Introducing Me - Video Game Developer, Video Game Player, Video Game Teacher

Where does one start? - "Hello Steemits!"

I'm hoping this doesn't get to be too long winded of an introduction but hey I've got a fair bit to tell (I'd rather listen than talk though in a conversation).

I think you can see there is a theme in my title, Video Games..... I have been around these things for a long time. My first system was a Coleco Vision!

If you know what this is then you have been around for awhile too :) After awhile I graduated to a NES (not the small one you can buy in the stores now, the one you had to blow on the cartridges to get a game to work). From there my love for games was born and it carried on for many years.

After getting my Bachelors in Computer Science a group of friends decided to start a gaming company called IRD1. We managed to secure a PS2 developer kit and being the only programmer I had to write and learn a lot (making isn't as easy as playing). I learnt a lot while developing the game that never got released but still had a lot of fun (apparently the rendering engine that I wrote was almost as fast as Naught Dogs back then.....).

After a few years of going nowhere I decided to get a job (one that paid) but still in the gaming industry. I left my startup and joined Silicon Knights. I started as a Programmer and worked my way up to Project Director and published a few games (see below). The time there was amazing and challenging at times. It provided for me and my new family and allowed me to grow professionally.

Shipped Titles:

• Metal Gear Solid - The Twin Snakes (GameCube)
• Too Human (XBOX360)
• Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 (Multiple Platforms)
• X-Men Destiny (Multiple Platforms)
• Several unreleased titles.

While working a full time, being married and with my first born I decided to get my Masters in Computer Science. I started a planned 5 year part-time journey to obtain this accreditation (for no reason but to teach part-time). After 5 short years I finished and defended my thesis and managed to get published: https://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=2576768.2598210 All sounds good up till now eh!

(Thats the Canadian in me)

However, just before I actually finished my thesis, Silicon Knights closed and I was layed off (It was the first time in 25 years I wasn't working). It was at this point in time where I realized that I had been working 5 years on a MSc, had 12 years experience in the gaming industry and wasn't afraid to stand in front of a group of people and talk.

It's at this point in time that I decided to leave the gaming industry and join the academic. With all my experience as a programmer and game developer I felt that I could teach the next generation of game developers and thats where we are now.

I joined Sheridan College as a Professor in Applied Computing and now teach/Coordinate the Game Development - Advanced Programming post graduate certificate. I'll be honest, when I first started I wasn't sure if I would be doing this still, but 5 years later I don't see myself going back into the industry. I think I have found my place now and hope to keep doing this for many more years. I still develop stuff on the side for mobile and am working on a PC game, but with family top priority development and playing come second.

I decided to join Steemit after finding about the site through some investments in crypto. I don't post on other social media outlets much (almost never really) and felt that this might be somewhere I could find my place with a new group of people.

If you are interested in more about me or have some questions feel free to leave me a message. I'm be doing a videos (

) and blogs about stuff I'm working on or playing. Right now I'm doing a play-through of Cuphead on extreme so if you are interested in watching me get my a$$ handed to me check out my videos.

Cheers!

William Barry

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/william-barry-4952482/

I'd like to make a shoutout to a fellow Steemit for help in getting me up and blogging with some good advice (I hope I followed it): @spenceryan