08 Dec 2020
Hi Omoloro, before we get straight into it - tell us as little bit about yourself.
Name: Omoloro Oyegoke
Job Title: Senior Software Developer
Company Working For: InnoGames GmbH
Years of experience: 12
Let's get straight into it!
Q. Any Particular game you've worked on that you'd like to mention?
A. I work with the backend systems that all the games interface with for user account management, payments, marketing, analytics, and several other functionalities that are required by all games.
Q. How did you first get into the industry?
A. Creating games combines a high level of technicality as well as art and creativity to create truly enjoyable experiences. I've always found the multi-faceted nature of game development intriguing because of the broad spectrum of skills and subject areas it touches.
Q. Did you complete any courses or get any particular qualifications relative to the role?
A. I have my Computer Science and Mathematics university degree which has been pretty useful so far :)
Q. Is there any particular software/hardware/systems that you use?
A. There's a whole lot of other tools and technologies that we use. The backend systems that I work with favour the Java Spring Framework and MySql
Q. How large is the team you work with?
A. 25 developers at the moment.
Q. Have you had any opportunities to travel with the role? If so, what's your best experience?
A. Yes, I've been to a few conferences and events. My best experience to date was going for the Spring IO conference in Barcelona with some of my teammates in 2019. It was great to interact with other software developers and attend talks about the technologies we use for our daily work. It was also fun to explore a bit of Barcelona in May. Arguably the best time to be in Barcelona.
Q. How would you describe an average working day?
A. We have flexible working hours at InnoGames, so I generally prefer to start working earlier in the day, and some of my teammates prefer to start working later. So the first thing I generally do is to check if any work from my teammates from the previous evening needs to be code reviewed or if any message or discussion needs my input. Once that is done, I check the statuses of tasks and deploy what is necessary to our production or staging environments. After that, it's essentially writing code, discussing with stakeholders, and occasionally participating in internal tests for our games. Once in a while, we also have team meetings to chat about non-work stuff, or develop language skills.
Q. What advice would you give someone looking to get into the industry?
A. There are lots of different roles required in the gaming industry. These range from software development, to art, to community support etc. You should find out about all these rolls and identify which of them matches your skills and interest and then work on developing these skills. This could be by studying in formal education, taking online courses, volunteering, or maybe even building something yourself.
Q. What would you say is the best part of working at your company?
A. For such a young company, we already have a fair amount of processes to optimise and professionalise work. At the same time, we are not afraid to question already installed processes and further optimise or ultimately kill those if necessary. It may sound like a dull affair, but in fact it gives you a voice in matters that affect your daily work greatly.
Q. And finally, is there anything up and coming in your business that you would like to let us know about/promote?
A. I like that I am constantly interacting with people I genuinely get along with, some of whom have become really good friends. The company proactively looks for ways to improve the working environment and personal experiences of its employees.
InnoGames is hiring! Check out the opportunities here
Keep Calm and waka waka...
