Humans Behind the Game: Huy-Dũng Nguyễn, Production Manager

Huy-Dũng Nguyễn, Production Manager, joined Gameloft Vietnam, Hanoi Studio in 2011 just as the studio was opening its doors.

His first job in the gaming industry, Huy-Dũng has stuck with us throughout all these years growing alongside the studio in various roles and helping to make Gameloft Hanoi into the place it is today.

Find out more about him and what he’s learned after more than 10 years in the industry and at Gameloft below!

Hi, Huy-Dũng! Tell us about yourself.

I'm Huy-Dũng, a 34-year-old father of one son and one daughter who lives in Hanoi, Vietnam.



This August was my 10 year anniversary at Gameloft, and it’s fair to say that Gameloft is a huge part of my life! I love the international work environment at Gameloft, our world-class products that reach billions of people around the globe, and the work culture in the Hanoi studio—we truly care for each other and see ourselves as a family!

Prior to joining Gameloft, I wasn’t actually a gamer or have a huge passion for the gaming industry. I didn't play any video games during my youth and spent my first 3 years working professionally as a web developer.

I only started playing mobile games from 2009-2010. But I got quickly hooked on casual games (I was obsessed with Angry Birds), which sparked my interest in mobile development.

When I saw Gameloft Hanoi being opened and recruiting the first teams, I took a chance and joined as a programmer and ended up learning all about the amazing world of 3D graphic programming, optimization, bots, etc… for the first time.

From there, I switched positions a few times between programming and management and eventually reached my current role of production manager in 2017. Having a passion for both problem solving and developing others has been the key to helping me advance in my career (regardless of position).



What is your role, and what do you enjoy most about your job?

In my current role as production manager, I oversee all current projects in the studio.

What I love most in my job is its autonomous nature. The studio has been open for 10 years now, and many processes have matured and many project managers are now capable of working independently.

Thanks to this, I can focus on the macro, cross-departments, and cross-project improvements. It’s freeing but at the same time challenging because I still need to have a hold on the details on many different projects and need to switch contexts efficiently.

Another thing I love is the production basics training session I give every month as part of the onboarding process for new Gamelofters. It’s helped me to connect with all the Gamelofters in the studio regardless of their positions and has allowed them to share their questions, concerns, and ideas with me freely.



What are some of your most memorable moments at Gameloft?

There are so many moments!

I vividly remember the long nights we had to work for the first gold of the studio in 2011 for Asphalt 6: Adrenaline on Android. We were so inexperienced at the time, but we compensated for that by working extremely hard.

There was also UNO & Friends on Facebook, which ran for almost two years. It was full of technical challenges, and we even created a separate night-shift team to collaborate with the online team in Montréal and Gameloft Toronto. But the day it went live was unforgettable. It was the kind feeling you get when you finally conquer something really hard!



And just recently, our studio has been tasked with working on a huge game with new technology (Unreal Engine). We needed to train people on the new engine, and instead of following tutorials, the programming department took a learning-by-doing approach.

In just 2 months, they designed and created a multiplayer tank battle game from scratch, with controller support and observer view, stable enough to be used for an internal esport event. I love that.

What advice do you have for people who want to work in gaming in a similar role?

My first piece of advice is to know yourself.

Make sure you enjoy learning constantly and love taking on new challenges. This industry is really special because it's both extremely technologically advanced and artistic. Plus it’s evolving fast in all aspects: technology, themes, platforms, and even business models, so you’ll be learning new things and encountering new challenges every week!

You’ll never be 100% ready for the challenges, and that’s ok. But if you have those two abilities, don’t worry about your credentials—jump right in! There’s always a role for you to begin your gaming career: programmer, marketer, designer, tester, community manager, and plenty more.

My second piece of advice is to truly care for your colleagues.

The idea of a genius who can do everything by himself is purely a myth. Making a good game is complex, ambiguous, and stressful at times, and you will need a diverse team of people with different skills and personalities who collaborate well with each other in order to be successful.

If you’re a junior, be friendly, respectful, open to different perspectives, and support others in the team. And when you become managers, be even more aware of building genuine connections with all your team members and truly caring about their success.

Take Huy-Dũng’s advice and jump right in! We have many open positions at Gameloft Hanoi and in our studios around the world. Apply here and stay tuned for another edition of Humans Behind the Game!