Tag Archives: insights

Games and Game Development, Personal Blog

I has a hunger

Let’s be honest. For a long time now, I’ve been scraping by on other people’s consoles, nibbling at new video games as a good-natured jackal might nibble bites of other kills, and have been happy doing so. I’ve sustained myself as such since, well, since Halo, I suppose, and fun times on the XBox back at Rhodes 2 in undergrad. There have been a smattering of purchases here and there, but for the most part I’ve been scavenging.

It’s been frugal living, and for a long time it’s been quite an acceptable means for me to absorb enough gaming to keep myself going.

However, things have been changing. I’ve grown hungry to own my own games again, and to feed off of my own consoles. With the recent wave of November releases, I become restless and jealous every time I read a twitter or a status update about some such game that some such person has been enjoying. It makes me twitchy and antsy and fuels a desperate hunger to play and learn and consume and shove games into my brain as I do so often with books. Can I hold out against this craving? Should I?

I haven’t felt this way, really, since back when I purchased my Playstation 1 in high school, which is pretty much when I began sustaining my gaming crave with my own money. It began in a similar way…I remember scraping by on the consoles of friends, playing what I could on visits, and slowly growing hungrier. Then Spyro the Dragon came and I was like “okay, that’s it,” and I happily devoted the meager income of a high school student to support my gaming hobby in full with a fresh new console.

I suppose, if I’m going to be a game designer, I could write off the investment cost as research and not worry about it. Still, it’s so much money! Even if I became a devoted GameFly user, I still have to get the consoles and a TV to play them on.

I think the best happy medium would be to take advantage of the ETC library and lounge in the time I have left, but students on co-op can’t borrow games from the library, so I’d have to have someone else get them for me. It is not quite the same, I know, but it might help sate my appetite for a bit longer. We shall see!

Games and Game Development, Personal Blog

Why Highlander the MMO will be AWESOME

So here’s another thought tangent that came out of Horseshoe, even though it was not directly connected to a workgroup.

Back in Bandology, we often joked about how we were going to make Highlander the MMO, and how it was going to be AWESOME. It was entirely a joke, as the “there can be only one” nature of Highlander doesn’t really mesh with the concept of a massively multiplayer game.

OR DOES IT?

Highlander the MMO WILL be fun…

Personal Blog

The Wedding

Let me tell you my favorite thing about Kyle. Kyle is a good and clever friend, and it was always great to hang out with him at Basketball (or drag him into Game Jams), but there was always one thing that stood out to me about him.

If Kyle was over and we were playing games or watching cartoons or whatever, sometimes he would get phone calls. You could always tell when it was Angel on the phone.

On the infectious nature of love…

Personal Blog

Thoughtful

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Sigh.

I’m sitting here for my last night in Burbank, feeling thoughtful and reflecting on the summer. I have overcome fears, tried new adventures, gained confidence, and grown as a person all in one summer. I suppose that’s what summer excursions are all about.

Still, the time has flown, but I guess that’s just the nature of time. I’ve established bonds with new people that will be nourished into strong friendships, and oh how I will miss those people. I feel changed, like I have stepped into something new that is good and exciting.

I’m not sure why I feel so wistful, but it’s probably just the side effect from things changing again. Tomorrow morning I’ll set off to drive back across the country. I am looking forward to recharging with friends and family (and food) in Louisville, before trekking up to Pittsburgh to start the new semester’s work.

I will miss my luxurious weekends of sleep and WoW. I will miss my wonderful designer friends. I will miss my roommate’s cat.

More adventures to come, as always.

Personal Blog

End-o-summer

This is an abridged cross-post of one of my mailing list postings. Hope the repeats don’t mind!

So, last Friday was my last day at Insomniac, and there were many tears upon my departure (mostly shed by me, of course). Before we left, Ted took the interns to lunch as a farewell and so we could ask him any lingering questions. One thing he asked each of us was, “What is the biggest thing you’ll be taking back with you from your summer at Insomniac?”

Summer wrap-up within

Personal Blog

Insomniatmosphere

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Insomniac is a very pleasant place to work as far as team atmosphere goes. I love Fridays, because on Fridays lunch is brought in, and everyone eats together. I know many companies do stuff like this, but often times it’s just sort of “oh yay, free food,” grab your stuff and go.

Here, it is like a family reunion, as everyone quite playfully grabs their food and perches on every available surface to eat together. Warm little pods form as people pile onto couches and overflow to sit on the floor, gathered together to chat and eat.

I’ve been trying to nose out different pods each Friday so I can get to know the whole company, and I’m always welcomed in without hesitation (in spite of the fact that I can’t remember names for crap let alone whether someone is an artist or programmer or designer or what).

It’s an extraordinary compliment to the hard-working nature everyone here has exhibited so far. It has a very “work hard, play hard” sort of feel, and I am every so grateful to feel so at home. What a fantastic internship!

Games and Game Development, Personal Blog

LA Week 1 = success!

Well, my first week in Burbank has wound to a close, and I’d consider it a success so far.

Insomniac is great. It’s a very busy time there, so it’s going to be challenging but fun. My supervisor and mentor are very kind, and the whole team is very friendly. Due to the NDA, I can’t talk about what I’m doing. But since it’s been announced, I CAN say I’m working on Resistance 2, and I can say that this summer is going to be awesome fun and learning.

Meanwhile, I’ve been being social as well. My roommates, found randomly through craigslist, are very cool. One of them has a cat, which will make my summer all the better!

There are also lots of ETC alums and ETC first-years doing internships in town, so plenty of people to hang out with. On Friday, the alums took the first-years to Santa Monica for a welcoming of sorts. There was dinner and bowling. Photos follow…

http://picasaweb.google.com/wertle.dragon/SantaMonica

There’s also been Rock Band with Rob and Evan, and exploring adventures and bike rides. So far so good!

