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Deliciously fun games for everyone

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Snackbar Studio is a FRESH indie game Development firm

We don’t make snacks. We aren’t a bar (one of us keeps getting accused of being drunk at work, but that’s just because she keeps it real). We’re a team of industry professionals with decades of experience under our collective belts. We’ve developed dozens of games, published a handful of books, launched a few successful companies, and spent a large percentage of our lives trying to beat this one level on Metroid (and then we’ll go to bed, Mom! Promise.) (We lied, we are never going to bed.)

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We don’t make snacks. We aren’t a bar (one of us keeps getting accused of being drunk at work, but that’s just because she keeps it real). We’re a team of industry professionals with decades of experience under our collective belts. We’ve developed dozens of games, published a handful of books, launched a few successful companies, and spent a large percentage of our lives trying to beat this one level on Metroid (and then we’ll go to bed, Mom! Promise.) (We lied, we are never going to bed.)

We’ve launched a new studio built around the idea that good times shouldn’t just begin when you pick up that controller - they should be part of every single workday. Because you can’t create fun for others if you aren’t having it yourself.

COMING SOON:

A story about love, defiance, ... and pasta.

Our first release? A top-down, chill-action RPG for PC, Switch, Playstation, and Xbox that will satisfy the most discerning appetites. Forage, hunt, cook, and scheme in a magical, alternate reality, 1960s Italy.

Escape your city’s walls to the forbidden wilderness beyond. Battle magically-possessed boars, some very irritable enchanted vegetables, and the corrupt local government. Discover a magical portal to an enchanted market run by… raccoons? And (perhaps most challenging of all) master the perfect cacio e pepe recipe before the tyrannical mayor shuts your restaurant down. (No pressure.)

Welcome to SnackBar. When you’re here, you’re part of the resistance.

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Meet The Team

Creative Director & CEO

Rand Fishkin

Lead Writer

Geraldine DeRuiter

Game Designer

Nicolas Kraj

Lead Programmer

Miriam Cabrera

Art Director

Francesco Mazza

Rand Fishkin

Creative Director & CEO

Rand is best known for his work in the software startup world, as founder of SparkToro and, previously, Moz and Inbound.org. He’s the author of Lost & Founder: A Painfully Honest Field Guide to the Startup World and has dreamt of building indie games since he was 7 years old.

His top 5 game recommendations are: Disco Elysium, Hades, Baba is You, Planescape: Torment, and Night in the Woods. His favorite Italian dish is the risotto from Ristorante Locanda del Teatro in Montefalco, Umbria. He does not recommend Bros (or being a “bro”).

Geraldine DeRuiter

Lead Writer

Geraldine is the architect of Snackbar’s stories and characters. She's also the James Beard Award-winning voice behind The Everywhereist blog, a nationally bestselling author, and her work has appeared in numerous publications, including The New Yorker and The Washington Post (and one time Stephen Colbert mispronounced her name on his show!). She started her career in games - as a content creator and editor for Cranium. She is incredibly excited to get back to her roots as she brings her love of cooking, Italy, and sarcasm to the SnackBar universe.

Geraldine craves Spaghetti alle Vongole fortnightly and takes great delight in puzzle games like Roki and The Last Campfire, nineties throwbacks like Sonic the Hedgehog and Toejam & Earl, and resource management games like Stardew Valley.

Nicolas Kraj

Game Designer

With 15+ years of experience for companies like Ubisoft and Focus Entertainment, Nicolas has served as a Game Designer, Lead GD, and/or Director for dozens of the world’s most successful titles: Space Marine 2, Assassin’s Creed Origins, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon, Just Dance, The Crew, Immortals Fenyx Rising, Marvel and many more. Having worked on games from AAAA monster productions to small indie games allows him not only to cover the entire range of design expertise needed in a game production but also to be pragmatic in regard to shipping a product realistically.

Nicolas also coaches aspiring game designers and developers through GDKeys, a community he built serving 100s of indie creators. When in Italy, he’ll take a simple and efficient Spaghetti All'Amatriciana with a side of Hollow Knight.

Miriam Cabrera

Lead Programmer

Miriam is a passionate professional in the video game industry with five years of experience as a game developer and game designer in the world of independent video games. Throughout her career, she has contributed to the development of various indie titles such as Startup Company Console Edition, Terracotta, Altered Alma, and many more!

In addition to her successful journey in creating independent video games, Miriam had the honor of participating in a startup talent program backed by PlayStation Iberia. This experience provided her with the opportunity to launch her first commercial video game, Jade's Ascension.

Currently, Miriam shares her knowledge and experience as a level design instructor at a renowned university, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya. Her passion for imparting her love for video games and her expertise inspire the new generations of developers.

Miriam’s favorite video game is Sonic Heroes; it left an indelible mark on her childhood. And, should you want to brighten her day, you can always do so with a good plate of spaghetti bolognese!

Francesco Mazza

Art Director

After almost a decade working as Art Director for TV shows with Netflix, the BBC and various Italian studios, most recently Francesco co-developed the couch co-op videogame River Tails: Stronger Together (Kid Onion Studio).

Francesco graduated with a degree in CG animation from the European Institute of Design (IED) and gained an MA in Character Design soon after. He worked on kids’ cartoons in Italy and Kazakhstan before settling in London and working for Blue Zoo Animation Studio. His proudest achievement while there was co-creating the short film Lynx & Birds (which ended up being a Vimeo Staff Pick). He has recently put what he has learned over the years to use by teaching an online course in character design on the platform Domestika.

Francesco panics when asked which his favourite videogames are. How to choose! But, right now, he’d have to say Bloodborne, Crash Bandicoot 3 and, if he’s feeling cerebral, Fez or Baba Is You. Food-wise, though, he has a clear favourite: nothing beats a parmigiana di melanzane (and he would know - he’s Sicilian).

Follow us

The Snackbar at the End of the World,
Copyright Snackbar Studio, LLC | Based in Seattle, WA USA

Email: rand@snackbarstudio.com for inquiries

We don’t yet have a social media presence, but for now,
recommend following Rand on Threads, LinkedIn, and/or Instagram.

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