Striked Rewind 2023
Jingle Bells, Striked Swells! 🎅🎮
Ho ho ho, dear Striked community! While the snow is already falling outside and the cozy atmosphere is in the air, we want to review a few highlights of 2023 at Striked together with you. Grab a cup of hot chocolate, because here comes our relaxed end-of-year blog post for the festive season!
Focus on stability
This year, we really stepped on the gas behind the scenes and raised Striked to a new level of stability. A lot of work in the background, many hours of code and a lot of coffee later, we can proudly announce: Striked is now rocking more stable than ever before, be it through optimising code, ongoing bug fixes, or implementing new technologies. At the beginning of this year, we also had a comprehensive redesign of our website with a modern design and a more user-friendly interface. A number of features have also been added to the platform, including the possibility of streaming or live broadcasting and the access to general voice chat.
A journey through the gaming world
From an Indie Game Fest to Caggtus and Gamescom - this year we travelled a lot (all over Europe)! Positive experiences, inspiring personalities, innovative (indie) game titles and, above all, a lot of fun have accompanied us on this journey.
However, we didn't just cause a stir in our home regions, but also across borders. Before the Caggtus trade fair in Leipzig, for example, Kevin took a trip to London to take part in numerous other events that proved to be extremely useful for us. The WASD Conference, the London Game Festival and the Game Dev London Expo were not only networking hotspots for Striked, but also treasure troves of potential collaborations and business insights.
The "Reboot Develop Conference" in Dubrovnik, Croatia, not only shone with sunshine, but also revealed extremely important contacts for us from all over the world. The "GDCy" in Cyprus, where we were able to shine as a sponsor, was also a valuable opportunity to exchange ideas with some of the brightest minds in the industry.
Not to forget the smaller, but no less important events such as the "medianet GAMES Summer Reception" in the heart of Berlin, organised by "medianet berlinbrandenburg e.V.", and "Games Ground Berlin". Here we not only met familiar faces, but also gathered input from new and interesting personalities.
A year full of adventure, networking, and passion for gaming lies behind us. We are excited for many more upcoming events and look forward to rocking the gaming world again next year!
A growing store
Looking back on the year, we are beaming with joy at what our Striked Store has achieved so far. It hasn't just been a year of growth, but a real growth spurt that has expanded our gaming universe with numerous exciting titles and exciting studio co-operations.
A big thank you goes to our co-operation partners such as Persis Play, My Next Games, Untold Tales, Fireblade Software and many more, who have contributed to making the Striked Store what it is today through their trust in us!
Here are a few highlights from our Striked Store:
Arise: A Simple Story
Arise is an emotional journey of two people, where memories take shape and time bends to your will. Revel in moments of happiness and overcome every hardship in your life story. A story full of joy and sadness. A simple story.
Fatherhood
An atmospheric war survival experience that offers the opportunity to see war from the perspective of innocent people. Fatherhood tells the story of the SACRIFICE of Basir and confronts the player with the harshest dilemmas of an everlasting catastrophe - war...
Flame Keeper
Flame Keeper is a dynamic action rogue-lite in which you restore the Eternal Flame that has been stolen by creatures of the Shadow. Fight your way through a rogue's gallery of monsters in different biomes with fiery combat skills. No problem for a lump of coal like you.
Abandon Ship
Take command of a ship from the age of sail and its crew and explore a vast world full of stories that react to your decisions. Fight enemy ships, fortifications and sea monsters in brutal tactical battles inspired by classic naval oil paintings.
New partnerships
2023 was not only characterised by impressive growth for Striked, but also by groundbreaking partnerships that lay the foundations for an exciting and fruitful future. In a time of flourishing and innovation, we have not only strengthened our products, but also forged valuable alliances that further our mission of fostering creativity and community in the gaming universe. Below, to name a few:
Indie Hub
We are very proud to be a sponsor for the Indie Game Fest and grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the growth and success of this vibrant community! Indie Game Fest is an important hub for gamers, developers and industry professionals, providing a space for presentation, inspiration and networking. Witnessing and participating in the event ourselves for the first time this year has only confirmed that this partnership was the right and important decision!
Future Inspire Academy
We are very excited about our partnership with the 'Future Inspire Academy' (FIA), a non-profit organisation that specialises in teaching students coding skills for game development in a fun and efficient way. FIA has a clear mission at its core: to create a platform that not only encourages aspiring game developers, but also rewards their early steps with valuable points that give access to fantastic prizes at game jams. Our dedication harmonises perfectly with FIA's vision to support young talent in game development. Together, hand in hand, we are igniting passion and the next wave of game developers, equipping them with the tools they need to succeed in an ever-changing gaming universe. This partnership is more than just a collaboration; it is a shared journey to foster creativity and innovation in the gaming community.
GDCy
Striked is honoured to have played a significant role as a sponsor at GDCy - GameDev Cyprus!
