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Shifty Eye Games

About Us

Founded in 2019 by Tuncer Deniz, a 30 year veteran of the gaming industry, Shifty Eye Games developed and shipped four games for Apple’s subscription service, Apple Arcade, the most of any publisher at the time.

Shifty Eye Games’ mission is to become a leading Canadian-based indie developer of high quality, immersive and unique gaming experiences, with a focus on growth paralleled with efficiency.

Management

Tuncer Deniz

CEO

In a career spanning over 30 years, Tuncer Deniz, has been a successful gaming CEO, Project Lead, and Producer, involved in hundreds of popular video games. From Bungie Software to Shifty Eye Games, Deniz’s involvement in his various companies has generated success both financially and as a team.

Starting in the late 90’s, Deniz joined Bungie Software as a production manager on several Bungie titles. Deniz was also producer on Marathon Infinity and Myth and was project lead on Myth II: Soulbligther.

In the early 2000’s, Deniz envisioned the move from physical to digital purchases and was one of the first companies to sell games via the web.

In 2014, Deniz successfully resurrected the iconic MacPlay brand and published over 100 games on Apple’s App Store including iconic games such as Pillars of Eternity, Human Fall Flat, and Surviving Mars.

In 2019, Deniz was approached by Apple to develop games for their subscription service, Apple Arcade. Shifty Eye Games was able to develop four games, the most of any publisher, later that year.

Richard Jaquish

Lead Programmer

Richard Jaquish is the Lead Programmer at Shifty Eye Studios. He is an experienced mobile developer, recently working on a number of launch titles for the Apple Arcade platform, with a focused role on performance and optimization. Prior experience includes Lead Programmer on the hit Sally’s time management series, which topped the iOS and PC charts. He also led development on a series of successful Facebook titles, supporting millions of monthly active users.

Shaena Trotman

Lead Animator

Shaena Trotman is a character animator on the animation team at Shifty Eye Studios. A recent graduate of Sheridan College’s Bachelor of Animation Program and is currently studying for her Masters in Computer Animation, Shaena specializes in both 3D and 2D workflows including animation, modelling and character design.

Trystin Rosenberger

Lead 3d artist

Trystin is a college graduate in both video game design as well as 3D design. She spent the start of her career working on VR simulations for training applications as well as various other kinds of serious games. Shifty Eye is her first break into the video game industry, and she’s excited to continue learning new techniques while supporting the team with her various skills. In her off-time, she relaxes with video games and board games alike, and enjoys challenging herself with escape rooms.

OuR Team

Jesse Rubin

Programmer

Formerly a student of linguistics and creative writing, Jesse recently graduated from Toronto’s George Brown College with an advanced diploma in game programming. As a student, he was hired by George Brown to develop an educational simulation game used by professors. After participating in several student game jams, Jesse is thrilled to be starting his professional game dev career at Shifty Eye.

Andrew Woodall

Programmer

Over time, Andrew gained various skills in electronics, digital video, security systems, and gaming. He’s handled hardware, like PCBs and Microcontrollers, and developed video content delivery software for buses in the UK and a CCTV plugin for Vancouver airport. In gaming, he worked on Sally’s time management franchise, porting a PC title to iOS, and contributed to a successful Facebook game by crafting custom tools for designers. He also led programming for several iOS and Android titles.

Aaron Fothergill

Programmer

As one of the co-founders of Strange Flavour, Aaron and his brother Adam have over 100 games to their credit and over 70 years of combined industry experience. Between them they have written the seminal iOS fishing game Flick Fishing, Apple Design Award winning ToySight and have worked on AAA titles such as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, and Croc 2.

Rene An

Programmer

With a strong background in game development, Rene works hard to support her teammates along with completing diverse tasks to help improve the game. Graduating with a Bachelor of Computer Science in Korea and most recently a Computer programming major in Canada, she continues to study hard to educate and develop her learning and practical skills, all while giving it her all. Her motto is “Do my best always”.

Sara Badday

3D Artist

Sara, self-taught 3D artist at Shifty Eye Studios, skilled in 2D and 3D. She has years of diverse art styles experience, from sketches to polished 3D renders. Passionate about studying video games and movies for creative growth. Enjoys working out, rain walks, and Rocky Mountain time.

Alaina Mcdonald

3D Artist

Alaina is a 3D modeler, and a recent graduate of Vancouver Film School. She loves creating beautiful environments for others to experience, and immerse themselves into. She has experience making models for both film, and games, and uses her experience watching movies, and playing them to inspire her creativity. In her spare time, she loves to sew, crochet, play magic the gathering, or dungeons and dragons.

Andrey Petravchuk

3D Artist

Having recently migrated from Ukraine, Andrey has over a decade of experience working with renowned companies such as Ubisoft, Disney, Zynga, and more. He specializes in 3D modeling, digital sculpting, hard surface modeling, 3D rigging and animating, lighting and rendering, and texturing.

Brooke Barnett

Animator

Brooke knew from a young age that she wanted to work in animation as she has always had a love for cartoons and video games. She went on to graduate from East Tennessee State University with a major in Digital Media and a concentration in Animation. After a few internships and moving to Canada from the United States, she found her dream job on the Animation Team at Shifty Eye. She is currently living her dream as she gets to practice her passion each and everyday.

