My journey into game programming did not happen overnight; though I had been programming in C++ since my days in AP Computer Science and had an entrenched gaming and PC modding hobby, game programming seemed like a far-fetched idea. I had designed some levels in Duke Nukem 3D and Half-Life, and had even made a text based RPG based on the movie Fight Club, and although I enjoyed programming, I felt more at home designing and programming websites.

I started my undergraduate degree as a Computer Engineering major at Clemson University, and although I found the coursework interesting and challenging, I felt it wasn’t exactly right, as I had a certain zeal for imagination that was completely foreign in the domain of circuits and voltages. That all changed one Christmas when I received an unexpected muse in the form of a companion art book to Half-Life 2. Raising the Bar is a concept art/commentary book perfectly suited to be placed on any gamer’s coffee table, and at a glance it is exactly that, but to me it was a revelation. Never before had I seen the amount of creativity and ingenuity poured into crafting a jaw dropping and exceptional interactive experience. I was immediately enthralled and highly motivated to pursue game programming, not as a recreational hobby, but as a career. I changed majors. I loaded up on any course that would broaden my knowledge of game programming, even if it meant me getting in a bit over my head. I ignored several Professors, who warned me that game programming was not only exceptionally difficult, but that working long hours towards impossible deadlines was the norm. I was undeterred.

After graduating with an Undergraduate Degree in Computer Science, I decided to relocate to Dallas, TX to attend The Guildhall, a new program offered by Southern Methodist University specifically for those eager to enter the industry. To say it was perhaps the most difficult and grueling experience of my life is a bit of an understatement, as today I have not the slightest idea of how I managed to survive what amounted to an 18 Month, 7 day a week crunch. But I managed to finish, despite life throwing all kinds of obstacles in my way.

After graduation, I began my foray into the working world at Terminal Reality, where I’ve worked on two shipped titles, Def Jam Rapstar and Star Wars Kinect. I’ve also recently begun working on my own game IP and iOS engine, which I hope to have ready sometime in the near future. Working in the games industry has been everything I imagined it to be, and then some. Sure, the days are frequently long, the bugs never-ending, but the joys of waking up to craft entertainment played by millions of people all over the world is a privilege and usurps any detrimental aspect of being a part of such a vibrant and dynamic industry. Then there were the experiences I never fathomed: the insanity of attending your game’s VIP-only release party at a swanky New York City hotel (with an open bar and celebrities everywhere!), seeing commercials for YOUR game while watching Comedy Central with friends, and that really incredible feeling walking into Gamestop and seeing YOUR game on the shelves. Yeah, I dig it.

Outside of programming, I have a number of hobbies, chiefly my adoration of Skiing. Growing up in Canada, I was a ski fanatic, and it was a pretty good bet that every Saturday my family could be found on the slopes at our local ski resort. Living in warmer climates the past few years has made appeasing my lust for skiing a bit difficult. Thus I’ve had to nurture a second sport more in line with my present climate limitations: golfing. I’m fairly good at it, just as long as I keep my woods in the bag. As a spectator, I enjoy watching Hockey and Football (both college and pro).

Another very unusual hobby of mine is balloon artistry. How I began this endeavor is a story unto itself; I started making balloon art in restaurants throughout college as a way to earn money for food (read: beer), and I got pretty good at it. I’ve worked in a number of different states at over 30 different restaurants in several major cities, and frequently walked around to tailgates in the hours before Clemson football games. I get a really big kick out of asking people to challenge my twisting prowess, then seeing their awestruck faces when I improvise a seemingly impossible shape.


Yep, that's an AT-AT made out of balloons. I wasn't kidding.

In my free time, I enjoy spending time with friends, travelling all over the place, especially to follow my alma mater’s football team, listening to eclectic and interesting music, broadening my beer palette, chasing women, and occasionally pulling out the sketch book to doodle. Oh, and I also play a lot of video games.