Rami Ismail facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rami Ismail
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Ismail in 2018
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| Born | 30 October 1988 Netherlands
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| Nationality | Dutch |
| Occupation | Video game developer |
| Known for | Vlambeer |
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Notable work
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Rami Ismail (born 30 October 1988) is a Dutch-Egyptian independent video game developer. He is well-known for speaking about important topics in the video game world. These topics include making games for everyone and helping developers from many different countries. He started a game studio called Vlambeer with Jan Willem Nijman in 2010. Together, they created popular games like Ridiculous Fishing, Luftrausers, and Nuclear Throne.
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Early Life
Rami Ismail was born in the Netherlands. His father was from Egypt and his mother was Dutch. He grew up following the Muslim faith.
Vlambeer Game Studio
Rami Ismail met Jan Willem Nijman at the Utrecht School of the Arts. They worked together on a game development project. They thought their game could be very successful. However, their school wanted to own the rights to the game.
Because of this, both Rami and Jan Willem left school. They started their own company, Vlambeer, in 2010. This allowed them to make games without anyone else owning their ideas. Many of Vlambeer's games were liked by critics.
The studio became very famous after their mobile game Ridiculous Fishing was released in 2013. This game earned a lot of money quickly. It helped Vlambeer and its founders become financially stable.
Through Vlambeer, Rami also helped create free online tools. These tools are called presskit() and distribute(). They help independent game developers share information about their games. Developers can use them to send press kits and marketing materials to journalists. They can also share demo versions of their games.
Rami's Important Ideas
Rami Ismail is a Muslim. He often talks with game developers from all over the world, not just Western or Asian countries. He believes it's important to connect with programmers in developing countries.
He has spoken out against rules that make it hard for people to travel. For example, some travel rules have made it difficult for him to visit the United States. He says these rules also make it very expensive for developers from developing countries to attend big game events.
In 2018, Rami criticized travel rules again. Several developers from non-Western countries could not get travel visas. This stopped them from attending the Game Developers Conference (GDC) in the United States.
In January 2019, Rami announced a new project called Gamedev.world. He started it with Sarah Elmaleh, Gwen Frey, Houssem Ben Amor, and Gabriel Dal Santo. Gamedev.world is a game developer conference for independent developers from these affected countries. The goal was to create a conference that included everyone.
The first Gamedev.world conference happened online in June 2019. Speakers could talk in their own languages. Their talks were translated into 30 different languages. When the physical GDC in 2020 was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Gamedev.world helped developers. They ran events to help those who lost money from non-refundable payments for the canceled conference.
Awards and Recognition
Rami Ismail and Jan Willem Nijman were recognized by Forbes magazine in 2015. They were listed in the "30 under 30" for Games.
In 2018, Rami received the Ambassador award at the Game Developers Choice Awards. This award was for his work in promoting diversity in video games. It also recognized his support for game developers from less-developed countries.
Variety magazine named Rami one of the Most Influential people in Videogames in 2018. This was for creating free tools for independent creators. GamesIndustry.biz also named him one of its People of the Year for 2018. This was for his continued support for engaging with developing countries.
In December 2018, Rami was invited to a special lunch. This "Uitblinkerslunch" is hosted by King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima. It's an annual event that honors Dutch people who have achieved amazing things.
Personal Life
Rami Ismail lives in the Netherlands. For five years, he lived with his wife, Adriel Wallick. She is also a game developer. They met through their work in video games.
They got engaged virtually inside the game Destiny in October 2016. They were married by November 2017. They separated in August 2018 but remain friends. Rami often gives talks at game conventions. He also gives lectures on game design at universities.
In August 2022, Rami Ismail finished his flight training. He became a licensed pilot. He said that playing Microsoft Flight Simulator helped him pass the exam.