William Dyer

Animator

William Dyer is a 3D Animator who has worked on award winning short films and features. His career has allowed him to work on a variety of different types of animation from humans to creatures to blowing up cities. He has now made the jump from film to video games and is excited to join the animation team at Shifty Eye Studios.

Adam Fothergill

Music, Sound, & Special Effects Designer

Adam, a synthaholic, began game composing with “Yomo” on Atari ST. He crafted the first CD soundtrack for “Jetstrike” on Amiga CD32 and won a BAFTA for “Alien Resurrection” SFX. With his brother Aaron, he worked on games like ToySight and Flick Fishing. He resides in Spain with keyboards, cables, and family.

Shane franks

Lead Level Designer

As lead level designer, Shane’s passion is building unique and fun worlds, fostering a creative environment, and keep the team on schedule through his expertise in project management.

Arvin David

Lead Technical Level Designer

Arvin is a level designer at Shifty Eye Studios and a recent graduate from Sheridan College’s Game level design program, Before joining Shifty Eye Studios, Arvin helped in designing large-scale, open levels from different theatres of war for the upcoming multiplayer tactical shooter Operation: Harsh Doorstop. Arvin enjoys playing the drums and is a fan of sci-fi and historical shows.

Spencer Preiditsch

Lead Gameplay Level Designer

Working previously as a Solutions Architect and graduating from George Brown College’s Postgraduate Game Design program; Spencer has been dedicated towards designing clear and engaging content. His past work has lead to concepting, modding and implementing levels under a wide variety of different game engines. Spencer’s games library continually grows as he enjoys delving into the applied theories, psychology and direction of levels from the thousands of designers in the field.

Nikolai Borodin

Level Designer

Nikolai Borodin is a seasoned Level Designer at Shifty Eye Games, holding a master’s degree in Applied Computer Science and over five years of experience, including a key role in the launch of Crossout Mobile. Originating from a small rural town in Russia’s Ural region, he has a deep-rooted passion for games, old-school vehicles, and outdoor activities. Nikolai combines his technical expertise and creative flair to craft engaging and immersive game environments.

Tim Huynh

junior Level Designer

Tim, a fervent gamer with a background in game design and software development, broke into the industry with Shifty Eye. He’s committed to honing his skills in level design and programming to craft unforgettable gaming experiences. In his free time, he relishes playing co-op games such as Plateup and Helldivers 2.

Ian McCuaig

LEAD QUALITY ANALYST

Ian, an avid gamer with experience at BioWare and New World Interactive, now leads quality analysis at Shifty Eye Games. In his free time, he enjoys gaming, crafting Dungeons & Dragons worlds, and watching TV and movies.

Advisory Board

Alex Seropian

Advisory board member

Co-founder of Bungie and a key figure behind the Halo series, Seropian is a veteran in game development with a track record of successful ventures, including Wideload Games and Industrial Toys, demonstrating his lasting impact on the industry.

Vikas Gupta

Advisory board member

Vikas Gupta, CEO of AVARA Media, specializes in AR for environmental advocacy. His leadership at TransGaming Inc. led to its Nvidia buyout, enhancing Nvidia’s gaming platform. Gupta also contributes to academia at the University of Waterloo, blending tech innovation with education.

Justin Ratushniak

Advisory board member

With extensive experience in digital marketing and strategic finance, Ratushniak’s leadership at Monolith Marketing Agency and past achievements highlight his expertise in driving business growth and innovation.

Quotes from our Team Members

“We really find ourselves in a niche not explored by other games. It's kind of a sub genre that is very unexplored so we have to invent our own solutions to most problems. This is a game that is far more unique than it is recognizable.”

Dustin Saxton, Sr. Level Designer

“Games are my passion and part of my DNA. Working with amazingly talented people, creating games people love, is the driving force behind Shifty Eye Games..”

Tuncer Deniz, CEO

“Tuncer and Shifty Eye Games have embarked on an exciting journey in bringing a massively beloved franchise to avid gamers across multiple platforms. I’m honored to advise such experienced, creative leaders and developers as they take on their biggest project to-date with the addition of new talent, especially those with such a deep respect for the craft.”

Vikas Gupta, Advisory Board

“I’m always trying to find the soul of any project I’m working on. That soul usually comes from a team of new, inspired talent and the leadership of trusted, industry veterans. Shifty Eye Games has embraced that ethos and is constructing something remarkable that reminds me of my earlier collaborations with Tuncer while at Bungie. They’ve reached an outcome at the studio that will provide an exciting new avenue to assemble that team, find that spark, and build the best core game experience possible.”

Alex Seropian, Advisory Board

“Over the last two and a half years, I've had the privilege of collaborating closely with the team on various strategic initiatives, from corporate strategy and staffing to securing significant funding. Our collective efforts have not only laid a strong foundation for the company but also paved the way for the exciting launch of our upcoming game. As we stand on the brink of unveiling this project to the world in 2024, I'm eagerly anticipating the global recognition it will undoubtedly achieve.”

Justin Ratushniak, Advisory Board