I'm Not Just A Game Designer

I'm not generally one for blogging. I suppose I believe that I should not hold on to my opinions so tightly that they become dogmatic. Writing down my opinions for all to see means that they become difficult to edit later.

However, I suppose I should probably actually record my own opinions and discoveries about my chosen profession. I have a son now, and having children is making me think about my legacy. Parenthood has a way of bringing mortality home. Or perhaps I thought it would just be nice of me to leave something for you wonderful people to check out. Maybe you will be able to learn from my successes and failures and go on to far greater heights than I ever will!

I am not going to pass myself off as a game expert. I love gaming, and I love how gaming teaches us life skills. I like them so much, and I've spent so much of my life immersed in them, that it only makes sense that I would want to make them myself. I will never feel like a game expert, since there is always something to learn about the art and science of gaming.

I am also a busy person. I make games for a living, and for a studio. I'm a husband and a parent. I must schedule time for other pursuits as well, since exposure to other art and immersion in the beauty the world has to offer is very important for inspiration. This means I may not update this frequently, yet I do want to maintain it.

Lastly, I reserve the right to change my opinion at any time. If one is unwilling to change their opinion, then one risks being left behind.

If you happen to have just stumbled across this and are curious about who I am and why I have a game blog, let me tell you a little bit about myself. I am a husband and a father. I am a game designer and player. I know how to code in a few different languages. I can fix airplanes, cars, and cable.

To help you decide if you think my opinions on game design and the industry are worth anything, I earn money by designing systems for Carbine Studios, and I am currently working on WildStar. Before that, I spent a few years coding tools and designing content for Star Wars: the Old Republic at BioWare Austin. Prior to that, I spent a few years in Virginia designing content and systems for Mythic Entertainment while working on Warhammer Online. My point is, I've designed a bunch of stuff on some very large, high-profile games and I've written peer-reviewed code professionally.

On top of that, I've been participating in the PC Gaming "scene" since getting my first PC, discovering a BBS, and playing a game called Barren Realms Elite back in 1994. If that's still not enough cred, I've been playing role-playing games since I was 8 years old, getting a Dungeons & Dragons red box starter set in 1982 on the advice of my elementary school teacher. And my mom said my gaming hobby would never amount to anything!

Outside of gaming (which was really just a hobby for most of my life, albeit the major one), I also fixed kick-ass special ops airplanes in the U.S. Air Force for two enlistments (about 8 years). I've lived all over the United States and I have lived in England for four years. I've also spent way too much time doing difficult and under-appreciated work like refueling jets, being a cash register jockey, fixing people's cable, and installing adaptive driving equipment for folks with mobility impairments. OK, the last one there was appreciated.

Anyway, that is who I am and what this is about. I'll talk at you all again soon. Thanks for reading!