October 10th marked the celebration of World Mental Health Day, an annual event held to raise awareness about depression, mental health, and the importance of mental well-being. Mental health has been a hot topic for a while but having a specific day dedicated to the issue allows the world to stop, take stock, and focus on the important matter of how to improve the conditions safeguarding our psychological health.

At Huuuge we took the opportunity to not only celebrate World Mental Health Day but also to create a month’s worth of Mental Health inspired activities starting on 10th October and running into November. The Huuuge Mental Health Month activities were tailored to help our team become more aware of the issue and better equipped to deal with the stresses of modern life. As this month of activity comes towards its end we wanted to take this opportunity to explore the issues of mental health within our industry and discuss some of the initiatives our teams have taken part in over the past few weeks.

The scale of the problem

The World Health Organization in their recent data states that nearly one billion people worldwide suffer from some form of mental disorder. The prevalence of these disorders rises with key worldwide factors like economic downturns and widespread humanitarian emergencies. The last couple of particularly turbulent years had a devastating detrimental effect — COVID-19 in particular created an unprecedented global crisis in mental health. According to the annual World mental health report issued by WHO, rates of already-common conditions such as depression and anxiety went up by more than 25% in the first year of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, as the uncertainties over the future are growing amid the COVID-induced economic crisis, employed men and women are vulnerable to depressive and anxiety symptoms. WHO estimates that 15% of working-age adults are estimated to have a mental disorder. To put it on a different scale, an estimated 12 billion workdays are lost annually due to psychological disorders, costing the global economy nearly $1 trillion.

Mental health problems aren’t exclusive to the older generations either — in the report “the Mental Health and Young People Survey” the National Health Service in England noted that in 2020, one in six (16.0%) children aged 5 to 16 years were identified as having a probable mental disorder, increasing from one in nine (10.8%) in 2017. The increase was evident in both boys and girls.

Knowing all this data, we understand why it is important to bring attention to our mental health, but we also know these issues can’t be solved in one day. There are no short-term, easy fixes — our actions need to be recurrent and long-lasting. One day or even one month is not enough.

The importance of mental health awareness in gamedev

Mental health is essential for good health and quality of life. It plays a role in how well individuals, families, communities, and social function. Positive mental health has been shown to have advantages in both personal and work settings. People who report good mental health do better in their job, are more adaptable and resilient to stress and are more prone to engage and collaborate with others for a common goal.

Because we spend a large proportion of our lives working, a safe and healthy working environment is fundamental. Meaningful work is protective of mental health by contributing to a person’s sense of accomplishment, confidence, and earnings. It also contributes to recovery and inclusion for people living with psychosocial disabilities. However, harmful or poor working conditions, hazardous work environments and work organization, poor working relationships, or unemployment can significantly contribute to worsening mental health or exacerbate existing mental health conditions. Said factors can lead to grave consequences, ranging from low cognitive performance (decreased focus, memory issues), to low motivation and work withdrawal, to finally burnout which can last even after quitting a job.

The Gamedev industry is full of brilliant, creative, and intelligent people. However, as much as innovative and rewarding as our work is, it can also be a demanding career. Being able to deliver high-level performance under time pressure, the ability to handle work overload, and the need to be flexible and adjustable to ever-changing conditions are in demand in the industry. Gamedev is a career that requires high mental resistance.

In short, developers need their brains in good shape to do the work that they do, and when things aren’t going well, we can see it in their codes and — since we are working collaboratively — it can impact others and their work as well. Furthermore, when you are a programmer, there can be pressure to continuously develop yourself by upgrading your skills, which sometimes can put unrealistic expectations on you and lead to anxiety.

What does Huuuge do to ensure our employee’s wellbeing

We believe that even though our understanding of mental health has grown, there is still a lot to be done. That is one of the reasons why we launched the Huuuge Mental Health Month, which lasts 4 weeks from the 10th of October to the 9th of November. We have invited a licensed Mental Toughness consultant Małgorzata Henke to hold a series of webinars for our employees. These sessions were intended to teach how to build personal resilience and mental toughness by cultivating a positive attitude, taking care of one’s energy, and practicing healthy habits. Because many of our colleagues work remotely, we ensured everyone could join by having online meetings which were also recorded for the benefit of those who could not attend in person or wanted to watch them back afterward. As a result, about 40% of our employees attended the first webinar on how to develop resistance to stress and pressure, whereas approximately 20% of them took part in the second one dedicated to maintaining energy levels at and after work.

Staying true to WHO’s recommendations, we also made sure our managers and supervisors are properly educated and well-equipped with the knowledge and resources to design a work environment that favors open communication, health, and well-being. We conducted special leadership-oriented training, enabling them to not only build their own mental resistance but also be able to spot warning symptoms among their staff and react accordingly.

We understand not only the internal dynamics of the workplace can contribute to how our employees feel, but also the external factors we sometimes are unable to control. However, what we can do is provide the support, tools, and information necessary to help our team cope with the stress and anxiety during these uncertain times. Hence why we are also offering psychological help to any team member who needed it in the form of fully confidential, personal meetings with psychologists after the war in Ukraine broke out.

With the Huuuge Mental Health Month initiative coming to the end, we are starting to take stock on what we have learned, what can be improved and what we can utilize everyday to help our important mission to empower our employees.

Huuuge Team

References

Huppert, F. A. (2009). Psychological well‐being: Evidence regarding its causes and consequences. Applied Psychology: Health and Well‐being, 1(2), 137–164.

Lyubomirsky, S., King, L., & Diener, E. (2005). The benefits of frequent positive affect: Does happiness lead to success? Psychological Bulletin, 131(6), 803.

World Health Organization. (2022, June 16). World Mental Health Report: Transforming mental health for all. World Health Organization. Retrieved October 28, 2022, from https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240049338

NHS. (2020, October 22). NHS choices. Retrieved October 28, 2022, from https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/mental-health-of-children-and-young-people-in-england/2020-wave-1-follow-up

Huuuge shines a light on mental health awareness was originally published in Huuuge Games on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

We’re very proud of Huuuge Casino, it’s our flagship franchise and one of the biggest social casino games in the world. Every day fans from across the world play along with their friends and join our rich and growing community of players. One of the main reasons our players love Huuuge Casino so much is because it offers a real-time social experience that evolves with new features and events, which as its popularity shows, keep gamers engaged and coming back for more.

Knowing what our players look for and expect, the team behind Huuuge Casino recently designed a very special new feature — one might say its tailor-made!

Introducing Trendy Time, a fashion-themed event which recently launched in August this year. If you missed it, then don’t worry — this event is a recurring one, taking place every 2 to 3 weeks, and lasting up to 3 days.

Let’s check it out and see if it’s chic enough to make a long-lasting style statement in the mobile gaming world.

Collect them all

Trendy Time consists of various cosmetics, which are a part of Huuuge Charms, a mid-term, seasonal event. Players previously had a chance to collect similar items during the Charms Madison’s Farm — another limited-time event that launched in May and also added new charm packs to Huuuge Casino.

The new Trendy Time items can be collected by spinning, leveling up, or purchasing them in-game and each player can collect up to 10 charms grouped in one set. Each set follows a specific theme depending on the time the event is hosted — the first two were Swingin’ 50 and Jungle Madness. We won’t spoil the next few themes, but we are sure they will be as colorful, diverse, and enticing as the last ones.

