Brighton and Hove's biggest games developer is aiming to double in size over the next 12 months after announcing a major recruitment drive.

Climax Racing, in Western Road, Hove, is looking to grow its team from 70 to 135 after winning a clutch of contracts from Nintendo and Sony.

The company, launched in 2000, is part of the Climax group which has four studios in the UK and one in Los Angeles, each focused on different types of games.

It works for some of the biggest games publishers in the business and is behind the award-winning Motor GP title and the million-selling ATV 3 Off-Road game.

Studio head Tony Beckwith said the number of new titles had fallen in recent years but their increased complexity meant more people were needed to work on them.

He said: "The games industry is going the same way as Hollywood. Less but bigger. The titles we work on now - especially the next generation games - are huge.

"I can see a day when computer games are costing anything between $100 million and $200 million to make, easily."

The company is looking for new premises to accommodate the new recruits who will include programmers, artists, designers and production managers.

Technical director Tom Williams said: "There is quite a good talent pool here, especially with the two universities, but we don't find relocating people a problem. A lot of people want to make the move from London and when they come here and see the offices and how close they are to the sea it's an easy sell."

Recruitment manger Stuart Godfrey said: "With so many vacancies to fill, we're keen to talk to any talented and highly-motivated individual who wants to join our ambitious and progressive venture. As well as getting to work on exciting projects for major publishers, we can offer potential employees an extremely attractive salary package, benefits and a friendly working environment that encourages creativity and innovation."

More information at www.climaxgroup.com/jobs
Wednesday, August 24, 2005