HSHicham Saoud
@hichamsaoud
Senior producer with extensive experience in game development and management.
ZimbabweWhat I'm looking for
With over 11 years in the games industry, I have successfully led cross-functional teams and shipped titles across PC, mobile, and VR. My experience includes partnering with global brands like Disney and DreamWorks, scaling production pipelines at Scopely, and driving publishing strategy at The Game Kitchen for award-winning indie hits like Blasphemous and Tormenture.
I thrive at the intersection of production, product management, and publishing, where creative vision meets business execution. I have effectively managed projects from concept to launch, demonstrating calm, structured leadership and a focus on player experience. My mission is to help build games that are not only commercially successful but also fair, meaningful, and impactful for players.
Experience
Work history, roles, and key accomplishments
Head of Publishing
The Game Kitchen
Dec 2023 - Present (1 year 6 months)
Responsible for defining the product roadmap, managing platform relationships, and ensuring game success for Blasphemous mobile. Led a talented team across Production, Art, Marketing, Video Game Porting, Social Media, and Merchandising. Managed business development, sales, platform relations, brand management, and market analysis.
Senior Producer
BilleteCohete, a The Game Kitchen company
Aug 2023 - Present (1 year 10 months)
Hired to address critical production challenges and implement effective solutions for the Tormenture project. Successfully steered the project towards its Steam release, mitigating previous schedule and budget overruns. Led the development team, managed sprints, improved communication, ensured quality standards, and handled project reporting, resources, conflicts, and risk assessment.
Senior Producer and Product Owner
Solid Bash, a Room 8 Studio
May 2023 - Present (2 years 1 month)
Created the product vision and managed the development team. Utilized agile project management, including sprint backlog, capacity, tasks, reviews, and retrospective management. Ensured project growth and managed the budget.
Senior Producer
Genjoy, a Scopely Studio
Oct 2020 - Present (4 years 8 months)
Worked on hybrid match-3 AAA mobile games, assisting in Product and QA areas. Managed the match-3 puzzle pod and acted as DPM to build the QA team. Assisted PMO to improve processes and deploy task management tools like Wrike, Jira, and ProductBoard.
Producer
Genjoy
Oct 2017 - Present (7 years 8 months)
Producer and team lead for an unannounced title, driving the game from concept to launch. Defined MVP, product roadmap, and production plans, managing risks and improving processes. Monitored analytics (DeltaDNA) and KPIs, managed cross-functional teams, internal/external playtests, and team health.
Lead Engineer
Genjoy
Oct 2014 - Present (10 years 8 months)
Lead Engineer on Star Wars Puzzle Droid (Disney), Head Soccer (LaLiga), and Shrek Sugar Fever (Dreamworks). Developed Match-3/Match-2 engines, Unity3D shaders, and Android native integration. Implemented various SDKs for analytics, purchases, ads, and messaging.
Founder, Engineer, Game Designer
Guardians of Illusion
Jan 2007 - Present (18 years 5 months)
Founded the indie team Guardians of Illusion and created FrankenFace for PC and Xbox 360 (XNA 1.0). Was the sole engineer, working with one 2D artist and one audio designer. Involved in game design, engineering, R&D for game engines, and coding the GoEngine using Microsoft's XNA.
Education
Degrees, certifications, and relevant coursework
The Power Business School
Course Certificate, Business Administration
Completed a course certificate program focusing on Business Administration principles.
IES Polígono Sur
Degree, Software Development
Obtained a degree specializing in Software Development.
Aula Temática
Grade, 3D Art
Completed studies focused on 3D Art.
IES Martínez Montañés
Graduate, Science
Graduated with a focus on Science.
Tech stack
Software and tools used professionally
Availability
Location
ZimbabweAuthorized to work in
Job categories
Skills
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