What’s encouraging is that the more you play and level up, the more rare and sought-after charms you will receive. Players are able to purchase the Trendy Time charms too, allowing them to progress quickly with the challenges if they wish. Those who complete the whole set will win a very special prize in the form of the Grand Reward.

Meet the fashionistas

You are not alone in the search for new objects to collect in Trendy Time. Players on this quest are accompanied by some very well-dressed students of Huuuge Academy: their leader Victoria (any comparisons with a famed British designer and former pop singer are spot on), Californian girl Tami with a penchant for pink, Dre, who sports an Athleisure style, Fran, whose style is the epitome of vacation chic, as funny as he is stylish Aarav, and Jada the dancer.

These gorgeous fashion students are as passionate about their craft, as they are — pun intended — fashionably late, hence their collections being at risk of failure before they even hit the runway. This is where you as the player step in. By finding and gathering various items from their collections, you can help them achieve their couture dreams, all while receiving amazing rewards. Sounds like a win-win but make it fashion!

Psychology of collecting

A love of style is not the only inspiration behind the Trendy Time event, our team looked to tap into something innate to human behavior — our drive to collect things. Did you know that according to a recent academic study published in the Journal of Consumer Marketing, about 40% of US households engage in some form of collecting activity? It is no wonder this common behavior has migrated over to the virtual world, even if the objects aren’t physical, they are still able to invoke feelings of strong attachment and need. To put it simply, gamers like to collect new items, and the more varied, the better.

Lena Rejzner, our Director of Product said it best: “We believe collectables are proven motivators for our players to stay with the game. The success of Trendy Time confirmed that — over 440 000 users participated in the event. We are thrilled the fanbase is embracing our charms. There are more surprises in store, so look forward to more fancy items to find and collect!“

Sources:
https://epublications.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1277&context=market_fac

Huuuge Team

Introducing Trendy Time — the new stylish feature in Huuuge Casino was originally published in Huuuge Games on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Man does not live by games alone, and we understand that very well at Huuuge! Cycling, running, and swimming are all very popular sports among our employees. We are well aware that taking care of yourself and having an active lifestyle have a great, positive effect on your professional life. This was one of the reasons behind our recent Huuuge Health Month initiative, created in reference to International Health Day which is celebrated all over the world.

Good for the body, good for the soul…

During the Huuuge Health Month celebration, which kicked off in April, we combined physical activity with charitable support. The Huuuge team were tasked with burning as many calories as possible during the month to earn cash for charity. It didn’t matter what activity they chose, various sports and other physical activities such as dancing or even simply walking were on offer. Participants data was collated and logged via a partnership with the Worksmile platform which supported us technologically by aggregating results from popular training applications. The higher the calories burned the higher the donation, a real win, win situation.

In true ‘teamwork makes the dream work’ style, the Huuuge team got a sweat on and contributed 25,000 PLN to the Polish Center for International Aid Foundation. A charity that actively helps people who are suffering from the war in Ukraine through psychological assistance.

Throughout the month, we shared tips and recordings from specialists such as trainers and nutritionists to help the team maximize their efforts. Some of the most popular topics included home exercise suggestions and nutritional support of physical activity. The goal was simple: we wanted our team to be fully clued up on how to eat and train properly.

Additionally, we engaged trainers on site in our offices, as an opportunity for the Huuuge team to become acquainted with proper exercise techniques face to face. Aside from being a great way to stay fit, the team had an opportunity to train together and get to know each other better. A fact not lost on our team:

“I hang out with my friends and play tennis instead of going for a coffee or a drink. It’s a great way to catch up on your peers while exercising,” says Anne Maria Tulonen-Ruikka, Studio Operations Manager from Helsinki. Adam Radoliński, Creative Manager summed it up with these words: “In everyday life understanding, partnership and cooperation — they work perfectly based on the sport team spirit”.

Tips from the Huuuge team on how to stay physically active

Gaming is often referred to as a stationary activity — and many gamers do indeed lead a rather sedentary lifestyle. At Huuuge we not only take pride in producing and publishing mobile games that can be pretty much played everywhere, but also in having many sport enthusiasts among us.

“From the perspective of several years of training, I am convinced that investing in sport is one of the best things that have happened in my life.” said Marcin Safranow, IT and Security Director, who is also a passionate marathon runner. “Physical activity helps me clear my mind, get away from daily life and my routine at work. By playing sports, I recharge my batteries. It always gives me a different perspective on each, sometimes difficult situation,” adds Katarzyna Grybalow, Regional Administration Manager.

At Huuuge, we try to motivate our employees to be physically active, because we know very well that the old Latin phrase “a healthy mind in a healthy body” works perfectly in practice. An active person is calm, relaxed and full of energy. What’s more, an oxygenated mind has more ideas and copes better with problems, not only in professional but in personal life as well.

“In our industry, we mainly work seated. It is either in front of a computer or during meetings with coworkers. We naturally lack time in the fresh air and in motion. Huuuge encourages us to be physically active and relax outside in many ways: from events and meetings held at our locations, through financed participation in sports events (e.g. Poland Business Run or marathons), to organizing a health month.” — said Marta Andreasik, PR Manager at Huuuge.

It doesn’t matter what sport you play. Every calorie burn or the fact that you move even a little — they all count! Sports activity is beneficial for your health and overall well-being. Take care of yourself every day, not only during the health month.

Huuuge Team

A league of their own. Why is sport so significant for Huuuge? was originally published in Huuuge Games on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Computer software is omnipresent and integral to our daily activities — be it for work or fun. We run it on computers, consoles, phones, watches, and lots of other hardware. Because of that we put a great deal of effort to make it look great (UI) and be easy and pleasant to use (UX). Since the competition on the market is fierce those aspects, sometimes, belittle other less eye-candy but also important things — for example application’s performance.

In this article, I will present 7 pieces of advice on how to tackle that problem and make your apps not only look but also work great.

Code examples are in C++, but many of the suggested techniques can be applied in other technologies.

What is code optimization?

Before we dive into specifics, let’s clarify what we mean by code optimization. We define it as a modification process intended to make the software more efficient in terms of computations’ time and amount of required resources (primarily memory). It is important to note here that the modification should not change the outcome that the code produces, nor any of its expected side effects.

In essence, optimization is hard because it requires knowledge and experience and quite often it is about keeping the balance between contradicting requirements.

Why should we optimize code?

You may wonder — maybe we should rather direct our energy to the development of new features or fixing of existing bugs rather than optimization?

We should take into account all pros and cons because almost all code can be optimized to some degree. However, it doesn’t mean that it always makes sense to do so — remember that perfect is the enemy of good.

Let’s list some examples of when one may want to double down on optimization:

1. To make the software run faster. In the case of games, the shorter the execution of the game loop, the more frames produced per second, which essentially leads to smoother gameplay and a better gaming experience.

In the case of utility or optimization of applications may lead to better responsiveness or quicker production of results expected by the user.

In the case of backends or servers, it usually means the ability to serve more clients or return the required results faster.

2. To make the software work on limited hardware. In the case of embedded devices, such as ECUs (Electronic Control Unit) in your car or devices falling into the broad category of IoT (Internet of Things) software needs to work on hardware far more limited than our PCs, consoles, or even smartphones while being able to reliably do its work. In such cases, code must be crafted carefully with attention to limitations in computational power and available memory and, in some cases, even power consumption limitations.

