About Alastair
👨💼 Currently I manage the business development and publishing agency Caboodle Games and act as Head of Business at indie champions SUPERHOT overseeing our biz dev and publishing operations.
❤️ Once upon a time I was a AAA game designer. Singleplayer, multiplayer, TPS and FPS. You might have played my work in the Horizon Zero Dawn, Killzone or GTA franchises.
👋 I do a little consulting. Mostly helping teams with pitching, fundraising, design review, biz dev, production and general game dev troubleshooting. Details below 👇
💸 I also offer ongoing support and take the occasional pitch for “totally not a publisher” indie fund SUPERHOT PRESENTS.
📈 IndieBi is another project I help out. If you are in the business of selling video games you need this in your life.
🚀 Fledgling angel/seed investor. Games & games adjacent.
🐶 Previously I founded my own tiny indie studio and shipped an Apple featured, 4.7 ⭐ mobile title about pugs.
🕹️ I still make games when I can.
“I trust Ally to manage, execute, and frequently design his own tasks, he executes projects to an extremely high level of competency. Business people with a background in making games are hard to come by, and Ally is by far the best. I'd work with him on any project.”
Callum Underwood, Founder & Consultant at Robot Teddy, scout at Oculus & Kowloon Nights.
“When we first started to seek funding, Ally helped to guide our pitches—including what we were showcasing and to whom we were talking. His expertise allowed us to understand how to position our game and its unique qualities to outside investors.”
Ben Wander, Co-Founder, The Wandering Band, signed with Epic Games.
“Ally is a great friend and a fantastic coworker. When presented with shit to do, Ally gets said shit done in a professional and timely fashion… 10/10.”
Tom Kaczmarczyk, Co-Founder, SUPERHOT, CEO IndieBi.
“Thorough, easy to work with and technically very skilled… dedicated and motivated, he delivered, even in the face of seemingly impossible platform launch deadlines. I would wholeheartedly recommend Alastair to any game studio.”
Eric Boltjes, Lead Designer / Producer, Guerrilla Games.
Helpful Hebson
I help out teams in a few areas; fundraising (I love pitching), design review, biz dev, platforms, advisory work, launch support, data/sales analysis and partner relationships. Competitor and review analysis is also a specialty. A few things I’ve handled recently…
Negotiated and closed numerous licensing and partnership deals.
Scouted, reviewed and evaluated game project pitches for studios and publisher/investors.
Evaluated and pitched new project ventures leveraging Hollywood IP.
Reviewed and improved pitch decks.
GDD and project feasibility reviews.
Handled publisher and platform relations, promotions, discounts and store submissions.
Reviewed and delivered IP/design feedback for various projects.
Biz, design and production on VR Location Based Entertainment (LBE) projects.
Created strategic market opportunity assessments for new ventures.
Coordinated marketing and PR for various launches.
Produced extensive AAA game, review and competitor analyses.
If you think I can help your project, say hi at alastair@alastairhebson.com.
“Ally is an experienced designer and a natural leader. He’s a confident man, comfortable with being the hub of communication for a team or a studio. He can also be trusted to lead cross-discipline teams in the production of intricate gameplay systems. Methodical, driven, committed and calm, Ally would add significant value to any design team looking for a leader.”
Martin Connor, Design Director, Wargaming.
“Alastair is driven to creating compelling gameplay and a pleasure to work with. His positive attitude is motivating to be around and he is well liked by everyone on the team... I would hire him without hesitation.”
Troy Masburn, Gameplay Director, 343 Industries.
Technically Technical
I’ve got multiple years of experience with Unreal Engine and Unity. Happy hacking with blueprints, C#, JS and Python. VR dev. Multiplayer online dev. Deadly with Photoshop, Illustrator and Premier. Excel with SQL.
“”TL;DR: Yes, I'd absolutely work with Ally again. Beyond being a connoisseur of fine Scottish whiskys, Ally is an exceptional designer capable of looking at systems analytically from both the player's and developer's perspective.”
Dan Nanni, Lead Designer, Bethesda.
“Alastair really did an outstanding job coordinating a complicated legal matter with a foreign firm. It is a great pleasure to work with him, both for his human and professional qualities.”
Grégoire Froussart, De Gaulle Fleurance & Associés
“When I was seeking a publisher for my game Warborn, Ally gave me some invaluable feedback on my pitch deck. His advice had a significant impact on the quality of my overall pitch. He knows what he's talking about, talk to Ally!”
Josh Regan, Founder, RaredropGames.
Eduction & Extra
🏆 BAFTA Scotland, Games Judge, 2021
🎓 Online Course - Introduction to Virtual Urbanism with Konstantinos Dimopoulous. 2021.
🎓 Workshop - Pitching & Businesses Development with BAFTA / Games London. 2017
🎓 Published paper: “Digital Footprints – Recording Bot Movement and Behaviour to Improve AI Opponents in FPS games. AISB Symposium: AI and Games 2010”
🎓 Evening Classes - Classical Art History: Art & Architecture from the Renaissance to the Reformation. 2009.
🎓 First class degree with distinction in Games Software Development. 2003 - 2007.
Public Speaking:
Pitch Perfect, 2020, British Council
LBE VR Panel, 2019, VR Days
Remote Working, 2018, Devcom
100% Badass, 2017, Glasgow Caledonian University
Game Design Masterclass, 2017, BAFTA Guru Live
Advocacy Microtalks 2017: Challenging the Industry in 20 Slides, 2017, GDC
The Power of Pacing, 2016, Up the Game Conference
Tactical Level Design, 2016, NHTV Breda
Better Game Design, 2015, Glasgow Caledonian University
Breaking In, 2013, Glasgow Caledonian University