Hi, I'm

Liam Faulkner

Technical Lead · Game Developer

Principal game developer with 10 years in web development, focused on technical direction, architecture and helping teams deliver.

View my work Get in touch

About

I'm a Principal Game Developer at tombola, where I supervise game projects and set the technical direction for our codebases. My role is about making sure projects stay on track and that the systems we build are ones the whole team can build on with confidence. Alongside the role, I'm currently studying for a Level 6 Degree Apprenticeship in AI Product Engineering with Multiverse.

Over eight years at tombola I've moved from building games to shaping how they're built. I created a shared codebase that all of our game projects are built on, cutting new game setup from days to minutes, easing shared updates and reducing bugs found during QA phases. I've also designed onboarding for new developers, mentored apprentices and junior engineers, and helped improve the process of porting games to international regions.

I'm now looking to step further into technical leadership: helping to plan and run projects, set technical direction and guide teams to deliver.

Skills

Languages

  • TypeScript
  • JavaScript
  • HTML
  • CSS
  • C#
  • GDScript
  • C++
  • HLSL
  • Java
  • SQL
  • PHP

Frameworks & Libraries

  • PixiJS
  • GSAP
  • Node.js
  • Vue
  • Godot
  • Webpack
  • Lerna
  • .NET
  • DirectX
  • jQuery

Tools

  • VS Code
  • Git
  • GitHub
  • GitHub Copilot
  • Chrome DevTools
  • Spector.js
  • Spine
  • TexturePacker
  • TeamCity
  • Jest

Projects

tombola Games

2018 – 2026

A selection of the games I've built at tombola, from my latest releases to the earliest, showing how the quality has grown over time. Traveling Wilds is my personal favourite.

  • TypeScript
  • PixiJS
  • GSAP
  • Spine
Code brackets icon

Updating Products for B2B Operations

2026

Helped lay the foundations for tombola to supply its products to third-party operators, working with internal and external teams to define code contracts and seeing projects through to delivery.

  • TypeScript
  • PixiJS
  • Vue
  • Webpack
  • Lerna

Godot Projects

2026

A collection of games built while working through a Godot-focused course, to gain a solid understanding of the engine and how to develop games within it.

  • Godot
  • GDScript
Code brackets icon

Arcade Base

2020

A shared codebase for all tombola games to be built from, unifying features across projects to speed up development, reduce bugs and ease ongoing maintenance and updates.

  • TypeScript
  • PixiJS
  • Vue
  • Webpack
  • Lerna

Final Fantasy TCG – Digital Edition

2020 – Present

An unfinished personal project recreating the physical Final Fantasy Trading Card Game in digital form, with PixiJS handling the rendering and Socket.IO powering online play.

  • TypeScript
  • PixiJS
  • Socket.IO

Auxillis Group Websites

2016 – 2018

A suite of marketing sites for Auxillis and its group companies, built to provided designs, with a basic CMS so the marketing team could manage their own content.

  • C#
  • .NET
  • JavaScript
  • HTML
  • CSS
DirectX 9 logo

SteamBlimp & DirectX 9 Framework

2010 – 2011

A personal game framework built from scratch in C++ on low-level DirectX 9, writing all of my own systems to gain a deeper understanding of core rendering technology. I used it to work towards creating a 2D bullet hell game called Steam Blimp.

  • C++
  • DirectX 9

Experience

  1. Principal Game Developer · tombola

    Apr 2024 – Present

    Full-time · Hybrid · Sunderland

    • Supervising game projects in a managerial role, ensuring projects stay on target and supervising a team of developers.
    • Working with various internal teams and external operators to setup tombola as a providor of games to other operators a huge change from only delivering internal tombola products.
    • Managing the code bases in an architectural role, governing how systems should be built for others to follow.

  2. Senior Game Developer · tombola

    Aug 2021 – Apr 2024

    Full-time · Hybrid · Sunderland

    • Developed an onboarding experience for new team members.
    • Mentoring apprentices and junior developers.
    • Helped improve processes for porting games to international regions.
    • Pioneering workflow improvements.

  3. Game Developer · tombola

    Aug 2018 – Aug 2021

    Full-time · In office · Sunderland

    • Developed an underlying code base for all game projects to share, speeding up new game development times.
    • Participated in setting up Code Club - an initiative designed to help others get into coding through developing their own simple web games.
    • Developed Cart Chaos - A facebook game developed in collaboration with the social teams.
    • Building games from designs, collaborating with media teams for animation and audio.
    • Collaborating with a team of developers to produce quality game products.

  4. Web Developer · Auxillis

    Aug 2016 – Aug 2018

    Full-time · In office · Peterlee

    • Built various sites to provided designs.
    • Built a basic CMS for the marketing team to manage the content of the sites where needed.
    • Working as the lone web developer of the marketing team.
    • Collaborating with the infrastructure teams to build the marketing sites within their defined systems.

Education

  1. Level 6 Degree Apprenticeship, AI Product Engineering

    Jun 2026 – Present

    Multiverse

  2. Computer Games Programming BSc (Hons)

    2005 – 2009

    The University of Huddersfield

  3. Dukeries College

    1997 – 2005

Contact

I'm always happy to chat about new opportunities or interesting projects.