3. To make software solutions possible. Some applications need to handle large amounts of data that can’t fit into available memory or require heavily parallelized computations to produce results in a reasonable time. Those might be solutions crunching on huge data sets or applications used for simulations of complex systems.

How to find out if we need to optimize

So far we know whats and whys. Now we have to understand if this is the right time to apply optimizations. To do so, we need to:

1. Use the app regularly and observe how it performs. If you can notice that gameplay is choppy, UI responsiveness is poor, or it takes ages to get the results of your program’s work then it is time to pause adding new features and revisit your code.

2. Inspect performance regularly. While user tests may uncover issues with your application, you likely find some of them faster when you will regularly monitor your software using dedicated tools called profilers.

7 advice for optimizing your code

The stage is set. We know what, why, and when. Now let’s talk about how to optimize.

1. Do not optimize prematurely.

There is a saying attributed to Donald Knuth, one of the fathers of programming: “premature optimization is the root of all evil.”. It is sometimes abused and even twisted in a way that lets lazy programmers abandon optimization whatsoever. The real meaning of those words is that programmers should first focus on two things — make code work properly and make it easy to read and understand. Only when those requirements are met should we consider code optimization. We shouldn’t go into automatic mode and always try to optimize, but do it only when we need to. And be careful — optimization that makes your code messy and hard to follow may cost you a lot in the longer perspective.

2. Run performance tests and use profilers

It doesn’t make sense to optimize something just because it can be optimized, or do it past some threshold. Define the goal that you want to achieve and monitor performance to stay on target. If your game is expected to run at 60 fps do not necessarily push it to run at 80 — especially if that would be costly or heavily impact code readability and ease of maintenance.

3. Start with algorithms

Not all techniques to optimize code were made equal. You need to understand your domain well before you start fighting for better performance. If you have sufficient knowledge then start with looking at your algorithms. It is probably the single most important area where you can improve. If you have implemented a custom solution try to understand its complexity with regards to big O. What is the class of your algorithm? If it is O(n3) or O(n²) there are big chances for vast improvements. Try to find classic problems that resemble most of your own and adapt well-known and optimized solutions to your needs. Only when you exhaust all options in this area should you move forward to other techniques.

Take a look at this (a bit simplified) example — we want to sort a collection of 1 million elements on a machine that performs 100 million operations per second.
The first algorithm selected for the task is a selection sort that has the complexity of O(n²). Calculating the actual amount of time required to sort the data we get a pretty high number of 104 seconds.

The second algorithm — quicksort, solves the same problem in less than a second.

Although quite simplified, this example shows how much can be changed just by applying a different algorithm.

4. Use your language better

Analyze your bottlenecks with regards to features of the programming language you are using. If it is C++ maybe you can change your code so you won’t need to use virtual functions or maybe those smart pointers you put there are not that necessary. Check your data types — maybe there are some bytes to be saved. Verify if the data structures that you picked from STL are the best choice. Maybe there is some 3rd party library that has a better implementation of the required data structure and it fits your requirements. Think twice before you throw an exception or even consider disabling them whatsoever.

While doing those micro-optimizations of the code you must remember that compilers are pretty smart beasts. Avoid “clever” improvements like using bit shifting instead of actual division. Compiler is smart enough to do it for you and all you are going to achieve is making the code less readable.

In the example below we can see how different implementations of the same concept can vary in the performance. The chart represents a comparison of the lookup time of std::string in a map containing 1 million elements.

5. Use your platform better

Optimizations are done on this level and fit only specific platforms. It may be that on the given platform you can use a compiler that supports a newer standard that enables performance-oriented mechanisms (like move semantics introduced in C++11) or produces better-optimized code in general. Maybe there is a library available on a specific platform that will make your program run faster.

Below is a piece of code in C that produces different assemblies on different compilers.

#include <immintrin.h>

__m256i f(__m128i in)

{

__m128i p1 = _mm_and_si128(in,_mm_set1_epi32(0xFF));

__m128i p2 = _mm_packus_epi32(p1, p1);

__m128i p = _mm_packus_epi16(p2, p2);

return _mm256_set_m128i(p, p);

}

Assembly from clang:

vpshufb xmm0, xmm2, xmmword ptr [rip + .LCPI0_0]
vinserti128 ymm0, ymm0, xmm0, 1

from gcc:

vpand xmm0, xmm2, XMMWORD PTR .LC0[rip]

vpackusdw xmm0, xmm0, xmm0

vpackuswb xmm0, xmm0, xmm0

vinserti128 ymm0, ymm0, xmm0, 1

and from MSVC:

vmovdqu xmm0, XMMWORD PTR __xmm@000000ff000000ff000000ff000000ff

vpand xmm1, xmm0, XMMWORD PTR [r8]

vpackusdw xmm2, xmm1, xmm1

vpackuswb xmm3, xmm2, xmm2

vmovups xmm0, xmm3

vinsertf128 ymm0, ymm0, xmm3, 1

Clearly, the clang version stands out and points to possible improvements. Analyzing this version we come up with different C codes:

#include <immintrin.h>

__m256i f(__m128i in)

{

__m128i p =_mm_shuffle_epi8(in, _mm_set1_epi32(0x0C080400));

return _mm256_set_m128i(p, p);

}

That leads to changes in assembly code that makes the gcc version look pretty much the same as clang and MSVC version only slightly different.

Gcc:

vpshufb xmm0, xmm0, XMMWORD PTR .LC0[rip]

vinserti128 ymm0, ymm0, xmm0, 1

MSVC:

vmovdqu xmm0, XMMWORD PTR [rcx]

vpshufb xmm2, xmm0, XMMWORD PTR __xmm@0c0804000c0804000c0804000c080400

vmovups xmm1, xmm2

vinsertf128 ymm0, ymm1, xmm2, 1

6. Hit the metal

If the performance of your code is still not satisfying you can apply techniques that are hardware-specific. Basically, this boils down to the use of features specific to a given processor family and available via high-level functions called intrinsics. Through such functions, we can access, for example, SIMD instruction — SSE and AVX on Intel silicon or NEON on ARM chips. Intrinsics do not fit every task, but you can still try to use specific instructions using pieces of manually crafted assembly code. This, however, can only work if you know exactly what you are doing.

The example presented below is an excerpt from etcpak compression tool. The purpose of this code is to check if a given block of pixels is of solid color.

const uint8_t* ptr = src + 4;
for(int i=1; i<16; i++)
{
if(memcmp(src, ptr, 4) != 0)
{
return 0;
}
ptr += 4;
}

The same logic expressed with intrinsics, although the code is a bit less readable and seemingly bigger, performs significantly better.

__m128i d0 = _mm_loadu_si128(((__m128i*)src) + 0);
__m128i d1 = _mm_loadu_si128(((__m128i*)src) + 1);
__m128i d2 = _mm_loadu_si128(((__m128i*)src) + 2);
__m128i d3 = _mm_loadu_si128(((__m128i*)src) + 3);
__m128i c = _mm_shuffle_epi32(d0, _MM_SHUFFLE(0, 0, 0, 0)); __m128i c0 = _mm_cmpeq_epi8(d0, c);
__m128i c1 = _mm_cmpeq_epi8(d1, c);
__m128i c2 = _mm_cmpeq_epi8(d2, c);
__m128i c3 = _mm_cmpeq_epi8(d3, c);
__m128i m0 = _mm_and_si128(c0, c1);
__m128i m1 = _mm_and_si128(c2, c3);
__m128i m = _mm_and_si128(m0, m1);

if (!_mm_testc_si128(m, _mm_set1_epi32(-1)))
{
return 0;
}

7. Follow the rule of diminishing returns

When choosing optimization to apply, always start with the lowest hanging fruit. The best changes are those that do not cost a lot of effort but bring noticeable differences. Only when there are no easier solutions, move to the ones that require more work. We call this approach the ‘rule of diminishing returns.

