About the history of creation
It all started with an idea. In early 2011, when Alex Nichiporchik was marketing web games, he stumbled upon a small joke game called No Time To Explain. The concept had so much potential that he thought, hey, why not turn it into a full game that could be released on Steam?
After discussing with developer Tom Brien, they decided to form a partnership labeled tinyBuild GAMES and make a Kickstarter for No Time To Explain. The project hit its funding goal within hours and was a record at that time.
The first office was established in the USA. Now we have 500+ employees from more than 100 countries, including 14 internal studios. The main office is located in Seattle. Also, tinyBuild has offices in Europe: Riga (Latvia), Hilversum (the Netherlands), Belgrade (Serbia), Lviv (Ukraine). Check the open vacancies in these offices, in case you like something.
Projects and genres
Since 2011, we have been publishing and developing AA and mid-core games in a variety of genres (horror, action, simulation, survival, etc.) for all key PC, mobile, console, and streaming platforms, including Steam (PC), Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo, Apple, Epic Games, and Google Stadia.
Maybe you’ve played some tinyBuild games, but don’t know about it? Some of our most recognizable games: Hello Neighbor, Potion Craft, Pathologic 2, SpeedRunners, Graveyard Keeper, No Time To Explain, etc.
How can tinyBuild develop employees’ careers?
When you join the tinyBuild team, you get the freedom to develop your career. It is part of our ethos to help employees reach their career goals. Instead of dictating a plan to employees, we help them develop a personalized plan for their individual goals.
The company supports employees in their development and fully covers any professional development (participation in conferences, workshops, taking courses, purchasing literature, etc.). We also cover English and local language courses in the country to which we helped the employee to relocate.
In general, we have the opportunity for both horizontal and vertical growth. The company is ready for experiments and the introduction of new technologies and approaches. Everything is in your hands! You can propose and implement new solutions, optimize existing processes, expand your area of responsibility and solve new tasks for you. Set your most ambitious goals, and we will help you realize them.
Let’s read about some inspiring examples.
Andis Reinbergs started his career in tinyBuild as a Concept Artist at Hello Engineer and had been working at this position for a year before he grew to the position of Art Director of the Hello Neighbor Franchise.
We didn’t even have such a position in the company before, but Andis was working so awesome on the Hello Engineer project that we certainly wanted him to spread his experience and practice for the entire franchise.
Ivan Odintsov joined tinyBuild a year and half ago as a Junior Game Designer for Hello Neighbor 2. During this time, Ivan grew to Lead Game Designer with his team of four game designers and now continues to hire.
So you might wonder, how did that happen?
From the beginning, we noted a few things: Ivan was focused on his work, had fresh ideas, and was learning rapidly.
Unexpectedly quickly immersed himself in the tasks, after which he promptly began to take on new and more serious tasks and, more importantly, see them through. Also, Ivan quickly mastered the art of delegation and showed initiative and excellent teamwork.
Honestly, we didn’t expect such quick development from Ivan, yet it was smooth: first, we put Ivan to the Middle position, then to the Senior.
And then, watching how rapidly and thirstily Ivan evolves, we decided to develop a growth plan for a managerial role…
Lisa Sidorova joined us as a Support Manager with a background in localization two years ago. Then she set up the localization department in the company. Although now it consists of a “one-man army,” it’s still to come.
“Although I had a lot of experience in localization, I had no experience specifically in production, so in tinyBuild I began to receive it and learn almost from scratch, for which I am very grateful. I had a good knowledge of process building, but I didn’t know how to dig into the engine, code, etc. So I think we’ve got a great collaboration anyway”.
“At the end of December 2016, I met Alex (Alex Nichiporchik is the founder and CEO of TinyBuild), who was looking for someone who could not only edit but create videos for trailers as well. He offered to make a couple of trailers. My first projects were Punch Club and Mr. Shifty. This is how we began to collaborate.
Before tinyBuild, for a long time, I had tried to get back on track after a long illness and moving to another country. I was looking for a team close to me in mind. I dreamed of finding a team that works with video games for PC and consoles.
For the next year and a half, I worked for tinyBuild as a freelancer, but I immediately focused on a company and turned away new customers. Next, Alex offered to join the TinyBuild team formally.
