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Juris Savostijanovs

Available to hire

A Lead Game Developer / Software Engineer and researcher with an MRes in Psychology, I create interactive experiences and games in 2D, 3D, and Virtual Reality.

About

A Lead Game Developer / Software Engineer and researcher with an MRes in Psychology, I create interactive experiences and games in 2D, 3D, and Virtual Reality. As a Lead, I oversee programming and technical development for game titles on Meta’s Horizon Worlds, including Star City, Interior Designer and many more that have garnered over a million players. I also build robust infrastructure to integrate AI agents into game development, contributing to projects like “Meta Pocket” and “Horizon Worlds”.

  • Joined September 2026

Languages

  • EnglishFluent

Industry experience

  • Gaming
  • Software & Internet
  • Education

More experts in Blackburn, United Kingdom

Projects · 1

Star City

I joined Star City after shipping Mine Maniac. By then, the creative had been pitched, the client had approved it, and the team was deep into the vertical slice for Meta. Star City was proposed as a Meta Horizon social life-sim centred on building and personalising a home, progressing through everyday activities, and interacting with other players. The core idea is to build a dream home: players customise house interiors and exteriors using an inventory of items, a placement tool, interchangeable item textures, and a 3D volume grid like The Sims. Items are not free, so players engage in activities and other Horizon Worlds experiences to earn money, then spend it to expand and decorate. It is all social: players visit each other, host or attend parties, and play across desktop, mobile and VR.

  • Game Developer
  • Programmer
  • Software Engineer

Work experience

Lead Interactive Developer · KoffeecupJan 2023 – Present · 3 yrs 11 mos

Lead the development of client and team projects, ensuring technical requirements are met and aligned with client goals (including Meta). Work end-to-end from concepts through LiveOps, collaborating via daily stand-ups and syncs, followed by triaging with other departments and client catch-ups. Provide hands-on support across development and mentor junior developers. At the company level, help integrate agentic development practices across the team, including proprietary models from Anthropic and OpenAI as well as locally run models and local-only RAG systems. Often work with existing engines such as Unity and Meta Horizon Studio, and create full-stack applications for both client-facing and internal tooling to improve development velocity and data tracking.

Junior Games Developer · Live 5 LtdAug 2022 – Dec 2023 · 1 yr 5 mos

Helped develop multiple web, cabinet, and mobile games, with a focus on UI quality and effective gameplay systems. Created UI elements and animations that improved user experience and contributed to better interaction and retention for released titles. Participated in playtesting and feedback sessions to continuously refine animation quality and gameplay mechanics to maintain strong standards for player experience.

Junior Games Developer · fish in a bottleApr 2022 – Sep 2022 · 6 mos

Designed and implemented new systems and educational games for a learning platform supporting around 30,000 concurrent daily users across schools and learning centres in Belgium. Built multiple new games for the national BBC Bitesize learning platform that remain playable. Focused on optimizing UI and animations to improve player engagement and the learning experience through increased “game juice.”

Education

Masters by Research (MRes) - Psychology · Edge Hill University2020 – 2021
BSC (HONS) - Psychology · Edge Hill University2016 – 2020

Certifications and awards

Excellence Scholarship2020 – 2026
Student Opportunity Fund Award2020 – 2026
Investigator-Sponsored Research Grant (AHRC)2020 – 2026

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