Remember also to make sure that you have done as much as could be done before moving to the deeper level.

If, in the process, you hit the mark — stop, otherwise — continue. Assuming your goals are realistic and your skills sufficient, you will be successful.

Marcin Ławicki, Development Manager, Huuuge Games

7 tips for code optimization was originally published in Huuuge Games on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Let’s go straight to the point. What does Diversity, Equity & Inclusion mean to you?

Yehoshua Gurtler, General Counsel, Huuuge: At the most basic level the foundation behind Diversity, Equity & Inclusion is appreciating the value of every human being. And to appreciate that every person has something, their own story, and flavor, which they bring to the table. Regardless of the color of their skin, nationality, where they come from, sexual orientation, or gender identity, everyone deserves the same respect and dignity. As we build our Team of Teams, our goal is obviously to find the right mix of people to work with to realize our mission of uniting people around the passion for gaming. We can only achieve that if we recognize that the people we want with us aren’t necessarily the ones that look like us or share our stories. That’s why I think the core idea behind Diversity, Equity & Inclusion for us as a business is to open our minds to the fact that the right people could literally be anywhere.

The second thing, which is no less important than the first one I just mentioned, is that we as a company are a very central part of our employees’ lives — and simultaneously, our people are what make us who we are as a company. So there’s a two-way commitment here, and it’s our responsibility and obligation to make the workplace a safe and comfortable, and pleasant environment for all people who walk through our doors.

Is there a particular reason why fellow game dev companies like Huuuge should focus on diversity?

YG: The first reason is purely business -, we are a gaming company and our audience is universal — our players could come from any country, be any age, be any gender. Having an internally diverse and heterogenous team increases our ability to make games that are relevant to larger player demographics.

The second reason is about talent. We are a global company, so there’s no point in placing any sorts of limitations on who we hire based on, say, geographical location or even matching certain physical characteristics. There’s no reason why our staff should not be as diverse as the world is.

Last but not least, as a part of the IT sector, we have real power to make a difference. Similar to how our industry raises the bar when it comes to wages, working conditions, and employee experience, we have an opportunity to have other positive impacts on the greater society. If we, as a company, set the tone of acceptance, diversity, tolerance, and equality, especially in locations that are more conservative and less socially tolerant, we can hopefully inspire others to follow. As an example of this power we have — a few years ago here in Israel there was a big campaign against legislative changes that discriminated against same-sex parents. The surprisingly large number of companies that allowed their employees to go on strike and protest made a real social impact. When a big commercial sector, with all the money and power it has, supports its employees, it can positively influence the political discourse. I believe we as the IT industry have a responsibility towards the societies we are a part of to promote changes that empower our people and contribute to the greater good.

You previously mentioned creating a safe and comfortable working environment. Could you please elaborate on what defines it? Is it about design choices, or something else?

YG: I think that, fundamentally, it’s a matter of attitude. It’s an understanding at all levels of the company that people deserve dignity, safety, and security when they come to work. Just as we protect their physical safety, we are also obligated to provide them with emotional safety. A part of that is being able to come to work and be themselves without suffering any negative consequences for that. This is what I mean by creating an inclusive and safe workplace.

When it comes to designing our spaces, it starts with the little things — putting up a flag or sign that indicates to people that our spaces are ones where everyone can be their true selves, where we respect our employees for who they are and don’t discriminate. I’m really proud that Huuuge is one of the first 5 companies in Poland to have joined a campaign called ‘Business Does Not Exclude’ organized by the Love Does Not Exclude Association, a leading Polish LGBT+ organization, where we put stickers and posters with the ‘Here You Can Be Yourself’ message in our offices. This sends a really powerful, very strong message to anyone walking through our front doors, and also says something really good about us as a company.

We talked about the big picture, but are there any smaller gestures one can do to be more inclusive?

YG: I think to a certain extent this is influenced by cultural nuances and styles. It’s important to learn how to be culture-tolerant At the very basis it starts with the comments and jokes we make by the coffee machine, how we treat each other, and how we make sure that our language and behavior are inclusive.

From my point of view what made me comfortable being openly gay at work is when people spoke about my life the same way, they would have done with a straight colleague. When people reacted with genuine curiosity when I mentioned my husband or my kids, that interest made me feel comfortable and was an invitation to share things about my life. Maybe this is a message to my straight colleagues. Because sometimes I get an impression they might feel scared, like, walking on eggshells and so they don’t want to ask about anything because they don’t want to come across as offensive or intrusive. I think, generally speaking, people like to be asked about their life in a way that is curious but not offensive — and if you show interest in their lives in a way that gives them a space to share, then they will feel safe and comfortable around you.

Let’s come back to the attitude of a company being inclusive towards employees that you described previously. When should it exactly begin? During the onboarding process, or even earlier?

YG: I think it starts even before recruitment. When we design our recruitment process, we need to think about how we make sure we get the right mix of people for our company. We have to take into consideration situations in every country. For example, in Poland I have been told that far fewer women enter the IT sector than men, hence it’s so much harder to recruit women for tech positions. If that’s the case, we should design our recruiting approach to try and compensate for that gap. In terms of employees’ experience, it really runs through from the moment they are recruited, through onboarding, integrating people into teams and groups, and then their day-to-day interactions with each other.

In your recent interview published in The Jerusalem Post, you talked about how we can educate ourselves and find ways to be better allies and co-workers. Can you share some suggestions about how someone, specifically a person who is not in the community, and has no friends or family who are LGBT+, can become more aware?

First of all, I am very happy about what we did in Huuuge. As part of Pride Month, we offered people resources and opportunities to learn. I really enjoyed the webinar we had with the Stonewall Group — it was very informative and resourceful, and even I learned things I hadn’t known before.

But I come back to the answer I gave before — the best resource to learn from are the people around us. If you are curious about what it’s like to be LGBTQ+ the best way to learn is probably to politely approach an LGBT+ colleague or friend and just ask them. That’s probably the best starting point I would recommend.

Yehoshua, thank you so much for your time. It was great speaking with you and learning more about your approach toward diversity, inclusion, and creating a safe and comfortable place for everyone at Huuuge.

Setting the tone to promote inclusivity in the workplace — Interview with Yehoshua Gurtler was originally published in Huuuge Games on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

From making financial contributions to various charities and donating much-needed resources, to buying a spacious van and driving people flying from the attacked places to the Polish border, Team Huuuge has been very active in helping people affected by the war in Ukraine.

We stand in support of peace and are deeply affected by the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces, which is home to many of our employees and their close ones. This prompted us to take any necessary actions in ensuring that our Ukrainian staff, partners, and their respective families are safe. Those affected were immediately assisted and relocated. We also donated 1 Million PLN to charitable causes helping the victims of the war in Ukraine. The funds are used to provide humanitarian aid to anyone in need.