I saw how the company grew and how new people came. The media department gradually grew (There are now 6 people in Igor’s team, and growth is already planned for next year). After the release of Pathologic 2, Nikita Varnakov joined my team, and later I called a friend of mine, Sasha Isaev. I have found new opportunities and collaborations with studios around the world. And here we are!
tinyBuild from the first day provided me with everything necessary to grow and open new horizons. I started as a freelancer, and now I’m Media Production Lead. Now our team already has six + external outsourcing teams, with which we closely cooperate, and next year we will only expand the team. And I know this is only the beginning and will continue to be cooler and more exciting”.
What do employees like about the company?
“I believe employees love the culture and working environment of tinyBuild. Although we are predominantly remote, we have a great work ethic where everyone is keen to help each other when they can and get everything completed on time in order not to let the team down.
The leadership also truly care about the well being of their staff and prioritize this over anything. In tinyBuild, we have the freedom to bring new ideas to the table with no limits to our creativity, we are actually encouraged to try new ways of working to see if they benefit us. You have complete ownership of your role and you are not micromanaged. We are an international, multicultural company and we all have the highest respect for each other. That’s what makes us a great company!”
“The company values people above all else. The climate is as close to perfect in tinyBuild as it can get. You always feel taken care of. The managers remind you about taking a rest and vacations; how amazing is that? And also, if you have any issues, the team helps you solve them instead of punishing you for doing anything “wrong.”
“Working at tinyBuild is awesome because it is a great balance between the work that needs doing and the support you get from the team”.
“I like the casual vibe between everyone. Even though there is a hierarchy and we are all professionals, the atmosphere is always very friendly and informal, making all work interactions enjoyable. The teams mainly consist of lovely people, creating a delightful work culture.
It’s also become clear that the company values its employees greatly by offering opportunities, listening to their opinions, and making changes to satisfy them whenever possible. And I don’t mention all the help they provided to many employees and their families who needed relocation when the war started. All this made me appreciate the leadership of tinyBuild a lot.
The projects we’ve got to work on have been quite interesting too, and they allow for artistic expression because there is a lot of trust in the skills and taste of the art team. They are challenging enough to push us to grow as teams and individuals”.
Anonymous employee reviews (since the latest feedback request)
Goes great:
– room and encouragement to develop on your career,
– “let’s do” attitude among most of the team members,
– appreciation for work well done and empowerment to test new ideas,
– being listened to, oftenly asked for feedback from the team or company,
– good secondary benefits (vacation days, WFH, trainings and conferences participation).
To improve:
– better defined internal processes, tutorials, knowledge sharing,
– daily work schedule can go up to 9 PM due to calls with partners,
(*Some teams in tinyBuild interact with colleagues and teams from US)
Improved since last feedback request:
– HR processes, hirings, HR platform
tinyBuild is a company that always has your back. What we did when the was started is unparalleled. So rare that a company does that much for their employees, especially during difficult times. You feel safe here, and that’s very, very important.
We also have a great employee training program. English, Dutch lessons, trips to conference, etc.
Social package is amazing too.
One thing I can point out as negative feedback would be my concerns about the rules and guidelines becoming too strict. However, I totally understand that we’re growing bigger and applying rules is the only way to keep tinyBuild intact as a much bigger team.
What we can improve:
– more structure and clarity on how to progress,
– more clear goals and timelines on progression and opportunities to increase pay and career,
– we want to spend time together in informal atmosphere and implement company events (Christmas party/ Summer party).
What we have and it’s super:
– active cross-pollination of knowledge between departments and people,
– internal growth/education programs and hackathons,
– transparent goals and direction for the future of the company,
– clear company-wide identity.
Tips for candidates if they apply for tinyBuild positions
- Be a passionate gamer (especially in the genre that you will potentially work with at tinyBuild). Follow the trends and tendencies of the game dev industry.
- Know your strengths and areas for growth. Clearly understand what you want to do and your growth priorities.
- Be initiative and self-organize. tinyBuild’s teammates have enough freedom to solve issues and develop their skills. Success is achieved by employees who take the initiative and offer solutions.
