Q: Who are you, and why do I care?
A: My name is Arthur Jones. I am a Computer Science/Games and Simulation Arts and Sciences dual major at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. I have also completed the requirements for a minor in Economics. My anticipated graduation date is December 2014. My chief goal in life is to program video games for a living. You can download my résumé here.
You should care because I always get the job done. Sometimes I have to spend more time leading the group and budgeting time for others and sometimes my job is to simply write the code necessary to support some talented artists, but I always step forward and rise to the occasion, even if it means spending Friday and Saturday nights making prototypes and chasing bugs.
Q: You obviously like games. What kind of games?
A: My chief passion is for games that embrace the concept of dynamic interactivity. I want choices to exist, and I want those choices to be meaningful. However, while I do appreciate effective narrative, my core philosophy is that mechanics trump all. As a result, I like games where choices fundamentally influence the way the game mechanically plays out. Some excellent examples of this are learning Anna's kill switch in the original Deus Ex and disrupting trade lines in the X Universe games. Of course, direct narrative cause-and-effect is still appreciated, and there's always something to be said for just being a lot of fun. Here are some of my favorite games:
Q: You claim responsibility for the vast majority of the programming in several of the 4-5 person projects listed on the first page. How is that possible?
A: For starters, one or two of those other people are usually artists, and while I can confidently crank out code, I'm not one to get in the way of artistic talent. Beyond that, you have people responsible for balance, level design, research, writing, sound, etc... depending on the game. I have proven time and time again that I am up to the task of spearheading the code for a small game project, so the associated responsibilities consistently fall to me. My ability to consistently handle this problem made it possible (for example) for one group member in Re-pulse to spend the entire time designing levels, which is how we have so much content in that two week project.
With that said, I am perfectly capable of working with other programmers. You may notice that my contribution to I Can't Believe It's Not Pong! is substantially smaller (as a percentage of total programming) compared to the other games that I worked on. This is because the entire team consisted of programmers, and as a result, I spent more time handling design and tasking than I did working with the code (relative to other projects).
Q: Is there anything else that you would like to tell us about?
A: This semester, I've found myself busy with both Unreal 4 and a research project for cognitive modeling. I've been learning about Unreal's visual scripting system and the power behind their material editor in my efforts to create a 3D game about exploration and time travel, and while it will probably take more than a single semester with Unreal to reach the level of comfort I have with Unity, I am taking the first steps down that road. On the research front, I'm working on a Python implementation of Ron Sun's Clarion Cognitive Architecture, which is a multi-process behemoth that is proving to be quite unlike any of my previous projects. I don't have anything to show on my résumé or portfolio since they're both still in development, but I can safely say that I'm really excited about the progress we've made on both of these fronts.
I am also playing on a Division 2 League of Legends team for RPI in the Collegiate StarLeague. While I don't have the time necessary to become an incredible individual player, I'm doing what I can to contribute through facilitating team communication and providing research and analysis write ups on our competition. I'm not the captain, I'm already swamped with schoolwork, and it's only a Division 2 team, but I'm finding the time to do what I can because I simply don't do things half-way.
A: My name is Arthur Jones. I am a Computer Science/Games and Simulation Arts and Sciences dual major at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. I have also completed the requirements for a minor in Economics. My anticipated graduation date is December 2014. My chief goal in life is to program video games for a living. You can download my résumé here.
You should care because I always get the job done. Sometimes I have to spend more time leading the group and budgeting time for others and sometimes my job is to simply write the code necessary to support some talented artists, but I always step forward and rise to the occasion, even if it means spending Friday and Saturday nights making prototypes and chasing bugs.
Q: You obviously like games. What kind of games?
A: My chief passion is for games that embrace the concept of dynamic interactivity. I want choices to exist, and I want those choices to be meaningful. However, while I do appreciate effective narrative, my core philosophy is that mechanics trump all. As a result, I like games where choices fundamentally influence the way the game mechanically plays out. Some excellent examples of this are learning Anna's kill switch in the original Deus Ex and disrupting trade lines in the X Universe games. Of course, direct narrative cause-and-effect is still appreciated, and there's always something to be said for just being a lot of fun. Here are some of my favorite games:
- Antichamber
- Cave Story
- Dark Souls
- Deus Ex (original)
- League of Legends
- Metroid Prime
- Mirror's Edge
- Supreme Commander
- X3
Q: You claim responsibility for the vast majority of the programming in several of the 4-5 person projects listed on the first page. How is that possible?
A: For starters, one or two of those other people are usually artists, and while I can confidently crank out code, I'm not one to get in the way of artistic talent. Beyond that, you have people responsible for balance, level design, research, writing, sound, etc... depending on the game. I have proven time and time again that I am up to the task of spearheading the code for a small game project, so the associated responsibilities consistently fall to me. My ability to consistently handle this problem made it possible (for example) for one group member in Re-pulse to spend the entire time designing levels, which is how we have so much content in that two week project.
With that said, I am perfectly capable of working with other programmers. You may notice that my contribution to I Can't Believe It's Not Pong! is substantially smaller (as a percentage of total programming) compared to the other games that I worked on. This is because the entire team consisted of programmers, and as a result, I spent more time handling design and tasking than I did working with the code (relative to other projects).
Q: Is there anything else that you would like to tell us about?
A: This semester, I've found myself busy with both Unreal 4 and a research project for cognitive modeling. I've been learning about Unreal's visual scripting system and the power behind their material editor in my efforts to create a 3D game about exploration and time travel, and while it will probably take more than a single semester with Unreal to reach the level of comfort I have with Unity, I am taking the first steps down that road. On the research front, I'm working on a Python implementation of Ron Sun's Clarion Cognitive Architecture, which is a multi-process behemoth that is proving to be quite unlike any of my previous projects. I don't have anything to show on my résumé or portfolio since they're both still in development, but I can safely say that I'm really excited about the progress we've made on both of these fronts.
I am also playing on a Division 2 League of Legends team for RPI in the Collegiate StarLeague. While I don't have the time necessary to become an incredible individual player, I'm doing what I can to contribute through facilitating team communication and providing research and analysis write ups on our competition. I'm not the captain, I'm already swamped with schoolwork, and it's only a Division 2 team, but I'm finding the time to do what I can because I simply don't do things half-way.