Despite the heartbreaking and difficult times we are constantly amazed and uplifted by the spirit of our employees. They all rushed to help and are constantly involved in giving assistance to and comforting refugees and even those who decided to stay in Ukraine. We could not have been more proud of their dedication, and thus want to pay respect to them by highlighting their actions in the hope it will also inspire more goodwill.

The humanitarian convoy, which saved over 20 000 Ukrainians

Mieczysław Rybak is our Technical Project Manager who together with the IT department keeps our engines running smoothly and our data stored safely. The invasion in Ukraine, like many others of us, affected him on a personal level — during the outbreak of the war his Ukrainian fiancé was staying in Odesa and soon found herself unable to leave the country. Mieczysław, without hesitation, got behind the wheel and drove nearly 400 km from Warsaw to Lviv to pick her up. There he understood how difficult it is for refugees to safely and quickly escape from the fastly overwhelmed Russian forces in Ukraine — some of them had no necessary paperwork done, some had no money or means to get out, some simply were confused and too overwhelmed by the horrors of war to do anything.

‘There are many communication and logistic issues which Ukrainians are facing on top of personally suffering from the bloodshed. After spending my time there, I realized that it was more important to get people to the border than to “waste” time in traffic to check in’, said Mieczysław.

After harmlessly returning from Lviv with his beloved, Mieczysław shared his story on Huuuge’s internal channel, which led to a discussion culminating in launching a new cause — raising money to buy a van to convey necessary goods like essentials, medicine, clothes to Ukraine from Poland. He also volunteered to transport fleeing refugees, which was met with full acceptance and appreciation. After being given a week’s leave, Mieczysław returned to Ukraine, where he carried over 100 people to the Polish border, often spending many hours behind the wheel while maintaining full concentration and determination.

‘I drove mainly women with children but also handicapped and elderly people, I could not refuse them, so often I found myself having more than 10 people getting inside my van — thankfully it was spacious enough’, commented Mieczysław.

Mieczysław’s resolve and willingness to go to great lengths to offer help allowed him to join forces with the Polish Humanitarian Convoy founded by people like him, under which a fleet of at least 20 cars and buses constantly traveled between Lviv and the border. The fleet so far has managed to successfully transport over 20 000 refugees.

‘Together with my friend Bartek and our fellow drivers, we were able to carry up to 600 people to the border at once. In the evenings, for safety reasons, the journey was accompanied by the police. The convoy picked up people from the railroad station in Lviv and drove them to the border crossing to Korczowa, Budomierz, and Hrebenne. There, after crossing the border, Polish buses were waiting for them, said Mieczysław.

Mieczysław is now safely back in Warsaw with his fiancé, but his van — the one that was bought thanks to the generosity of our employees — still proves to be useful — it is still being deployed in the humanitarian convoy, to both transport people and to carry first aid resources, medical equipment, or even blood to those in need across Ukraine.

The many ways one can help

The sensitivity, emotion, and enthusiasm our employees collectively displayed led to many initiatives of solidarity across all of our offices. In Bydgoszcz, they launched the collection of necessities in response to the emergency in Ukraine.

‘We have collected about 10 cartons of food (including flour, sugar, teas, groats, rice, canned foods), diapers and baby wipes, cleaning products, and other personal hygiene items. One of us also donated a stroller and an infant car seat.’ commented Agnieszka Kociniewska-Nowicka, the office coordinator who helped in coordinating the collection.

The initiator of the collection, Krzysztof Maliński, our Development Director of Gaming Technology, points out that refugees from Ukraine also need help in other ways than distributing goods and resources. ‘I’m constantly on the phone helping people move across our country and offering them necessary information and advice. I try to call and write to my Ukrainian friends, who remained in their country, to let them know that they are not alone. I’m also trying to pass them job offers (our colleague Iryna Lytvynenko helps me a lot in this) so that people can get employed to support themselves. We help children who joined our school with stuff needed to start their education.’

As Krzysztof mentions, it is important to provide not just immediate assistance, but also long-term support. Together with our Lead Test Automation Engineer Iryna Lytvynenko, they helped to find and pass on job offers so that Ukrainian refugees could find employment in Poland as soon as possible. Iryna also actively participated as a volunteer, by collecting funds to pay for the transport of donations to the border or translating the necessary documents. Our Development Manager Marcin Ławicki, on the other hand, hosts in his house a lady from Ukraine with her seven-year-old son. He provides his guests with everything they need and helps them when it comes to day-to-day matters

Karolina Szamrowicz, our Test Engineer, who volunteers at the Bydgoszcz Trade Fair and Exhibition Center, where a collection point for refugees has been set up, seconds this opinion. “We always try to think practically — what else might they need and what could make their lives more comfortable.’’ Offering the much-needed practical support is also what Magda Zaręba, Senior Growth Media Buyer from our Warsaw office values. ‘I am involved in many ways, depending on where the need is at the moment. I started by collecting clothes, towels, and other things among my family in the first days after the war broke out. Since I have just renovated my apartment, I had a lot of spare furniture, interior and kitchen equipment that I no longer need, which I donated directly to people who were adjusting their apartments to accommodate people fleeing the war.’, she said. Nowadays, Magda volunteers at the train stations, offering much-needed support to those who are just arriving in Warsaw.

Robert Trypuć, Development Manager, is also involved in similar grassroots initiatives. Because his wife works at the local provincial office and has first-hand access to information about the refugees in the area, Robert can easily aid them with transport, driving them to either their place of stay, or to local points where they can get food, clothing, or arrange the most important matters. Our Head of Product, Bartosz Durczak, has also helped with distributing resources. ‘Some employees who couldn’t come to the office to drop off goods for various reasons would simply make payments to my account. Then I did the shopping and personally drove to the Bydgoszcz University of Technology, where there is the official city collection, to give them to the refugees’.

The sense of community prevails even in the direst of times

Our Team shares the same values when it comes to building and nurturing the spirit of belongingness. Milena Staniszewska, the office manager in Szczecin, put them into practice during that difficult time. ‘I welcomed our employee from Kyiv to stay at my place for a few days. I also supported her a bit with shopping and finding an apartment for the long stay afterwards’.

All these mentioned cases of help, but also the collective outpouring of support from our employees, have prompted us to launch an in-house volunteering program. We are looking forward to telling you more about the planned opportunities in the coming days. We are also committed to working arms in arms with our industry peers on laying down the systematic procedures for the ongoing help towards our Ukrainian brothers and sisters.

Team Huuuge

Driving in the warzone was originally published in Huuuge Games on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

One of the main pillars of Huuuge Casino has always been creating fun, social, and entertaining games. Penn’s Passage does just that. Our newly introduced mini-game allows players to take on an adventure to uncover hidden treasures with a young wizard named Penn. As the player’s companion, he tells the story of this magical world and provides hints, but he cannot make the journey on his own. This is where you come in.

A game inside a game

Our new mini-game is an internal addition to Huuuge Casino, where we aim to diversify the player experience. Penn’s Passage was designed to let players easily jump into something different than the regular gameplay. Players have one free entry to the game during the tutorial, but after that, they’ll need to earn access through the usual gameplay.

