Christina Seelye, Founder & CEO of Maximum Games, Modus Games, & Modus Studios

In Career Spotlight, we interview women professionals in the gaming industry who have forged careers in gaming outside of Streaming or Competing in order to show the many ways one can have a career within this industry.

This week, we feature Christina Seelye, Founder and CEO of Maximum Games, a top-20 video games publisher, Modus, its indie video game publishing label, and Modus Studios, a full development studio. Christina shared with us her thoughts on bringing different perspectives to game development, her companies’ six core values, the importance of representation of women in gaming, and more.

Christina Seelye, CEO of Maximum Games and Modus Games

Thank you so much for sharing your experience and perspective with us. You’ve had a lot of career successes before you founded Maximum Games in 2009. What inspired you to found a game publishing company?

In my previous roles, I had a lot of experience with retailer relations and consumer products: how people interact with technology as it changes, and positioning tech products in the marketplace. I realized that so much of what we were helping to facilitate at those other companies, we could do ourselves…and what we didn’t know, we would just have to learn.

The video game industry is such a unique one—it’s set apart in that we can try to provide something for the gamer in everyone. There are so many genres and platforms to play across; it’s all-encompassing. To be able to be on the cutting edge of progressing technology, while in a creative and artistic space for entertainment isn’t something everyone gets to appreciate.

As CEO for Maximum Games and Modus Games, what does a typical week of work look like for you?

I think the better question here would be, ‘What doesn’t it look like?’ (Haha) We’re continuing to grow steadily while adapting as a cross-global team to the changing work environment that has shifted due to COVID this year. I spend a majority of my time in meetings—whether it’s with my executive team, potential and current game development partners, or even just checking in with members of the team to see how they can best be supported in this remote work structure. I have had a number of recent speaking engagements and am always trying to find ways to improve and evolve our business through webinars and talks.

As someone whose career in gaming focuses on sourcing and creating new games, how do you think about characters and content within the games themselves? Have female characters been a focus?

We have several ways that we source new content and review potential games. We have a team dedicated to our greenlight process, in which I am directly involved. As a woman on that team, I can bring a different perspective which then impacts what games we sign or develop. Actually, everyone on the team brings their own perspective which is so important to have when making key decisions. Having varied opinions in the room leads to a more impactful and robust evaluation and decision-making process. This is one of the key reasons it is important for women to be active within the business side of making games: so their perspective and opinion can be reflected in what games are brought to market.

We have placed focus on creating female characters. An example that comes to mind is Override 2 coming out of our Modus Studio in Brazil. Sprinkles is a really fun female character in that mech brawler. It’s something we definitely want to give more attention to as more original content comes from our studio.

From a game production standpoint, are there steps we can take to make the gameplay experience better for women in any way? What about within gaming-centric spaces that aren’t necessarily internal to the games, such as Twitch or Discord?

It starts with assumptions and awareness. Female gamers are just like male gamers-- they come to video games for the same reason usually: to escape and have a good time in-game, to be entertained, and often as a way to connect with others, especially during this strange structure we’re all living in right now. Support female Twitch streamers when you can, encourage other female gamers and those in the tech workspace and essentially, don’t act like it’s a rare or odd thing.

What steps did you take in your own career that prepared you for the kind of work you do now as CEO? How did you develop skill sets that you have found valuable?

Learn to fail. Learn to take risks and know that it’s not always going to work out exactly as you anticipate…and grow from there. We have six core values we’ve established through the years that really capture the essence of what it takes to drive forward to success: being scrappy, a creative problem solver, an avid learner, adaptable, and context-seeking, and genuinely caring about your work. These are the founding principles that have unified the team responsible for helping make Maximum Games and now Modus leaders in the industry.

What advice do you have for women who want to pursue careers in the gaming industry?

Go for it. And maybe develop a thick skin. I also like to say, “Be present at the table.” Don’t just show up, but be a part of the conversation.

What do you think leaders who are already in the gaming industry should do to empower women and gender minorities who work professionally in the gaming space?

Lead by example. Someone once said something along the lines of, “You can’t be what you don’t see,” and I essentially take that to mean it’s important for females to be represented in the industry and to support one another. Use your platform (whatever your reach) to remind women not to impose limitations on themselves.

Do you play games personally? If so, what is your favorite?

I absolutely love Township and play daily. I have three sons who play League, so Twitch is always streaming in my house with whatever event is happening at the time. We try to keep up with the top indie titles are of the day, so right now it’s Fall Guys. Recently, it was my youngest son’s birthday and the sweetest daughter of my friend made a Fall Guys cake for him. So we are in-game, even if we are eating cake!