Personal Blog

I am a Game Designer

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This morning at GDC, I made a career change.

Now, don’t misunderstand, this wasn’t an on-the-fly decision. It’s something that’s been bubbling and building for a couple of months now. Last night, Tracy and Andy tipped me over the edge by suggesting I would probably get the most out of a design internship this summer versus any other type.

This morning I went to talk about High Impact’s production process, given by one of their lead designers. I had a moment of recognition that truly, I was sitting on the wrong side of the court. After the session, I plopped down, pulled out my laptop, nudged Jesse online and said “I think that maybe I should be looking for a design internship and not a production internship.”

He responded, “I think you might be right.” I could almost hear him smirking through the internet, the knowing smirk of someone who’s known this about me for a good while, but was nudging and waiting for me to figure it out on my own.

Commitment! I spent the next couple of hours sitting on the floor of the convention center, frantically rewording my website and reworking my resume. Andy stopped by between sessions to sit with me and help revise my resume. Jesse stopped by to sit with me for support. A smattering of other ETCers stopped by to see what I was up to, and when I relayed my sudden career change, responded with, “Well, DUH!”

Why does everyone else figure these things out about me before I do?? Nevertheless, the changes were made, and I’m ready to hit the Career Expo tomorrow with my new goal. Huzzah!

Other highlights today included a big Bandology lunch (with past and present members alike), then a session given by Bungie on Matchmaking in Halo 3. It was extremely informative, though now I have Fiddler in the Roof stuck in my head.

Now I’m chillin and waiting for my my mentor, such that we can go adventure at Ubisoft. Huzzah!

Personal Blog

Home Stretch

At our last improv class of the semester, we did a brilliant activity. We sat on the floor in a circle, facing outwards, and had to close our eyes. Then three people at a time were chosen to stand in the middle. Brenda (our professor) would give instructions, such as, “touch 3 people you think are good leaders, touch 5 people who have a good sense of humor…” and so on. Then after a few of those, 3 more people would get to go to the middle.

It was a very warm way of affirming one another anonymously, especially for me (being one who is terrible at taking compliments. I get all squirmy). Plus, it is amazing to learn how other people truly see you.

According to my classmates (though I don’t know from which ones exactly), I am caring, energetic, assertive, a good friend, someone who has been there for someone in a crisis, cheerful, wise, sensitive, and a good listener.

It was a great way to end improv, as my improv class has really bonded with one another. It was also a very refreshing start to the most maddening weekend at the ETC yet. We are all finishing our Round 5 worlds and preparing for the BVW show, and it is chaos for student and TA alike.

Nevertheless, the stress is good stress. We are all having a fantastic time, and I’m absorbing people’s energy left and right. It’s somewhat of a problem, though, because I’ve been constantly wired. Last night I stayed until my programmer left, but instead of going home and getting rest, I stayed at the ETC until 3 or so in the morning, riding a scooter around the halls and visiting with people.

I hope I don’t crash after the BVW show on Wednesday. I still have much to do: I have two scholarship applications to finish, I have to follow-up with thank you emails for the interview I had last week, not to mention the marathon of work on the Scary video that is soon to follow.

…I am so happy to be here!

Personal Blog

Obligatory Thanksgiving Post

This Thanksgiving was probably the most awesome it’s been in a long time. As per tradition, I’ll now force the internet to read all that I’m thankful for.

First and foremost, I am thankful for my family. Part of the thing I love about Thanksgiving is how gratifying the routine is. I can always count on some of the same things happening every year, and that in itself is a very relaxing foothold for me while I bumble through life. My dad always ends up carving the turkey against his will, I always pick off pieces while he’s carving because I’m generally so hungry I can’t wait, my brother always scolds me for it, my entire family always stands in the kitchen to socialize (even though there’s plenty of other room in the house) and gets in the way of the cooks. So on and so on. This year it was delightful to watch my mom and aunts and cousins play Wii sports. Everyone always seems so happy to be there. I know that there are plenty of people who are not blessed with a family that gets along as well as mine, so I try to remain thankful for that and not take it for granted.

Next up, predictably, are friends. Ah, to come home and see the Tuesday Night Ballers and fall into blissful routine. To have such a core of friends, even though we are a bit scattered at the moment, is a true blessing, and when we all come together in the same place I believe magic occurs. I am thankful for each of you.

I am also thankful for the ETC. This program is amazing, and perfect, and everything I hoped it would be and more. The people here are so devoted, to the work and to each other, and it’s an explosion of creativity and knowledge that I scoop up and try to keep hold of. I am extremely fortunate to be here, and I intend to acknowledge that. Thank you collective entity that is the ETC!

A few more specific thankful shout-outs: First is Jesse Schell, my BVW professor. I am ever so thankful to have him about, not only because he’s an awesome teacher, but because he’s helped me out on an individual basis time and time again. I mean, sure, sometimes I’m terrified he’s going to melt me with his laser eyes, but he hasn’t yet, and has been nothing but encouraging and helpful and devoted to me and all the students. What a blessing for us to be granted slivers of his time. Thank you Jesse!

Then there’s Andy Jih. Hi Andy! Andy is the head TA for BVW, and has taken me under his wing in times of need. He can apparently read minds. Or at least, he is perceptive enough to notice that in a time of high stress and emotional frailty, the one thing I need in the world is someone to talk for 4 hours over a pint of Ben and Jerry’s. I look up to him a lot, and next year I want to be able to help some lonely, unsure first-year in the same way he’s helped me. Thank you Andy!

I could go on and on about a thousand or more things, but I’ll leave it to those for now. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday!