About
Activity
3K followers
-
Kevin Flynn shared thisDiscovery in the games space seems like one of the biggest problems the industry is facing now, and I think with better tagging of games we can get better game recommendations and discovery. So I've been tinkering with my AI GameTagger project - it looks at a game's store page, screenshots and trailer and tags what the game actually is with art style, gameplay mechanics, genre and so on. I wanted to see if Jev (a decision model AI that just selects what it thinks something is versus actually writing a long response) could improve the efficiency. The first version handed Claude everything in one big prompt and asked for the tags. It worked, but I always wondered - was it really looking at the game, or just remembering what it knew about the name? The new version splits the job in two. Claude now only describes what it can see in each screenshot and trailer clip. Then Jev judges each of 189 tags one at a time, using only the evidence allowed to answer it - and it never gets told the game's name. It can also say "not enough evidence" instead of guessing. I ran both on the top 100 games on PC and mobile through the system (Steam most-played + Google Play top-grossing) and then cross checked the results against the tags Steam players vote on: An average of 35 tags per game instead of 17, each one traceable to its evidence Jev found 77% of what players tagged vs 45% for the old prompt (on tags both can describe, they're basically tied - the gain is coverage) Jev said "no" to something players had tagged under 1% of the time, vs about 6% with the old method The biggest surprise was cost. Jev's own judging step is under a third of a cent per game. Nearly everything else is Claude describing images - and in an early 20-game test, moving that to Claude Haiku in half-price batches got the whole thing under 4 cents a game with nearly the same results. I'm hoping to get a system that can accurately tag new games within minutes so we can also understand what tags and genres are becoming popular to keep up with the latest trends. Full results and every tag's definition: https://lnkd.in/gdnpmTF2
-
Kevin Flynn shared thisSince I have a bit of...spare time...I've been working on an AI project that I've always wondered if it was technically feasible. You know all those casual mobile games with ads every 60 seconds? What if instead of every 60 seconds, it was every 5 minutes? The game will make 80% less money, but if it's created by one or two people vs a massive studio, what's the difference? So I built a few agents that analyze these games, break down what makes them work, and even suggest features that may improve the original game based on the latest trends. I then hand the plan (with my own tweaks) over to a squad of agents who operate in a loop - they all check each other's work and will suggest improvements to each other. This first screenshot is from Sunday. The second screenshot is from last night - so about 24 hours of difference. And without me knowing anything about how to actually make games (besides what makes them appeal to players). Not quite ready for production, but getting close!
-
Kevin Flynn shared thisHow do you get laid off on your day off?! After nearly 2 years at XBOX, I was very sad to learn I was impacted by the layoffs today. (My LinkedIn can't catch a break this year - first hackers wiped my job history, now this. At least this time there's severance.) I greatly enjoyed my role of being thrown at random problems to solve - everything from getting our PM AI adoption from 12% to 91% in 3 months by building a PM specific AI harness, working on mobile strategy, building a custom AI agent to fix xbox.com's broken SEO schema, finally updating XBOX's genres that were last updated in 2003 (in testing now and hopefully coming soon), and building a proof-of-concept custom game tagging system that was able to analyze a game's screenshots and trailers with 98% accuracy to better categorize games to help players find similar titles or mechanics they are interested in (check it out: https://lnkd.in/gUxmTRzv). I also just realized in my 15 years in gaming, I've never taken more than 10 days in a row off. So my first goal is to spend some time with my daughter and decide what I want to do moving forward. My DMs are always open if anyone wants to catch up! To my colleagues impacted for the first time by a layoff - things will work out. I've been here before and probably will be again at some point in the future. Don't take it personally - I had just received the best performance review of my career a few weeks before this. In mass layoffs, the decisions are typically completely outside your control and are a function of what org you were in, not how you performed. Again, if anyone needs to chat, my DMs are open!
-
Kevin Flynn posted thisExtraordinarily annoying - my LinkedIn was hacked (partially because I never bothered to turn on 2FA) and they deleted 15 years of my job history, recommendations, and skills just to repost two lame real estate posts. I would at least have appreciated it if they caused me all this trouble for something truly nefarious. Apologies if anyone got any weird(er than normal) messages from me!
-
Kevin Flynn shared thisVery exciting opportunity to work with a great team!Kevin Flynn shared thisI'm recruiting for a very cool new role on my team here at Microsoft! The role is CTO for our new "Gaming Vertical" team, to help us build and deliver the best possible cloud platform for game developers. This is a role with the potential for broad impact across the game industry -- perfect for someone who's built a lot of experience working deeply in a single game studio, and is now interested in working broadly across many studios! https://lnkd.in/gK-yQGN
-
Kevin Flynn liked thisKevin Flynn liked thisWhat a week for our team! So great to finally be able to share the news about the evolution of our product portfolio!! A few of our big announcements from Wednesday’s Meta Connect… • Brand New Ray-Ban Meta Audio: our lightest, CAMERA-FREE AI glasses yet, starting at just 43 grams • Ray-Ban Meta Gen 3: slimmer, longer battery life, and the Aviator joins the lineup for our 90th anniversary year • Muse, Meta's new personal AI agent, is coming to our AI glasses and will make them even more useful than most of us could have ever imagined • Expansion into 10 new markets, with Meta Ray-Ban Display launching in the UK, Canada and Europe There are a ton of hard-working and passionate people behind these achievements- and we continue to change the game every day through our partnership with Meta. Congratulations to all my colleagues around the world! #EssilorLuxottica #RayBanMeta #MetaConnect
-
Kevin Flynn liked thisKevin Flynn liked thisCome work at the intersection of Gaming x AI — and help bring new tools and experiences to life ����😊🤟 https://lnkd.in/gVZNWehGSenior Program Manager, Gen AI - Games | USA - Remote | NetflixSenior Program Manager, Gen AI - Games | USA - Remote | Netflix
-
Kevin Flynn liked thisKevin Flynn liked thisOur product and marketing team has done a fantastic job executing the new Monopoly GO Spooky Season. Go check it out! Thank you to the Netflix and Sony Pictures Entertainment teams for a great collaboration. Gabe ChuaJamie BergerClaire WangParker DeanPaavan AvadhanulaRyan RidenhourColin MillerJoe Zanetti Scopely https://lnkd.in/eg8j5QsdMONOPOLY GO!'s KPop Demon Hunters and Ghostbusters takeover | ScopelyMONOPOLY GO!'s KPop Demon Hunters and Ghostbusters takeover | Scopely
-
Kevin Flynn reacted on thisKevin Flynn reacted on thisTrigger warning: death by suicide, suicidal thoughts With the news of another round of Xbox layoffs, I'm reminded of my colleague who was laid off the same round as me in 2025, who died by suicide a few months later. So with my colleague in mind, I want to (re)iterate: You are not your job (as much as America believes you to be). Microsoft alone has laid off nearly 17k since 2024. You have support (even if after a few months LinkedIn has moved on and it *appears* your former coworkers have). If you do start having thoughts of suicide, it's normal, it's ok, and there's help. It's hard to reach out, trust me I know. Please talk to someone. To me, to a former colleague, a friend, family member, or a lifeline. https://988lifeline.org/
-
Kevin Flynn reacted on thisKevin Flynn reacted on thisSad to see another group of very talented people in Xbox let go. I learned so much working with people from these fantastic studios over the years. Please reach out to me if you think I can help. Also - our company is hiring. Happy to help folks connect or learn more about startup life. https://lnkd.in/gjSaKhuN
Experience & Education
Patents
-
System and Method for Determining Monetization Efficiency for Mobile Applications from Publicly Available Information
US 13/883949
A system for estimating how efficiently a mobile app or game monetizes, using only publicly available information rather than the developer's private data. US patent application filed in 2013.
Projects
-
GameTagger: AI Visual Game Tagger
-
An AI system that "watches" a game (its store page, screenshots and trailer frames) and tags what the game actually is: genre, art style, gameplay mechanics and more. Built to improve game discovery and recommendations.
Claude describes only what it can see in each image and clip. A decision model then judges each of 189 tags one at a time, using only the evidence allowed for that tag, without ever being told the game's name, and can answer "not enough evidence" instead of…An AI system that "watches" a game (its store page, screenshots and trailer frames) and tags what the game actually is: genre, art style, gameplay mechanics and more. Built to improve game discovery and recommendations.
Claude describes only what it can see in each image and clip. A decision model then judges each of 189 tags one at a time, using only the evidence allowed for that tag, without ever being told the game's name, and can answer "not enough evidence" instead of guessing.
On the top 100 PC and mobile games (Steam most-played and Google Play top-grossing), checked against the tags Steam players vote on:
- 35 tags per game on average vs 17 for a single-prompt approach, each traceable to its evidence
- Found 77% of player-voted tags vs 45%
- Contradicted a player tag under 1% of the time vs about 6%
- An early test brought the cost under 4 cents per game
Solo project, live at genometagger.vercel.app -
Streamer-Genre Intelligence Dashboard
-
A creator-intelligence platform that maps mid-tier streamers (about 500 to 5,000 concurrent viewers) across Twitch, Kick and YouTube to genre and title signals, so game launch teams can target creator outreach for first- and third-party launches.
Built hands-on: platform APIs, data pipelines, a subscriber-based viewer estimator, and genre mapping to a custom game taxonomy. -
Xbox Mobile Store
-
Cross-divisional strategy and platform for an Xbox mobile app store, aligned across 7+ Microsoft organizations. I authored the canonical product specs, back-end platform systems, and regulatory and risk product strategy that first- and third-party studios use to reach players.
- Delivered a fully functional store prototype in 9 months, with a player social graph, friend presence, player-to-player messaging, and reward-based game invitations that turn social activity into viral…Cross-divisional strategy and platform for an Xbox mobile app store, aligned across 7+ Microsoft organizations. I authored the canonical product specs, back-end platform systems, and regulatory and risk product strategy that first- and third-party studios use to reach players.
