKRI, dedicated to understanding the unique dynamics of local and regional video game clusters. We aim to provide policymakers and decision-makers with the knowledge and tools needed to foster thriving video game clusters.","description":"With more than 30 years in the game industry, Roman have worked on all Mafia titles, including the recently released Mafia: The Old Country. He is also the co-author of the successful board games Karak and Karak 2. He is also an active member and Chairman of the Game Cluster, a non-profit organization seeking opportunities to accelerate the game industry, support education programs, and promote the field to the public.","jobTitle":"Senior Director, Czech Studios and GM 2K Czech","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 15:00 - 15:50","AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Law","hall":"Summit Hall","start":"Friday 14:00 - 14:50","name":"Panel Discussion - Power-Up for Developers: Financing Games Through the New Czech Video Game Incentives Scheme"}]}
Paweł Wojciechowski
Games Operators
{"Filter":"Edu","FilterValue":"Industry Support","Name":"Pawe\u0142 Wojciechowski","company":"Games Operators","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/0386F70D-F06E-0AC4-D510-55015D3CAD22.jpg","titles":"Infection Free Zone,Solar Expanse,Survival Machine","TalkName":"GDS Prague Pitching Session","TalkDescription":"The best and bravest of GDS Prague Indie Expo will present their pitch decks in lightning rounds of presentations, followed by questions and discussions with a professional jury. All to compete for a prime spot of the most appreciated pitch of GDS Prague 2025!","description":"An accomplished narrative designer, aiming at developing a broad range of interdisciplinary skills and overall game dev proficiency, enhancing the quality of work and improving the workplace through constant development in communication and better task management for oneself and the others. Pawe\u0142 is currently engaged as Narrative Designer and Producer at Game Operators where he is responsible for creating captivating stories and plotlines, writing content, quest design and maintaining consistent","jobTitle":"Producer | Narrative Designer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 16:00 - 17:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Josef Vopička
The MAMA AI, SE
{"Filter":"Technical","FilterValue":"Technical","Name":"Josef Vopi\u010dka","company":"The MAMA AI, SE","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/DD076626-E759-138A-4BB9-99BBA8696A41.jpg","titles":"AI voices for Seznam, Adela - Czech Army recruiter","TalkName":"Artificial voices and Avatars","TalkDescription":"I\u2019ll present recent progress in creating artificial voices by blending different timbres, along with a brief look at developing life-like avatars.","description":"Josef Vopi\u010dka is the co-founder of The MAMA AI, SE and Senior Application Developer at MAMA AI. He has 24 years of experience, including 20 years in R&D and management at IBM Research and IBM Watson. He holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and is a co-inventor of nine U.S. patents and author of several publications in STT and TTS technologies.","jobTitle":"co-founder","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 13:00 - 13:25","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Indies","FilterValue":"Sticks, Ropes and High Hopes","Name":"Mat\u011bj Hes","company":"Bell Hat Games","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/91E9DF95-8AB2-67C7-1435-62AA9126BFC4.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Bell Hat Games and games for children with ADHD","TalkDescription":"I will talk about my indie game development experiences and developing a game for children","description":"Mat\u011bj Hes is the creative director of Bell Hat Games and a student of Game design at FAMU","jobTitle":"Creative Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Indie Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 12:00 - 12:25","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Filter":"Indies","FilterValue":"Sticks, Ropes and High Hopes","Name":"Michaela J\u00edlkov\u00e1","company":"School","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/45EAE826-7BC1-CA7E-9D78-E8D0275C5C40.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Regarding Sasha and Student Games Festival","TalkDescription":"Our game Regarding Sasha got nominated for Student Game Awards in Warsaw and we would like to talk about our experience at the event.","description":"I'm a student and I'm currently studying Game Art in S\u0160UD.","jobTitle":"student","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Indie Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 12:30 - 12:55","AllSpeakers":""}
Jan Houška
Charles University
