Making the Games We Want to Make

Rapidly developed, highly successful games have recently made waves in the industry. In many ways, they contrast games where developers invest years to create and polish their projects for high production value.

Where do the philosophies behind those approaches clash, and what unites them?

Impulse Talks:

Rebecca Lautner: "Five Weeks in South Korea"
Tomas Sala: "Seven Years of Blood, Sweat and Finding a Creative Voice"

Followed by a 30 minute discussion moderated by Andreas Suika.

When?
26.6.2026
3:00 pm – 3:50 pm

Where?Talk DeckMS Princess

CBO, Landfall

Rebecca Lautner

Tomas Sala

Tomas started out as co-founder of Little Chicken Game Company, and spent 15 years doing work for hire, but transitioned from mid-size studio to a solodev career some 8 years ago. His first game, 'The Falconeer' was born from a severe burnout and has since spawned an entire franchise, including Bulwark and the latest addition ShipShaper. His approach is a slow build where every release is intended to build stronger foundations and cement a loyal userbase that sticks around for new updates and content. Franchise loyalty turned into stability and a more secure starting position for a solodev than hunting for virality or chart position. A long-term experiment that is still evolving but not yet running out of steam.

Independent Game Designer / Developer

Andreas Suika

Andreas Suika is an experienced German game designer and creative director with over 24 years of experience in the video game industry. Suika has provided game design consultancy on various indie games and contributes regulary in mentoring aspiring game developers or lecturing at institutions like the Cologne Game Lab.