Holy Carp! FuturLab Celebrates Team Talent and PowerWash Simulator 2 with Fin-tastic Party

06-01-2026

At the end of every year, the FuturLab team meets up for a social that brings together our 100+ employees from across the UK to one location to celebrate the hard work of the year. This year was extra special as we also celebrated the launch of PowerWash Simulator 2! 

At the end of 2025, we gathered at the Sea Life Centre in Brighton for an incredible night filled with seeing the amazing animals, a three-course meal, magician entertainment and a silent disco - it was definitely a night to remember! As a remote studio, we cherish the times we all come together and this party really had something for everyone.  

Hayley Blundy organised the event and knows how to put on a party that everyone at FuturLab will enjoy. All activities are opt-in, meaning people can enjoy the get-together in whatever way that suits them. She said: 

“When I was asked to create an event that would combine a game launch, award ceremony AND the annual end of year get together, I knew immediately that I wanted it to feel magical, ethereal, calm and not a total sensory overload! This event was to celebrate the teams’ hard work, their dedication and resilience. As anyone in this industry knows, the run up to a game launch is particularly testing and I am incredibly proud of how everyone pulled together to get PowerWash Simulator 2 over the line!”

We also had our third annual Golden Gnome Awards. These are our very own company awards, where we all nominate one another across different categories to spread the love and acknowledge the amazing people we’re all fortunate to work alongside. Taking place at the top of the large tank at the aquarium, we handed out awards with the company of turtles, sharks and fish. 

Categories covered everything from Culture Champion to Wildcard to Team Player! It’s a warm and fuzzy way to end the year and look back on everything we’ve all achieved and the talent we have here at FuturLab. 

The awards are organised each year by our Associate Internal Communications Manager, Laura, and on the Golden Gnomes she said:  

“Organising these awards are a highlight of my year and a great way to reflect on how amazing our team is. My favourite part is probably the surprised reactions of people when they are shortlisted or win! The admiration people express towards one another in their nominations is lovely to see, so finally being able to share that with an unknowing team member is so wholesome! I also love our 3D printed Golden Gnome trophies. This year we updated them to the PowerWash Simulator 2 gnome and they’re weighted and have an engraved plaque so they feel nice and official!”

This year’s Golden Gnome Awards winners were:

  • Slack Superstar: Jesse Payne, Producer
  • Rising Star Award: Nick Atherton, Lead Artist 

  • Resilience Award: Ang Tyler, Senior Producer 

  • Marvellous Mentor: Rebecca Sweetmore, Head of Marketing and Communications 

  • Creativity Award: Laura Fontaine, Senior Artist 

  • Development Award: Sean Ferretti, Junior 3D Artist 

  • Team Player Award: Ben Farr, Lead Server Developer 

  • Culture Champion Award: Hayley Blundy, Studio Wellbeing Manager 

  • Unsung Hero Award: Paul Cosme, QA Tester 

  • Wildcard Award: Sarah Wilson, Publishing Producer 

  • Pet Pic Perfection: Carla Wellings, Senior Project Manager 

As well as amazing parties like Aquaria, our team also deserved a rest after such a busy 2025 and yesterday we all returned to office after a two week studio closure over the holidays. We’re recharged and excited to bring our players lots of new and exciting things in 2026!  

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