Our day started with a company visit to Glass Egg. Even before going on this trip, I was most excited for this trip because I am an avid video game fan, and even more passionate about game art and graphics. During our Plus3 interview, this visit had been hyped up so much, so I was more than looking forward to it.
The studio is located on three separate floors in a very tall office building. The reception area was quite small, highlighting Glass Egg’s humility, being around 500 people. I think the humble environment of the studio was the most inviting aspect. I imagine most high-ranked game creation studios have massive buildings in proportion to their popularity within the industry, but their three floors broke that image (I wish I could show you, but we were not allowed photography).
The studio has a very open layout. There were clusters of desks arranged in a honeycomb pattern instead of an array like companies in the US would typically use. It gave the whole place a homey-like vibe. Something I thought was cool was that each employee had decorated their desk with figures, plushies, and pictures, personalizing their workspace to make it comfortable for them. This kind of work culture is great for creative jobs like 3D design and I think it is crucial that Glass Egg prioritizes the wellbeing of their employees, even through small acts like promoting comfort and personalization. Walking through the desks, I could not help but take a look at the designs the employees were creating. Everything looked so meticulous and detailed! It is crazy to me how some gamers do not care about the little details of assets and do not recognize the care that goes into creating immersive and accurate projects. I am so glad I pay so much attention to that aspect.
Glass Egg as a company is ahead of the curve already, being the best 3D vehicle designers and animators and being involved in so many popular projects. I think they will continue to grow in size and depth as they take on more projects and find more talent. They have collaborated on very popular and loved titles like League of Legends, Call of Duty, and Halo Infinite, showing their high-quality work. I think their fame and success will skyrocket as they continue to create amazing artwork and game assets, and expand their catalog of offerings since they do also make character skins, weapons, scenery, and more.
Something that I asked about to the manager was about AI and its place in game development. He responded that, yes, AI is being used in the process, but only towards the end. I found this surprising but also relieving due to the increase in AI use to automate tasks, even in the creative art world. They let their artists do their building and colors and only use AI for finishing touches, such as adding more shine or vibrance to specific spots. As an artist myself, I find it refreshing that a company is still letting humans control the creative process in a world where automation and AI-integration is preferred.
After the visit, we had sports day with UEF at Trigger Boxing. I still think it is kind of crazy that we were able to box, even if most of the time we were playing team games with UEF. Photos were also hard to take as we were very involved in the games that were being played. I was insanely tried and sweaty after it, but I had to stick it out for the TEDx hosted by UEF event. At the venue, we took so many pictures at the photo booth before going inside to watch the speeches. It was a beautiful venue and I had a great time watching!
I’ll end this post with a picture of this adorable puppy we saw at Trigger Boxing that I think deserves to be included. So cute! Good night!