Our sponsorship reflects our dedication to supporting the global gaming community and fostering the exchange of knowledge, ideas and innovation. The GDCy stands as a testament to the dynamic and thriving landscape of game development in Cyprus, and we are proud to be part of this inspiring journey. As a sponsor, we look forward to continuing our support for events that bring together passionate individuals and contribute to the growth and development of the games industry.
Project "Adrenaline"
Full of excitement, we are marking a significant step by officially starting the development of our latest project "Adrenaline". Adrenaline presents itself as a tactical, fast-paced action first-person shooter that can be described as an exciting blend of Counter-Strike 2 and Valorant. Although it finds its origins in this fusion, we are ultimately aiming for Adrenaline to be an arena shooter.
The project is currently in the early stages of prototype development while we work intensively on the concept. At the same time, we are seeking dialogue with relevant communities in order to make the right adjustments at this early stage. The road may be long, but we are firmly convinced of the idea of the game and look forward to making many more exciting advances in the coming year!
First mention in "GamesWirtschaft" and "GamesMarkt"
A highlight of this year was undoubtedly our first mention in two prestigious German B2B game magazines, GamesWirtschaft and GamesMarkt. It was a significant step for Striked as such a young startup to be recognised by magazines and cement our presence in the industry. The mentions in these magazines not only mark a milestone in our journey, but also a validation of our progress and commitment to innovation in the gaming space.
For a look at the full articles, see here (German only):
-> "Striked: Die Hamburger Indie-Antwort auf Steam" (GamesWirtschaft)
-> "Striked: Plattform von der Entwicklung bis zum Verkauf" (GamesMarkt)
New addition to the team
This year we are lucky enough to welcome three extremely talented individuals to our ranks. Ben, our experienced game developer, and Benno, the creative 3D artist, have significantly strengthened our team and brought their skills to our new project "Adrenaline". Bad also brings extensive UI/UX experience and is a reliable force in graphic design, especially for our marketing. Welcome to Striked!
Striked Game Jam 2023
We are extremely proud that we were able to organise and hold our first successful digital "Striked Game Jam 2023" this year! The game jam lasted 48 hours and was themed "Odyssey". There was also a nice 1,000EUR to be won. As a grand finale, we organised a livestream showcase hosted by the talented German streamer LocoLea. This showcase was not only a way to honour the winning team, but also an opportunity to present the resulting works to a wider audience.
We were overwhelmed by the variety and creativity of the games submitted and are sincerely grateful to all participants for their hard work.
Here are a few of the GameJam projects:
DuckLife
A New Home
The Raven's Outpost
As part of our ongoing support for the creative game development community, we have not only launched our own Striked Game Jam, but are also proud to have entered into new collaborations with other institutions. These partnerships allow us to support more game jams and provide a platform for emerging developer talent to showcase their skills.
In cooperation with the University of Bayreuth and the University of Hanover, we have contributed our resources to promote and enrich their game jams, which has also led to the first game jam titles from the University of Hanover, for example, being created in October this year and finding their way onto our platform. This collaboration not only serves to support innovative projects, but also to strengthen the connection between the industry and the academic world. We are also continuing our collaboration with the Future Inspire Academy, as already mentioned in this blog.
For us, these new partnerships are not only a promotion of diversity and creativity in game development, but also an opportunity to inspire and support the next generation of game developers. We are excited to see the exciting projects and talent that will emerge from these collaborations and look forward to further strengthening the games community!
Outlook for mobile in 2024
In the past, mobile games could only live on Apple's and Google's closed app stores. Mobile web games have come a long way, but only recently have they been fully supported by mobile operating systems. So for most users, the App Store route has always been the default. This means a 30% cut from the platform owner, long review processes, and sometimes arbitrary rejections. But: A new set of rules in the European Union is set to change all that. Apple and Google have to allow competing app stores - and Striked is ready to seize this opportunity! We already have the backend infrastructure in place, after all an APK/IPA file is no different from an EXE file for computers when it comes to distribution. Now we are preparing the actual store experience and the bureaucratic processes involved. In 2024, we want to be able to distribute mobile games in the same way we do desktop/web games today and under the same conditions: no revenue based cuts, automated self-publishing as much as possible, and great discovery independent of marketing budgets. We will keep you posted as soon as there are updates!
2024 Outlook
And that's where we close the Chapter 2023! What an exciting time full of events, innovations and new perspectives for Striked! When we started the year with a cheerful "Ho ho ho", we had no idea what an impressive journey lay ahead of us.
A huge thank you goes out to the Striked team and to all the developers, partners and individuals who have accompanied us on this journey! Your support has shaped and advanced Striked.
In the coming year, we plan to intensify our efforts in various areas - be it content, marketing, new partnerships or industry events. We are excited about all the new adventures that await us in 2024 and look forward to continuing to grow together with you.
Happy holidays and a fantastic new year 🌟🎉