Victoria Trofimova is the CEO of Nordcurrent, a video game development company celebrating 22 years in the business that’s based in Vilnius, Lithuania.
Victoria established the company in 2002 alongside her husband, Michail, and his brother. Their inaugural project was “Santa Claus Saves the Earth,” developed during their university years and published on PlayStation and Game Boy Advance.
Under Victoria’s leadership, Nordcurrent has transitioned from a developer-for-hire to a developer and publisher of its own games. The company has achieved significant milestones, including the release of “101-in-1 Games” in 2009, which garnered one million downloads within two weeks. The studio’s biggest hit so far is Cooking Fever – a time-management game where players can cook meals and desserts from all over the world. The game has almost 500 million downloads and 15 million monthly active users.
The company has development studios in Vilnius, Dnipro, Warsaw, Gothenburg, and is a growing team of 360+ colleagues.
On this special International Women’s Day, we interviewed Victoria Trofimova about Nordcurrent’s successful longevity, the role of women in the games industry, and the company’s future plans.
The gaming industry is known for its volatility, with frequent layoffs and market fluctuations. What key strategies have helped Nordcurrent maintain stability and long-term success?
Nordcurrent’s stability and success come down to two key factors: our incredibly strong and loyal team and our adaptability to the ever-changing gaming landscape.
We’ve built a company culture where talented people stay with us for years, bringing consistency, deep expertise, and a shared vision that helps us navigate industry shifts. Having a strong team means we can move quickly, embrace change, and continuously refine our strategies to stay ahead.
Early on, we took a major risk by transitioning from a developer-for-hire to a full-fledged publisher, allowing us to take control of our creative and business decisions. We also recognized the shift toward digital distribution early, which helped us reach a global audience effectively.
We prioritize sustainable growth, ensuring that our business decisions are data-driven but also focused on long-term creative excellence. By staying financially independent and maintaining a flexible approach to development, we’ve built a strong foundation that allows us to remain stable even in an unpredictable industry.
What’s the biggest risk you’ve taken with Nordcurrent that paid off, and looking back, is there anything you would have done differently in scaling the studio?
Shifting from developing games for other publishers to creating and publishing our own was a significant risk. This move allowed us to have creative control and build direct relationships with our players.
While this transition was challenging, it was also instrumental in our growth. In hindsight, while our organic growth has been steady, exploring strategic partnerships earlier might have accelerated our expansion.
As a CEO in the gaming industry, what were the biggest challenges you faced, and how have perceptions of female leadership evolved over the years?
The most challenging and crucial times I would date back to the very inception of Nordcurrent. Establishing a new company in a tech-driven industry and navigating the ecosystem demanded a certain persistence to maintain forward momentum.
Yet once things were in motion, I realized the obstacles weren’t fundamentally different from what others encounter.
I do have to say that I’ve been fortunate in connecting with exceptionally supportive and encouraging partners. Whether by chance or design, I’m deeply appreciative of this. I believe women can sidestep many challenges by taking more time in their search and being highly selective about their collaborators. Many of us feel limited in our options, but I hope my journey demonstrates alternatives exist.
Regarding our industry specifically, the greatest challenge lies in its perpetual evolution. This is not an industry in which you can afford to fall asleep. From technological advancements and platform changes to shifting consumer preferences, you can’t just adapt to the times, you need real-time adaptation.
Maintaining relevance remains the primary hurdle, but this applies universally and regardless of gender. However, I believe the best way to get there and thrive is by including a variety of people with different backgrounds, perspectives, and capabilities into your teams.
The gaming industry remains male-dominated, especially in leadership and technical roles. What steps has Nordcurrent taken to attract and retain female talent?
At Nordcurrent, we focus on fostering an inclusive environment where talent, creativity, and expertise matter more than gender. We actively seek diverse candidates during recruitment and ensure that women are represented across various roles, including leadership and game development. We believe in providing real opportunities for growth, ensuring that women are given the same chances to take on leadership roles, drive projects, and contribute at the highest levels.
Additionally, we are mindful of work-life balance and flexibility, which are crucial for retaining talent in any industry. By creating a workplace culture that values contribution and creativity over outdated industry norms, we’ve been able to attract and retain skilled women who are helping shape the future of Nordcurrent and the gaming industry as a whole.
Nordcurrent has multiple studios across different countries. Have you noticed any regional differences in how women enter and advance in the gaming industry?
Even though we have studios in different countries in Europe, at our offices we don’t see any major differences.
Of course, this may be by design. We have women in all roles at Nordcurrent. What I do notice is that we have many more women entering the industry now than in the previous ten to twenty years.
And they are not confined only to the roles that might have been the old stereotype, like administration or accounting. We have more and more females in all positions, including programming, quality assurance, support design and also in leadership.
Image Credit: Nordcurrent
Many young women might be interested in gaming but are hesitant to enter a male-dominated industry. What advice would you give them?
Chase what you love with confidence. The industry’s changing, and different voices are increasingly getting their due. Find people who can show you the ropes, keep sharpening your skills, and know that how you see things matters. Gaming will benefit from your fresh ideas and creativity. We are looking for excellence, which means we also need diversity. That’s the bottom line.
What are some common misconceptions about diversity in game development, and how do you address them at Nordcurrent?
A prevalent misconception is that diversity compromises quality or leads to tokenism. On the contrary, diversity enriches creativity and leads to more innovative solutions. At Nordcurrent we embrace diverse backgrounds and experiences.
From what we’ve seen, this diversity of ideas and ways of thinking propels us forward and helps to foster a collaborative environment. That’s been instrumental to our success.
Image Credit: Nordcurrent
The gaming industry is evolving rapidly, with AI, cloud gaming, and new monetization models emerging. What trends excite you the most, and which ones concern you?
AI opens up some great opportunities for tailoring gaming experiences and streamlining how we develop.
Cloud gaming is knocking down hardware limitations and getting games into more hands.
That said, as these technologies evolve, along with our monetization approaches, we need to strike the right balance between business needs and treating players right. Bottom line, keeping gamers happy has to be our top priority.
What’s next for Nordcurrent? Are there any new areas or platforms you’re looking to explore?
We’re always playing with fresh game ideas and pushing into new platforms. Acquiring River End Games shows we’re serious about moving beyond just mobile. We want to break into different types of games and platforms to give our players more variety. It’s about expanding our horizons.
Victoria Trofimova
CEO of Nordcurrent
