David Kazi

Last updated

David Kazi
Born
Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Education University of Adelaide
Occupation(s) Game designer
business consultant
Notable work
TitleCo-founder of Ember League

David Kazi is an Australian game designer and business consultant who co-founded the indie game studio Ember League, which is developing Bit Awakening. He previously worked on Hollow Knight (2017) and Exo One (2021), being a full-time Team Cherry employee while working on the former.

Contents

Early life and education

David Kazi was born in Adelaide, South Australia. [1] He received a Bachelor of Computer Science at the University of Adelaide, and a Diploma of Project Management. [2]

Career

Before entering the games industry, Kazi worked at a locally owned Australian internet company, initially in a call center and later in web development, managing the company’s website and building backend systems. [1] He also did freelance graphic design and logo work as a side-gig. [1] Around 2009, he began experimenting with the Unity game engine, which led him to pursue game development. [1]

In 2014, Kazi was employed by Team Cherry, [3] acting as the technical director for their game Hollow Knight. [4] He helped move Hollow Knight over to Unity, as it was then-using the Stencyl engine. [1] In 2018, he left the company after landing a "cushy corporate gig". [5] He later worked on Exo One (2021), helping creator Jay Wetson with programming. [6] [7] In 2023, [8] founded the indie game studio Ember League, [9] alongside Alan Evans, who he met during his full-time job as a business consultant. [1] Kazi is currently the owner of the studio, [4] [10] and the Creative Director. [9] He is working on the studio's debut game, Bit Awakening, [11] which started development in 2023. [1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Quest Markers Podcast (28 July 2025). A Game Dev Chat with David Kazi (Hollow Knight, Exo One, Ember League) . Retrieved 5 December 2025– via YouTube.
  2. ↑ "David Kazi" (PDF). Fragile to Agile. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  3. ↑ Milner, David (18 October 2018). "The Making Of Hollow Knight". Game Informer . Retrieved 4 March 2020.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. 1 2 Serin, Kaan (7 September 2025). "OG Hollow Knight technical director says Team Cherry remain silent because their "work ethic is off the charts" and they're probably "over at the office working" right now". GamesRadar+ . Archived from the original on 16 September 2025. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  5. ↑ Team Cherry (17 July 2018). "GODMASTER RELEASE DATE ANNOUNCED!". Team Cherry. Archived from the original on 31 August 2025. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  6. ↑ Valentine, Rebekah (18 December 2021). "Exo One Blends Journey‑like Gameplay With a Beautiful, Galactic, Sci‑Fi Tragedy". IGN . Archived from the original on 24 October 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  7. ↑ Nunneley, Stephany (27 March 2021). "Exo One is an indie game which takes you on an interplanetary journey through space and time". VG247 . Archived from the original on 21 May 2024. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
  8. ↑ "Ember League". LinkedIn . Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  9. 1 2 "Program - SAGE". South Australian Game Exhibition. Archived from the original on 6 September 2025. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  10. ↑ Ryan, Jackson (3 September 2025). "The Long Wait for Hollow Knight: Silksong Is Almost Over". The New York Times . Archived from the original on 3 September 2025. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
  11. ↑ Smith, Leah (6 September 2025). "Adelaide studio Team Cherry break internet with Hollow Knight Silksong release". Adelaide Now . Archived from the original on 6 September 2025. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
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