4A Games Malta

How the architects of Metro’s wilderness are handling life in the Mediterranean

- Edwin Evans-Thirlwell

Rising out of the ocean between Sicily and North Africa, the island chain of Malta has seen generations of settlers, traders and invaders come and go, its architecture a confusion of styles from across two continents. Take a stroll along the beaches of Sliema, one of its oldest towns, and you’ll spy open-air Roman baths spread out near fortifications constructed by the French Knights of St John, shadowed by blocks of holiday apartments. Inland, you’ll find terraces and art-nouveau houses erected during the island’s spell as a British colony. You may also stumble upon the headquarters of 4A Games, the latest addition to Malta’s cultural mosaic, which relocated to Sliema in 2014 following a revolution in the developer’s native Ukraine.

Much of the revolution – which led to a full-blown civil war in Ukraine’s easternmost provinces – unfolded just down the road from 4A’s original premises in Kiev; according to Deep Silver global brand manager Huw Beynon, team members would take part in anti-government protests after work, before the bullets began to fly. 4A’s California-born CEO Dean Sharpe insists, however, that the decision to move, in itself, had nothing to do with avoiding the violence. “Certainly, that may have affected the timing, but it was always part of the plan. Just in general, try moving a company some time! You’re talking about families, kids, school, trying to find apartments for people, visas, residency permits – it’s a really complicated process. So it wasn’t like, ‘Hey, war broke out. Let’s bail.‘”