The game has every possible reward and works as a boosted progression source for the player’s personal goals in HC. Explorers, fun chasers, and achievers — whether hunting for charm packs, more lottery tickets, or maybe more chips, they can find everything inside Penn’s Passage. We don’t want to limit our players to just one play style or linear progression. Players should be free to choose what they want to focus on during their sessions. That could be getting the last sets finished at the end of the charm season, wanting to help their club mates in a club event to gain more chips, or just completing that last lottery puzzle. Because Penn’s Passage offers a richness of rewards, players are encouraged to explore the world on their own.

Lend Penn a helping hand

The main story is not connected to Billy and Betty from Huuuge Casino. Instead, it introduces new characters: the aforementioned wizard, Penn, whom you accompany throughout his journey, and your opponent — a treasury-stealing Troll. He doesn’t want to go through all the hustle of finding the treasure, so he lurks behind closed doors and waits for an opportunity to get his hands on the player’s trove. He is not evil, though. Just a bit mischievous. The Troll’s character and animations were designed to induce laughter, especially when seeing his humorous reactions to having a magical potion thrown at him. Dealing with a Troll — a literal one — is one of the many ways you can help your loyal companion Penn on your mutual quest to obtain rewards. And it’s quite hilarious and entertaining to boot.

A brand-new way to get familiar with the game

In Penn’s Passage, players are presented with a defined number of options, being offered various possibilities down the road. Successful choices mean earning a reward, while others can lead to encounters with the previously mentioned Troll, who is on the prowl to steal valuable treasures.

We introduced a new type of gaming mechanic that will expand the player’s experience, one that we have not enabled in Huuuge Casino, but which we would like to further promote. It features a new approach to player onboarding. Instead of displaying all the rules in a wall of text, we take our players on a small step-by-step journey that slowly eases them into the dos and don’ts of the game.

Great teams get it done

The game was a multi-department effort. Game Economy and Business Analytics, Art/Animation and Development, and CRM Art and LiveOps teams worked arm in arm to bring Penn’s Passage to life.

Alicja Golianek, Product Owner, says, “I had a great team to work with on this game and every phase went very smoothly. One of the main goals for the team was to ensure that we stay aligned and consistent.”

The future is bright

Our players embraced the game in a big way — their reactions were enthusiastic and we couldn’t be happier about it. It’s now obvious to us that these types of mini-games are in demand. We would like to create new ways of winning rewards, such as introducing additional locations.

Join us in helping Penn explore this charming world on his quest to find treasures and enjoy the freedom of choice in your playthroughs. But beware of Trolls!

Huuuge Games

Penn’s Passage — The Magical Experience of a Huuuge Mini-game was originally published in Huuuge Games on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

At Huuuge, we continuously strive to care for the well-being of our employees. February 4th marks an important occasion for all of us to stop for a minute and focus on the health and well-being of ourselves and those close to us. On World Cancer Day, we teamed up with the renowned DKMS Foundation — an international charity dedicated to the fight against blood cancer and blood disorders — to take a closer look at this one of the civilization’s diseases. Talking to Renata Rafa (DKMS Senior Communication Specialist) and Grzegorz Hensler, MD we hope to find some universal truth about cancer, while trying to answer the most pressing questions on how to stay safe and healthy.

[Huuuge]:
According to the World Health Organization, cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide and thus accounted for nearly 10 million deaths in 2020. It means this group of diseases was responsible for one in six deaths globally. How to minimize the risk of cancer? What are the basic rules of a healthy lifestyle?

[DKMS experts]:
The incidence of cancer is rising rapidly in all countries. Cancer is among the leading causes of death worldwide. There are many reasons behind this worrying trend, one of them being the unfavorable change in our lifestyle and adverse changes in our environment. Among those factors we should list tobacco smoking, obesity, changing diet patterns to processed food, lack of exercise, and forgetting your regular medical check-ups. We cannot forget the global factors such as urbanization and pollution, something each of us can and should care about. Another reason for the greater incidence of cancer is associated with increased access to better medical services and extended postreproductive life span.

There is no miraculous remedy, a pill we could take to prevent cancer or minimize the risk. But there are simple ways to significantly decrease the risk of cancer. Simple, although not always easy to implement. Maintaining a healthy diet is a great start. Avoid processed foods, high fat, and sugar intake. The correct diet should be based upon The Healthy Eating Pyramid developed by the Harvard School of Public Health.

Please note that the base of the pyramid includes regular exercise, as data has proven that regular exercise decreases the risk of cancer as well as cardiovascular diseases. Cut out the alcohol. Studies not only show that there is no safe amount of intake of alcohol, and alcohol can weaken the immune system and make the body more susceptible to infections.

STOP SMOKING! We do not need to prove this point anymore due to the countless amounts of research that has been done in the 21st century warning us about the dangers of SMOKING. Smoking is the #1 risk factor for lung cancer, but not only that! The bad news about smoking does not end there! Many other types of cancers can be caused by tobacco. Among them are head and neck cancer, laryngeal cancer, bladder cancer, pancreatic cancer, gastric cancer, colorectal cancer. The list goes on.

There are some principle rules to minimize the risk of cancer or to help diagnose it early when it is still curable. Let’s call them an oncology decalogue:

Blood cancer and how to prevent it

You represent a foundation that primarily focuses on blood cancer. What is blood cancer and what are the myths surrounding it? Is it a congenital disease?

The term blood cancer is a general description of various hematopoietic cell cancers, that is malignant diseases of bone marrow. Among those, we can list leukemias, lymphomas, multiple myeloma, MDS. In most cases, they are not congenital but are caused by a spontaneous “accidental” mutation.

Hematopoietic stem cells are known as “mother cells” and do not yet have a specific function. They can renew and differentiate into cells with a specific function, thus replacing cells that die. In the bone marrow, blood stem cells divide and develop into progenitor cells. Through further division, the progenitor cells mature and transform into different types of blood cells and then enter the bloodstream. Various factors can obstruct the normal processes of maturation, differentiation, and the natural dying of cells. This can lead to the formation of immature or abnormal blood cells, which enter the bloodstream and multiply in an uncontrolled way. These immature or abnormal cells are called cancer cells. Cancer cells flood the bloodstream and drive out healthy cells. As a result, the blood can no longer perform its basic tasks, such as transporting oxygen and protecting the body from infection.

What should be done to prevent it?

Blood cancers are rare diseases and usually the mutation that causes it is spontaneous and accidental. Apart from the oncology decalogue there are no specific ways to prevent blood cancer.

How do people with blood cancer feel? What challenges do they face in their daily lives?

The symptoms may vary depending on the disease and its aggressiveness, thus the rate of progression of symptoms. Patients with aggressive cancers such as acute leukemias, aggressive lymphomas develop symptoms quickly: malaise, fatigue, fever, night sweats, spontaneous bruising, and bleeding. In chronic diseases such as chronic lymphocytic leukemia, symptoms may not be clear and may develop over months: weight loss, bone pain, abdominal pain, malaise, headaches, recurrent infections, enlarged lymph nodes.

How can we support those suffering from that disease?

There are many ways one can support blood cancer patients: You can raise awareness of the diseases among your family and friends encouraging them not to ignore disturbing symptoms.

You can raise funds and donate them to one of many foundations supporting patients with blood cancer. You may become a volunteer in one of the clinics that take care of patients with blood cancer keeping them company, talking, bringing joy in their life. You can register as a bone marrow donor and hopefully give a second chance to a patient in need. Donate blood when possible- all patients with blood cancer need multiple blood and platelet transfusions.

