At the age of 30, Ear Uy is Cambodia’s first game developer. His ASVA the Monkey puzzle game for iPhone – in which players help cartoon monkey Asva find his way home through a series of mysterious worlds – has found its way into thousands of Cambodia phones.

But prior to creating ASVA, Uy had little experience developing apps or games. He graduated from the National University of Management in 2003 and then pursued a master’s degree in international business at Pananasstra University.

After graduating, he tried his hand at numerous business ventures. All proved unsuccessful, he says, because none made use of his true passion: computer games.

He and his partners have now successfully created Santa Game and Good Man Quiz, in addition to ASVA, all available for iPhone, iPad and some androids.

Uy says he spent about six months creating ASVA, his most popular app yet, and is hopeful about the future of gaming in Cambodia.

“Since creating games is new for us, all constructive criticism is welcome,” he said, adding that he is currently working on producing several new games.