- Delivered a fully functional store prototype in 9 months, with a player social graph, friend presence, player-to-player messaging, and reward-based game invitations that turn social activity into viral acquisition
- Recruited the third-party launch catalog: pitched 20 of the largest mobile gaming companies and secured commitments from 40+ Top Grossing titles for the pilot
- Took part in platform distribution and partnership negotiations with Discord, Samsung and T-Mobile
- Built a quality threshold on engagement and retention metrics that removed about 95% of "AI slop" titles within two days
Honors & Awards
-
Speaker, Google Playtime (2023 and 2024)
Google Play
Spoke at Google Playtime, Google Play's annual event for game and app developers, in 2023 and 2024 on what separates hit mobile game launches from the rest. The 2024 talk, "Deconstructing successful Google Play game launches," was filmed at Playtime EMEA in Milan and is on the Android Developers YouTube channel.
-
Speaker, Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2018 Mobile Summit
Game Developers Conference (GDC)
Co-presented "Mobile Game Launch Best Practices: From Soft Launch to Working with the Platforms" with Lucas Gonzalez (Zeptolab) at the GDC 2018 Mobile Summit. The session covered how to launch a mobile game worldwide: soft launches, launch timing, platform submission, and working with Apple and Google. Free to watch on GDC Vault.
-
#1 in Xbox PM Org for "Redesigning Workflows with AI"
Microsoft (Xbox)
Ranked #1 in the Xbox PM organization on the "redesigning workflows with AI" signal, after building the Xbox Consumer PM AI Harness (20+ production AI skills and agents) and taking PM AI adoption from 12% to 92% in five months.
Recommendations received
8 people have recommended Kevin
Join now to viewOther similar profiles
Explore more posts
-
Jose Ha
There are moments when you realize what you are building is no longer “just a game.” Seeing Lies of P: Overture reinterpreted by the National Gugak Center was one of those moments for me. Game music carries emotion. But when traditional Korean instruments reinterpret gothic horror, and when OSTs enter a national cultural institution’s stage, something shifts. I translate this as a cultural dialogue. This even tells us a few things: Our IP is traveling. Beyond platforms. Beyond regions. Beyond formats. What began as a Soulslike experience is now being translated into traditional sound, Gayageum, Daegeum, Korean vocal tradition meeting orchestral darkness halfway. This means games are no longer “inspired by culture.” They are becoming part of culture. As a builder of global publishing ecosystems, this is a reminder: We are not shipping products. We are nurturing worlds. When national institutions embrace your soundtrack, it means the story has grown roots. From Krat’s shadows to a gugak stage in Seoul. We’re still early in the journey. But moments like this make you pause and realize the path is widening. Opportunities. #LiesOfP #ROUND8 #OST #GameMusic #CulturalExpansion #IPJourney #NarrativeDriven #GlobalPublishing #KoreanGames #WeAreNEOWIZ NEOWIZ
1 Comment -
Kenn White
If you've been laid off recently, read this post. As odd as it sounds, you only get one real chance to after you've been laid off to really maximize your network here to help you. If you've been laid off, that first post or two is not the time to be loquacious, vague, or passive. it's going to be one of the most valuable posts from an eyeballs perspective you're going to make. It's one of the best posts you can make to gain traction and potential action. It's ok to make that venting, emotional, or even gratitude post - just don't mix it up with the one you need to make asking your network to help you find work. For THAT post, you need to do the following (thanks Daniel Space for these): 1. Optimize your headline first! (Job Family and Title, Industries, Specialties) 2. Indicate that you are open to work and looking for a new role 3. Indicate the specific title/role you are looking for 4. Mention your qualifications, like years of experience and in what industries 5. Share your biggest skills 6. Ask your network to share/forward/tag to any potential hiring managers or recruiters. Be VERY clear for this. Start right off with the ask, THEN get into more details. For example: "I was impacted by the Amazon layoffs and am asking your help finding a role as a new Narrative Director in AAA games. I've worked more than 12 years in design and narrative with credits in 8 shipped AAA games, most of which were in a leadership role. While I focus in narrative, I'm actually a full-stack designer capable of level design, content, and even systems work. If you have any leads, I'd love to talk with you. Even if you don't, but would like to help me in some way, please repost this to your own network with a short blurb of what it was like working with me! Thanks!" See how that reads? It's a lot better than the typical "I was recently impacted by the ....I'd like to thank everyone at ...I really appreciated my time at..." post. Get INTO this right away, get it out there asap, THEN go back to working through everything else you need to work through. Good luck! #WeGotYou #GameIndustry #layoffs #Amazon #AGS #Luna
8 Comments -
Blake Johnson
Impacted in the best way possible. To truly reach our true creative potential, we must get rid of the shit that killed it. That means Microsoft 😉 You won’t have any trouble finding a new job in the game industry…because there isn’t going to be a game industry anymore. It’ll just be what it was always meant to be: Connection and Bliss
Explore top content on LinkedIn
Find curated posts and insights for relevant topics all in one place.
View top content