Can it be cured? Is there anything each of us can do?

The prognosis depends on the diagnosis. There are blood cancers with a very good prognosis of cure exceeding 90% (for instance Hodgkin lymphoma or hairy cell leukemia). There are some (acute leukemias, some lymphomas) that are curable, but the treatment is extremely aggressive and requires months of treatment, very often with bone marrow transplantation as an option of treatment. Some blood cancers are incurable, but modern medicine with the involvement of sophisticated therapies (targeted therapies, immunotherapies) may offer a significant prolongation of life turning them into chronic diseases one lives with as with hypertension or diabetes.

What examinations should be done to detect blood cancer at an early stage?

As blood cancer is a result of a spontaneous mutation of a single cell it is hard to create a screening routine. The most reasonable advice would be not to ignore symptoms and seek advice quickly when symptoms arise. The most disturbing symptoms would be significant unexplained weight loss, fever, night sweats, spontaneous bruising and bleeding, recurrent serious infections. Routine physical check-ups and yearly blood tests (complete blood count, general urine test) seem a reasonable recommendation. When medically justified an abdominal ultrasound may be of use.

What exactly is treatment like?

Chemotherapy is the most common method of treating cancers, including hematopoietic

cancers. This type of treatment uses one or more cytostatic drugs that have a systemic effect, i.e. on the cells of the body, in particular on the cells that divide rapidly. Apart from cancer cells, during chemotherapy, other healthy cells that generally divide rapidly (bone marrow, skin cells, gastrointestinal mucosa) are also damaged. Chemotherapy, depending on the type and severity of the disease can:

• Completely cure the disease caused by neoplastic changes
• Stop the disease from progressing
• Delay the progress of the disease
• Improve the patients quality of life by alleviating some of the symptoms of the disease
• Radiotherapy is a treatment where radiation is used to kill cancer cells. It can be used to:
  1) Try to cure cancer completely (curative radiotherapy).
  2) Make other treatments more effective — for example, it can be combined.
  3) With the use of chemotherapy or used before surgery (neoadjuvant radiotherapy).
  4) Relieve symptoms if a cure is not possible (palliative radiotherapy).

Hematopoietic blood stem cell transplantation is carried out in the treatment of both cancer and non-cancer blood diseases. Hematopoietic stem cells are taken from related or unrelated donors and then given to the patient. This type of transplantation is known as allogeneic.

Auto blood stem cell transplantation, which is the administration of a patient’s cells, is also possible. Before the procedure, the patient receives intensive anticancer treatment. The patient’s hematopoietic cells can then enable the rebuilding of bone marrow and the proper blood composition to be restored.

Hematopoietic blood stem cell transplantation is a complex, multi-stage procedure. Patients stay in the hospital for up to one month, followed by further treatment that takes place at home and can last up to several months. If there are complications, all stages are longer.

This treatment modality is used to cure a list of 250 different diseases, most often however in acute leukemias, aggressive lymphomas, myelodysplastic syndromes.

The importance of donations

You invite people to become bone marrow donors. Why is it so important for your foundation? How can I become a donor? Is it dangerous?

In Poland, approximately 800 patients a year qualify for a hematopoietic stem cell or marrow transplant. The probability of finding a donor for a particular patient in need of bone marrow transplantation ranges from 1:20,000 and when the patient has rare HLA antigens (a section of DNA) it can be as high as 1: several million. When the foundation started in 2009, half of the patients qualified for bone marrow transplantation could not find their “genetic twin”, and today 80% of patients find a compatible donor.

Almost every healthy person between the ages of 18 and 55 with a BMI of less than 40 and a permanent resident of Poland can register as a potential bone marrow donor.

Anyone who would like to register can do so by ordering a registration package on our website (or other DKMS websites). The package is sent by mail and includes 3 sticks to take a swab from the inside of the cheek, a registration form, step-by-step instructions on how to register, and a return envelope. The person wishing to register takes the swab and completes the form according to the enclosed instructions and sends it back to the foundation in the return envelope.

To date, more than one million bone marrow and hematopoietic stem cell donations have been successfully performed worldwide. Doctors often emphasize that the donation procedure is safe and poses no significant threat to the health and life of the donor. Nonetheless, potential donors often face numerous concerns about whether bone marrow donation will affect their health. Marrow and hematopoietic stem cell donation is a medical procedure and, like any such procedure, can be associated with certain risks.

It has been performed around the world since the 1970s. It was then, in 1973 — the first donation was made from the hip plate. On the other hand, peripheral blood donations have been performed in medicine since 1988, and since 1996 this method has been used by DKMS.

There are two methods of collection

Stem cell collection from peripheral blood is the method used in about 90% of cases. It usually involves a one-day visit to the collection clinic and lasts between 3–5 hours. In this case, four days before the donation and on the day of the donation, the donor takes a so-called growth factor, or G-CSF, subcutaneously. It is a substance that stimulates the formation of white blood cells and causes the release of stem cells into the bloodstream, found mainly in the bone marrow. It also occurs naturally in the human body in other situations, such as during an infection. As a result, the donor may experience flu-like symptoms such as elevated temperature, bone pain, muscle aches, headaches, or a feeling of general disorientation and fatigue. These can be effectively minimized with over-the-counter pain medications such as ibuprofen or paracetamol. During the donation of hematopoietic stem cells, most donors may experience symptoms such as numbness and tingling of the tongue, lips, and fingers, and less commonly, muscle spasms.

This is the result of a temporary decrease in blood calcium levels, which quickly resolves after the administration of calcium-containing preparations. After hematopoietic stem cell donation, all blood parameters usually return to normal within 1–2 weeks and are normal in most donors at the time of the first follow-up; one month after donation. After hematopoietic stem cell donation, all blood parameters usually return to normal within 1–2 weeks and are normal in most donors at the time of the first follow-up; one month after donation. The risk of other major adverse events is marginal, and most importantly, through years of follow-up of unrelated donors undergoing G-CSF stimulation, we know that no long-term complications (e.g., increase in autoimmune diseases or cancer) are observed.

Stem cell harvesting from the hip plate is a method associated with a two to three-day stay in the hospital, due to the need for general anesthesia. The risk of life-threatening complications from general anesthesia is negligible — doctors estimate the risk to be less than 1:50,000. There is also a small risk of wound infection. After the extraction, you may experience soreness at the puncture sites for a few days, and occasionally nausea or headaches due to the arrival of general anesthesia. There are usually two small (about 5 millimeters) marks on the skin at the sites of needle insertions in the hip area, which may be tender and somewhat painful for a while, like bruises.

A typical symptom is a feeling of fatigue and decreased exercise tolerance due to red blood cell loss and anemia. These symptoms resolve within 1 to 2 weeks of collection.

Where can I go if I want to become a donor in Poland or any other country?

In Poland, you can register in the DKMS Foundation database by ordering the registration package at www.dkms.pl (or other DKMS websites) and at the same time, you can join the group of potential donors in other countries where DKMS operates, i.e. Great Britain, Germany, India, Chile, USA, South Africa.

How can each of us support the cause?

