YoYo Games on the rise with plan to double staff

YOYO Games, the Dundee-based software firm backed by former executives from Xbox and Last.fm, is planning to double its headcount by creating 25 jobs as demand for its gaming platform soars.
Sandy Duncan: 'This move will allow us to accelerate our growth plans'. Picture: Ian RutherfordSandy Duncan: 'This move will allow us to accelerate our growth plans'. Picture: Ian Rutherford
Sandy Duncan: 'This move will allow us to accelerate our growth plans'. Picture: Ian Rutherford

The company is moving into larger offices in the city’s Waterfront regeneration area to make space for extra employees in systems development, software engineering, sales and customer service.

Chief executive Sandy Duncan said the firm had the “right technology at the right time” as developers large and small sought to get the latest games out on phones, computers and consoles all at once.

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He said the firm would create the jobs over the next year to 18 months.

“There’s a huge appetite from games developers to make games efficiently and get them out to multiple markets at the same time,” he said. “We make that really easy.”

YoYo’s GameMaker has been available as a tool for “bedroom coders” since 2007, but the company recently launched a beefed-up version known as “Studio” that automatically enables games to operate across different platforms, including 
Apple’s iPad and iPhone, Android smartphones, Facebook and Windows.

Duncan said: “Although the company has been around for a few years, the real technology investment started three years ago and is now paying off handsomely.

“This year we are looking at 300 to 400 per cent revenue growth. It’s a question of how far can it go.”

YoYo Games established its European headquarters in Dundee in May 2010 by opening an office at Abertay University with two team members.

Since then the business has grown rapidly and has now taken a ten-year lease on 8,700sq ft of prime office space in DundeeOne, a new Grade A office development at City Quay on the banks of the River Tay developed by Unicorn Property Group.

As well as its development software, YoYo also creates and publishes games to demonstrate the potential of GameMaker: Studio. It currently has about 25 employees in Dundee, which is its research and development centre.

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Duncan said the firm will also start to expand its small global sales team as it seeks to reach more of the games development market, estimated to include between one and three million individuals and firms.

He added: “We are delighted with Dundee – the quality of staff coming out of the universities and colleges is outstanding and has been core to our success. This move into Dundee Waterfront and the DundeeOne building will allow us to accelerate our growth plans and hopefully create further high quality employment opportunities.”

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