HSE University Hosts Major Gaming Industry Festival GameDevFest 2026

© HSE University

In January, HSE University hosted the third GameDevFest of the Faculty of Computer Science—a computer game festival organised by the School of Software Engineering and the project group ‘Computer Game Software Engineering—PIKI’ with the participation of the Vintorog game studio. Guests had the opportunity to play a variety of video games, including demo versions created by FCS students and other aspiring game designers.

GameDevFest partners—the National Technological Olympiad, Moscow Programming School, and Berloga Cyber-Physical Platform—also presented their booths. The CarX Technologies studio booth offered a chance to take part in a virtual race, while the UchiDron project enabled visitors to put themselves in the role of a drone operator. GameDevFest participants were also offered puzzles, ‘paper games,’ and board games provided by the Kontakt club.

© HSE University

Characters from popular video games mingled with festival guests, while a musical programme and a vibrant dance performance by TODES studio students added to the celebration’s atmosphere. GameDevFest concluded with a quiz dedicated to game development.

A traditional showcase—a competition of computer games by aspiring developers—was also held as part of the festival. This year, the organisers selected 24 demo versions of games spanning various genres, from puzzles and platformers to strategy and horror, with their creators vying for three prizes. Twenty-eight external video game industry experts named the winners.

First prize—Roach Post

Almost all team members are students of the Design educational programme at the HSE Faculty of Creative Industries (FCI).

 Creator, programmer: Ivan Lozhkin

 Creator, lead and game designer: Mila Karpova, a student of the Master’s programme in Strategic Communications Management of the Faculty of Creative Industries

 Game designer: Egor Nemtsov

 Artist: Sofia Selyanina

 UI designer: Anna Shiryaeva

Project description

A puzzle game where players must restore the operation of an abandoned post office: meet customers, send parcels, hire cute cockroach workers, and withstand ruthless inspections.

The game is scheduled for release on February 17. ‘We were happy to take part in the festival, and not for the first time. Thanks for organising it. We enjoyed the event; it was a great opportunity to test our game before release and get feedback. We will definitely return next time with a new project!’ shared Ivan Lozhkin.

Second prize—crystalline

Team members: Anna Chertova and Polina Dvoryankina, students of the Design educational programme at the FCI.

Project description

A meditative 3D puzzle game where the player edits stones on the islands to help a pearl reach sound crystals and activate them.

Third prize—Kochari

Creator: solo developer Mary Parsegova.

Project description

A snake-like rhythmic arcade game that gives players a chance to experience the challenges of performing the Armenian kochari dance. The goal is to assemble a line of synchronised dancers, connecting them when they stomp. To achieve this, the player must press the space bar in rhythm.

Round tables and discussions

A series of round tables covering key aspects of the gaming industry was held as part of the GameDevFest.

 At the student discussion ‘How to Find Work in Game Development?,’ Elizaveta Egorova (VK Education / VK Play), Alexey Drokonov (National Technological Olympiad), and Valeria Kirysheva (HSE) discussed practical steps to start a career and the importance of a portfolio.

 The industrial round table ‘Sound—50% of Success’ brought together audio experts Petr Skovorodnikov (HSE School of Design), Vladimir Verba (HSE Records), Denis Pozdnyakov (FCS, Vintorog Studio, and Contrast Games), and Ilya Ruy (sound director, net art researcher), who elaborated on the role of sound in game creation.

 At the educational session ‘Work and Study in Game Development: Combine Without Losing,’ industry professionals from Narratorika, Sumo Tatami, Clockwork Drakkar, and G4G shared strategies for balancing studies, personal projects, and work.

 Finally, technical specialists dispelled stereotypes about the profession at the round table ‘Engineering in Computer Games: Myth or Reality?,’ emphasising the critical role of engineering in modern game development.

GameDevFest has become a genuine celebration of the video game industry, believes Andrey Shtanov, an assistant at the School of Software Engineering and a member of the PIKI project group at the FCS.

Andrey Shtanov

‘The festival featured games, gifts, and visiting industry experts, as well as music and cosplay—right in the atrium on Pokrovka! I’m sure it was a pleasant surprise for the unsuspecting students who came to their usual classes,’ he said. ‘It is worth noting that the event also interested external guests, with as many as 359 people registering. I especially liked that there were more developers willing to showcase their projects: we had projects from both high school students and developers who were about to launch a full-fledged Steam release. It was hard to fit everyone in, but each participant was able to show their game to the public.’

Alexander Kutekhov

Independent expert Alexander Kutekhov believes that FCS events can already be called an industry standard for aspiring game developers. ‘The students presented interesting work; some of them can be called finished products,’ he noted. ‘There were round tables where we could exchange opinions with colleagues and also share knowledge with the students. I gladly accepted my colleagues’ invitation to participate, because it is always a real celebration. I hope that the organisers will not dwell on their successes but instead move on to the next achievements.’

Alexander Bodrov

‘It’s always a pleasure to come to HSE University for GameDevFest,’ said Alexander Bodrov, Vice President of the Video Game Industry Development Organisation and Product Director of the Moscow Video Games and Animation Cluster. ‘HSE is one of the pioneers of education in game development—they taught game-making even before it became mainstream. It is nice to see cool student projects and equally cool speakers.’

Yuri Bogdanov

Yuri Bogdanov, Director of Innovation at Centre-Invest Bank and founder of TryHard Games, praised the organisation of GameDevFest. ‘Dozens of attention-grabbing projects and hundreds of participants’ ardent eyes create the perfect atmosphere for HSE University’s game festival,’ the expert emphasised. ‘The projects ranged from creative experimental initiatives to international-quality releases. Our industry round table was brimming with polarised opinions, and sparks flew when irrefutable arguments clashed. One of the logical conclusions is that engineering is not opposed to creative freedom but actually supports it.’

Vyacheslav Chernyshev

‘I attended GameDevFest at HSE University, presented our games at the CarX Technologies booth and discussed important things at the round table “Sound—50% of Success.” As a member of the jury, I rated more than twenty game projects. It was a great event, and I would be happy to come and talk with students and colleagues again,’ said Vyacheslav Chernyshev, Senior Sound Designer at CarX Technologies.

© HSE University

The UchiDron project team described participation in GameDevFest 2026 as a valuable experience. ‘The festival format allowed us not only to show our solution for unmanned systems control training but also to receive feedback from students, developers, and teachers,’ a team representative commented. ‘It was especially important that visitors to our booth were actively interested not only in the simulator and the training drone itself but also in the internal logic of the project—analysis of operator skills, modelling of challenging conditions, and the possibilities of using game mechanics in engineering and technical training. It was important for us to see that game development approaches can be applied to educational and practical tasks.’