We interview our new CRYENGINE Community Coordinator, Lena Blömeke, who reveals her excitement for working with our community and passion for games.

Today we're delighted to introduce Lena, who has recently started with us to drive forward our work and engagement with all aspects of community. You'll come to know them as Cry-Dark on our channels, so please do give them a warm welcome. Read on to learn about her passion for games, outlook on community management, and excitement to serve what we believe is one of the most unique, friendly, and awesome communities in games. 

Hey Lena! Welcome and thanks for joining us. Can you tell us a bit about your background?

Hey there! I'm Lena, or Cry-Dark, from the lovely city of Stuttgart, located in the bottom left of Germany! 

My journey to Crytek, and this role, started when I originally joined the moderation team of a major Discord server almost three years ago.

I then started studying games programming, only to realize that I would rather continue on the path I had already started on – community management. My long history as a moderator on various platforms really made me want to work in this area. I realized early on that I had a passion for it and started to amass as much experience as possible, hoping that a position like this one would open up at the right time. Crytek is obviously a big name in games, and Crysis 3 was released right after I started to get into PC gaming. Admittedly I might have been a bit too young to play it at the time, but I found a way! [Editor Note – We officially do not approve.] When I saw that the Community Team here was looking for exactly what I wanted to be, I immediately jumped at the opportunity. 

What's your approach to community management? 

Right now, I am mainly focused on getting to know the rest of the team and the workflow. As soon as that's all done, I can't wait to get to know all of you in the community! I really want to keep an open dialogue with everyone. It's important to take on as much feedback as possible from you, just as it's important for us to keep you all in the loop. And if someday we can meet at a convention like Gamescom or Devcom again, I want everyone to feel comfortable meeting so they can share their thoughts and ideas freely. 

Have you got any tips for anyone aspiring to work in community management? 

Never stop being yourself. In a community role, you need to relate and get along well with your community while also being a clear authority in the area. In my experience, this is easiest to achieve if people see you for what you truly are. And that's a person with just as many layers as them, not just some robot. And you're welcome to get in touch about all things CRYENGINE and gaming, but also, I'm always on the hunt for any hidden gem indie games, cool streams, or great Netflix shows, so drop me (Cry-Dark) a line on Discord! 

What are you playing at the moment? 

I've been playing Final Fantasy XIV for two years now and love every minute of it. I'd say it made me understand myself better than most other games. That being said, Portal 2 will always hold a special place in my heart as it was the first real PC game I played in both single-player and co-op. I hope someday we get to experience Portal 3!

Cheers, Lena!

You can say hi to Cry-Dark and pick up tips and tricks about our engine, ask questions, and more by joining our community and the CRYENGINE development team over on our official CRYENGINE Discord channel.  And as ever, if you have feedback and thoughts about the engine, you can also let us know in the comments, on the forum, or via Facebook and Twitter.

If you find a bug in the engine, please report it directly on GitHub, which helps us process the issue quickly and efficiently. Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel, where we host a range of content, including tutorials covering all aspects of the engine and game design. Want to show your love for CRYENGINE? Pick up merch over on the official online Crytek Store. 

Are you looking for your next career move? At Crytek, we value diversity. We actively encourage people from all backgrounds and experience levels to apply to our open positions, so join us over at LinkedIn and check out our careers page.