{"Filter":"Edu","FilterValue":"Industry Support","Name":"Jan Hou\u0161ka","company":"Charles University","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/D70D523E-D2DB-1F34-E923-AC1063BB57E4.jpg","titles":"","TalkName":"Panel Discussion - How To Grow And Develop Sustainable Game Industry Clusters","TalkDescription":"GAME-ER is a 36-month research project funded by HORIZON Europe and UKRI, dedicated to understanding the unique dynamics of local and regional video game clusters. We aim to provide policymakers and decision-makers with the knowledge and tools needed to foster thriving video game clusters.","description":"Jan Hou\u0161ka is a PhD student at Charles University in Prague and one of the co-investigators of the GAME-ER project, under Horizon Europe program. His dissertation thesis deals with the work experiences of expatriate and remote game workers in the Czech game industry.","jobTitle":"PhD student","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Creative Hall","TalkTime":"Friday 15:00 - 15:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Viktor Bocan
Warhorse Studios
{"Filter":"Design","FilterValue":"Game\/Design","Name":"Viktor Bocan","company":"Warhorse Studios","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/9DC7F035-0F44-BEA3-1BBD-A4A38D31E7E0.jpg","titles":"Operation Flashpoint, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II","TalkName":"Designing Brave","TalkDescription":"Game design as an art form: a space where personal vision meets public reception. Reflection on creative risks, design integrity, and the ongoing search for balance between authenticity and accessibility in modern game development.","description":"Game designer and writer for more than 30 years; worked on small and big games, lead designer of the original Operation Flashpoint, design lead and design director for Kingdom Come: Deliverance I & II. Gaming enthusiast & seeker of purity in game design.","jobTitle":"Design Director","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Hangar 13 Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 16:00 - 16:50","AllSpeakers":""}
Ellen Kůtová
Secondary School of Art and Design
{"Filter":"Indies","FilterValue":"Sticks, Ropes and High Hopes","Name":"Ellen K\u016ftov\u00e1","company":"Secondary School of Art and Design","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/ED484758-D5E4-BE7F-616C-79B0E0F5863C.jpg","titles":"Regarding Sasha, Fruitland, Lost Concept","TalkName":"Regarding Sasha and Student Games Festival","TalkDescription":"Our game Regarding Sasha got nominated for Student Game Awards in Warsaw and we would like to talk about our experience at the event.","description":"Hello, my name is Ellen K\u016ftov\u00e1 and I am a novice game developer currently studying Game Art in Brno, Czech Republic. I am interested in creating 2D visuals, game design, and of course making small games with my friends.","jobTitle":"Student","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Indie Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 12:30 - 12:55","AllSpeakers":""}
Vojta Siman
FiolaSoft Studio / FAMU Game Design
{"Filter":"Indies","FilterValue":"Sticks, Ropes and High Hopes","Name":"Vojta Siman","company":"FiolaSoft Studio \/ FAMU Game Design","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/62449814-15E9-7F26-15DC-8C51EBF2A623.jpg","titles":"MATCHO, BLACKHOLE","TalkName":"Sticks, Ropes & Impostor Syndrome","TalkDescription":"As a part of the \"Sticks, Ropes & High Hopes\" event at GDS, I would like to look back at my very chaotic game dev journey and the times when facing my self-doubts has led to some of the most important events of my life. This is going to be a short and informal (and hopefully inspirational) talk, no prerequisites required!","description":"Level designer, music composer and sound designer. I worked on BLACKHOLE by FiolaSoft Studio and for the past few years we have been working on an action adventure match 3 FPS called MATCHO. This year I also enrolled at FAMU Game Design.","jobTitle":"Level Designer + Music Composer","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":"Indie Hall","TalkTime":"Saturday 13:30 - 13:55","AllSpeakers":""}
{"Name":"Markus Zaunschirm","company":"atmoky","Image":"https:\/\/content.gdsession.com\/2025\/11\/C62E7563-4BFB-22F4-1DB1-D708E17DC365.jpg","titles":"atmoky trueSpatial, atmoky trueAcoustics","TalkName":"Interactive Spatial Audio in Games. How it conveys emotion and impacts perception","TalkDescription":"What makes spatial audio immersive isn\u2019t just how it sounds, but how it responds. In this session, Markus Zaunschirm and Clemens Amon from atmoky explore the real-time nature of interactive spatial audio and how it fuels immersion, engagement, and presence in games. They connect psychoacoustic concepts like transportation and plausibility with practical game engine and middleware implementation. The talk will include live demos and a behind-the-scenes look at atmoky\u2019s upcoming acoustics engine.","description":"Dr. Markus Zaunschirm is an expert in spatial audio and immersive technology, co-founder of atmoky, and a mentor for audio-focused startups. His research on perceptually-optimized binaural audio has led to impactful publications and awards advancing the field of low-footprint, high-quality spatial audio. As CEO and co-founder of atmoky, he is committed to pushing the boundaries of spatial audio, acoustic simulation, and perceptual evaluation in gaming and XR to enhance immersion and engagement.","jobTitle":"CEO","TalkLanguage":"English","TalkHall":null,"AllSpeakers":"","OtherTalks":[{"Filter":"Art","hall":"Summit Hall","start":"Friday 11:00 - 11:25","name":"Interactive Spatial Audio in Games. How it conveys emotion and impacts perception"}]}