Anyone who would like to get involved in the fight against blood cancers can get involved in several ways:

• Register at www.dkms.pl (or other DKMS websites).
• Spread the word about bone marrow donation to your friends, family, and co-workers (For example, by posting educational information on your social media).
• Organize a registration event at your workplace or in your local community.
• Support the Foundation with a donation which will be used to cover the costs of recruiting potential marrow donors and support the Polish Transplant and Patient Support Program.
• Donate 1% of your tax to the Foundation.

Each donation is extremely important to us because it allows us to raise public awareness about bone marrow and blood cancer donation and to recruit new potential donors who, by donating hematopoietic stem cells or bone marrow, give patients fighting blood cancer a chance at life.

Healthy living awareness. The conversation with DKMS experts. was originally published in Huuuge Games on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Growth and User Acquisition are highly critical elements of any business. It’s especially vivid in the new technologies and game industry, where the market is extremely dynamic and fast-changing. As a Director of growth alongside my team, I am taking care of growth of all new titles that we either build, publish or acquire.

Growing is not equal

Huuuge has various games in different stages of their life cycle. Our Core Franchises, Huuuge Casino and Billionaire Casino, are one of the top ones in their category, with stable product and economy numbers. While we scaled our games to quite a high level, we also realized that social casino is operating in a niche category and there is a lot of growth available in other genres.

A different approach is required by game titles published by Huuuge Publishing division, with the goal to make them successful. Traffic Puzzle is an example of the title that we originally published and after two years of calibration became the third significant title in our portfolio. We do not slow down, and we are constantly working hard to give our publishing titles a chance to be as successful as Traffic Puzzle.

We keep experimenting with building new games and have a dedicated studio for building prototypes. Once a prototype has passed the marketability test — we can decide if the work should be continued or not. Build strategy is constantly evolving in our portfolio and we have spent 2021 to develop the new processes and to test the waters. There are huge plans for this part of our strategy in 2022, some of which we have already shared in our blog posts.

Marketing mix

Games that are in growth stage usually don’t monetize users at all or the economy is not balanced enough and hence ROI campaigns and optimizations are not recommended in such cases. At the beginning of the growth stage, a game’s goals are usually around minimizing the cost and growing “stickiness” of users. We want to be able to acquire an extensive number of users with relatively cheap CPI and good retention.

Monetization (ROAS) is something we are not optimising towards at early stages of game marketing as we need to make sure that users like the game (meaning: the retention is good) and cost is acceptable (CPI is low). For these reasons we are not focusing on media sources that are not able to help us meet those criterias. Our key media partners in the growth pillar are SDK networks as well as social channels.

Tactics for growth

“How to grow your game?” — this is obviously a type of question that is never easy to answer. There are too many variables and dynamic obstacles to figure out the right way and the secret sauce of success. But there is a few cardinal rules that any game developer should be aware of:

• Do research on your genre. Talk to people from other companies, play games, use App Annie, Game Refinery, etc.
• Establish clear responsibilities. For example, in Huuuge the product team sets up payback goals for the product and works on budget with the company management. UA then works on meeting those goals.
• You should have an experienced UA manager to handle growth marketing. UA expert must know how to do all UA across all channels

If you like to get more insights into games’ growth and User Acquisition, listen to the full version of the Fyber podcast.
https://huuu.ge/fyber

Misha Syrotiuk
Director of Growth at Huuuge Games

Growing your Media Mix and User Acquisition was originally published in Huuuge Games on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

With 2022 already with us, we take a moment to look back at the recent success of our amazing 3D mobile game — Rogue Land. It has been ranked by Google Play’s Best of 2021 in the ‘Best Competitive’ category. We talk with Tomi Hurskainen, Senior Game Designer at Huuuge to discover what’s so unique about the game that takes us on a journey through the land field with untold treasures, dungeons and adventures hidden at every corner.

Tomi, your journey with Rogue Land started some time ago. How did it all start?

Rogue Land’s journey started with Bow Land, the predecessor of the game. My first touch with Bow Land happened in early 2020. At the time, I started transitioning from the previous project into working with the publishing team, as a “devil’s advocate” game designer. Bow Land was already then on the radar, as it had just been published by Huuuge, and thus I got initially into connection with the Double Star team and the game. During spring, I became more and more a full-time member of Bow Land team, helping the development by taking care of high-level feature design. So, when the Double Star acquisition happened in summer 2020, which coincided with me moving back to Finland and the Helsinki studio being founded, it was only natural for me to continue with Bow Land as an official team member.

The game was already in the development phase but encountered some challenges. What was the biggest one?

The hurdle we came to face was during autumn 2020, when it was realized that the vision of the game was set in a direction that the original game could not really support in the long run. The visual style and the underlying technical systems would need to go through a major make-over to be on par for a game that retains players for months and years. This led to the pivot from where Rogue Land was originally born, alongside with the hypercasual spin-off which has since been sunsetted. The big challenge then was to utilize all the learnings and basically build the game ground up, in a way that the grand vision of it could be realized.

And this is how Rogue Land was born. How do you define the target group for this game?

Rogue Land caters to a wide audience with its clear and beautiful art style, and a low entry level barrier. The staple phrase of “easy to learn — hard to master” definitely fits the bill with Rogue Land. Any casual player can pick the game up and enjoy it, while there’s lots of strategic depth for more core-oriented ones to explore. Majority of our players are aged from teen to forty-something, with a somewhat male biased gender split.

What’s unique & innovative at Rogue Land compared to other mobile games of such type?

When laying the groundwork for Rogue Land, we coined internally the promise of creating a game that “is a true evolution of the genre”. We basically wanted to challenge the market leaders of the genre, by genuinely taking the next step with the core of this game type. This has been done by linking the meta and in-game experience logically and seamlessly together. We brought the Skill system to front and center of the stage and gave the players the agency to build their favourite combinations through different Heroes and Gear. Coupled with this, Rogue Land offers varying types of exciting playable content, which can then be enjoyed with tons of different playstyles.

What makes RL so special to be awarded in the Google Play’s Best of 2021 “Best Competitive” category?

We released a big feature called the “Adventure Score” in September that introduced the first leaderboards into the game. This basically turned the core game into a competitive experience and works as one of the central pillars of the game. We are currently working on new features that will add competitive and social layers into the game. Apart from all that, I’d say the success of innovating on the core game together with high production values have also weighed in on getting such an award. First and foremost we’re building this game for our players and listen closely to the wishes of the Rogue Land community.

You are part of the Helsinki team that works primarily on the new, innovative games. How many people are involved in the production process?

Usually, a new game starts with just a handful of core people or just one person with an idea. Often the team remains very small until a working prototype/poc has been achieved. From there on, the size of the team will scale based on the game scope and phase of development. The Rogue Land team has always consisted of a very dedicated small group of multitalented people, capable of bringing the ideas from paper to reality fast. Building a new innovative game is always a learning process.

How do you keep the team motivated and engaged?

Everyone in the team is essentially a game maker, and tapping into this creative source makes all the sense. Enabling the team to contribute to the design, also outside their immediate area of expertise, is essential. Having a feeling of ownership and seeing it resonate with players motivates the hell out of anyone, or at least myself. Controlled creative chaos, with the drive and capability of delivering results — this is perhaps a good way to sum it up.

Discover the world of Rogue Land:

Google Play [link]

App Store [link]

Rogue Land named ‘Best Competitive’ by Google Play’s Best of 2021 was originally published in Huuuge Games on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.