Marcin Makaj, PhD - Doctor of Arts (Academy of Art in Szczecin), Master of Laws (University of Szczecin), and Master of Economics (University of Szczecin). I work as an assistant professor and a head of the Interfaculty Department of Computer Games and Virtual Reality of the Academy of Art in Szczecin. I also have been working in the video games industry since 2011 when I began creating mobile applications for iOS devices. Now I am engaged in creating games at my own one-man studio, where I work as a designer, graphic artist and programmer.
I balance on the edge of traditional games and art, experimenting with form and message. I believe that video games can offer more than only entertainment.
My most important production – Bohemian Killing – combines the features of a traditional video game with a legal thriller resembling the works of John Grisham. The game received various awards (including the Best Story award at the 2016 Pixel Awards and a nomination in the Best Desktop/Downloadable category at the Game Connection Development Awards). It was showcased all around the world (Pixel Heaven in Warsaw, Gamescom in Cologne, the Tokyo Game Show in Tokyo, INDIGO in Amsterdam, the Out of Index Experimental Game Fest in Seoul, Fan Expo Canada in Toronto and Game Connection Europe in Paris).
My next game, Commander 85, has also been well-received (including three nominations in the Best PC Game, Best Hardcore Game, Best Story/Storytelling categories at the Game Connection America 2020 - Indie Development Awards, and a nomination to Indie Prize USA 2019). It was showcased in many different countries (ChinaJoy in Shanghai, the Tokyo Game Show in Tokyo, GameDaily Connect in Los Angeles and Playtopia in Cape Town).
I regularly participate in industry events, and I am an active member of the community:
I balance on the edge of traditional games and art, experimenting with form and message. I believe that video games can offer more than only entertainment.
My most important production – Bohemian Killing – combines the features of a traditional video game with a legal thriller resembling the works of John Grisham. The game received various awards (including the Best Story award at the 2016 Pixel Awards and a nomination in the Best Desktop/Downloadable category at the Game Connection Development Awards). It was showcased all around the world (Pixel Heaven in Warsaw, Gamescom in Cologne, the Tokyo Game Show in Tokyo, INDIGO in Amsterdam, the Out of Index Experimental Game Fest in Seoul, Fan Expo Canada in Toronto and Game Connection Europe in Paris).
My next game, Commander 85, has also been well-received (including three nominations in the Best PC Game, Best Hardcore Game, Best Story/Storytelling categories at the Game Connection America 2020 - Indie Development Awards, and a nomination to Indie Prize USA 2019). It was showcased in many different countries (ChinaJoy in Shanghai, the Tokyo Game Show in Tokyo, GameDaily Connect in Los Angeles and Playtopia in Cape Town).
I regularly participate in industry events, and I am an active member of the community:
- I am a member of the International Choice Awards Network (ICAN) - an invitation-only group comprised of leading game creators from all parts of the video game industry, who nominate and select winners for the Game Developers Choice Awards (GDCAs),
- I am a frequent jury member in the Indie Cup - an online festival of upcoming independent video games,
- I am a member of the Game Industry Conference’s program board,
- I am a member of the Game Developer Collective,
- I am a frequent speaker at various conferences (Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco, Game Industry Conference (GIC) in Poznan, InCAST in Tokyo and Ostrava, Design Plus in Szczecin, and the Mastering the Game conference of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland in Warsaw),
- I received a scholarship at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco (2017), as one of the first game developers from Eastern Europe,
- I received a creative and culture scholarship for 2024 by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland,
- I received three grants by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland as part of the Creative Sectors Development program,
- I was a member of an expert committee selecting independent video games for the Polish national booths at Gamescom 2023 in Cologne (Germany), PAX West 2023 in Seattle (USA), and PAX East 2024 in Boston (USA),
- I have taught children about game development at the Lighthouse International School in Goyang, South Korea,
- I was one of the fifteen candidates in the Digital Culture category at the 2016 Polityka's Passport - an annual Polish cultural award presented by the weekly magazine Polityka since 1993.
