Congrats on the new job man! 
~MG~
Complex UV Layout in Maya
Over the last couple of years UV layout in Maya has changed for the better. In this course we're going to be taking a look at some of those changes as we UV map an entire character
#
46
27-06-2011
, 09:30 AM
To sleep, to dream, maybe... to???
Join Date: Dec 2009
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: In my world
Posts: 24
Congrats on the new job man! ~MG~
#
47
30-06-2011
, 09:27 PM
The Maya Mountain
Join Date: Aug 2002
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 8,245
So, Hit & Myth was the first game that I worked on that actually got finished! It took most of a year, but we got Hit & Myth in the can and were pretty much done with the game. Then it happend.
October of 2005, a Swedish newspaper article came out detailing that many in the top brass at Gizmondo were somehow involved in organized crime! Not to mention when it came out that these guys were commanding $1 million+ salaries, with outrageous benefits, and whatnot. I, as well as those on my team, were stunned! I knew that the Gizmondo was a piece of junk, but I had no idea that the people who were responsible for its creation were simply in it to cheat investors out of millions that they kept in their own pockets (as opposed to, say, putting the investor money into the company like they were supposed to).
Within the next couple of months, those guys "resigned" and by December, we were all told that we would be getting laid off and that Gizmondo Texas... Warthog Texas... more importantly, Fever Pitch Studios... was no more.
Needless to say, Hit & Myth never saw the light of day. At least, not then. It would eventually be released for free online by one of my old co-workers who had the source code.
And, rather infamously, I had lost my first job in the industry. While it was an insane experience, and literally nothing I made while working there ever came out, I wouldn't trade it for anything. I was there for 3 and a half years.
Next... Year 7! Time to get a new job!
#
48
03-07-2011
, 02:54 AM
The Maya Mountain
Join Date: Aug 2002
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 8,245
As 2006 began, I found myself out of work for the first time since joining the game industry. (Don't forget my first job at Walrus back in 2000 wasn't actually games, that's why the distinction on my part.) Remembering how long it took me to get the first job at Fever Pitch, I wasn't very happy about my chances. However, this time around, I had 3+ years of experience and a professional portfolio that I could show off, as opposed to neither! I submitted resumes to practically every studio in the Austin area, hoping that I could get something relatively quickly and within the same area that I lived. But winter seems to be a really bad time to try to find a job in the game industry.
Most games are scheduled to ship during the summer or for Christmas. This means those projects are actually completed in the spring and summer respectively. So, during winter, most projects are probably already in full swing. (There are exceptions of course, but this seems to be the majority of my own experience when hunting for new jobs!)
I applied to what jobs there were out there and found many to be beyond my experience level or expertise. During my time at Fever Pitch, I had worn many hats... modeling, texturing, rigging, animation, particle effects. But I wasn't an "Animator" persay. I wasn't a "Texture Artist". So, jobs for those specific types of jobs proved rather elusive for me. I managed to get an interview at Junction Point Studios, and had an interview with Warren Spector himself! That was quite an awesome experience. He commented that I was rather "green" in the industry to have already had a Lead Artist position, so I talked to him about that experience and about the game industry in general. I didn't know it at the time, but they were ramping up to start Epic Mickey. I didn't get the job though. Even though Epic Mickey kinda tanked, I would have loved to work with Warren and have had that experience!
But oh well...
For the rest of the month, I had nada! I lived as I could on unemployment and continued hunting for that elusive second job. February began and I continued the hunt. I decided that I should probably start looking outside of Austin, as it didn't look like I was going to have an easy time getting back into a studio there. So, I started looking for anything I qualified for around the country. One of those studios was Buzz Monkey Software in Oregon! They contacted me and, even without an art test (whew!) wanted to fly me up for an interview! I was excited, but rather daunted at the idea of moving so far away. My family were all within driving distance of Austin, so the idea of moving 3000 miles away... wow, seemed out of the question. But I wasn't going to say "no" to an interview, and I flew up!
#
49
03-07-2011
, 04:11 AM
19 year Veteran
Join Date: Sep 2002
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: U.S.A.
Posts: 2,140
Wow, I didn't think you where that young back then. I was like 20 or 21 at the time Jurassic Park was released.When I was 12 or 13 years old, Jurassic Park came out and I, like many others my age, was completely blown away! My mind was completely blown by the sheer amazement of what I was seeing on the screen and the unbelievable realism that these computer graphics were bringing to the table.
I started coming to SimplyMaya in 2001 also, but only after being told to wait for Maya 4 to be released. I finally registered in 2002, a month after you. Cant believe it's been almost 10 years since I registered here.For the next year or so, I lived with my parents and got a normal job at a bank. During this time, I practiced constantly, working on improving my abilities and understanding the tech. It was during this time that I started coming here to SimplyMaya!
But anyway, awesome story mike, keep it coming!
#
50
03-07-2011
, 06:17 AM
Subscriber
Join Date: Dec 2007
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: NZ
Posts: 3,125
i do have the tomb raider game you were a part of though!
that's a "Ch" pronounced as a "K"
Computer skills I should have:
Objective C, C#, Java, MEL. Python, C++, XML, JavaScript, XSLT, HTML, SQL, CSS, FXScript, Clips, SOAR, ActionScript, OpenGL, DirectX
Maya, XSI, Photoshop, AfterEffects, Motion, Illustrator, Flash, Swift3D
#
51
05-07-2011
, 03:14 PM
The Maya Mountain
Join Date: Aug 2002
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Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 8,245
I arrived in Eugene, Oregon to interview at Buzz Monkey Software in early February. They are a mid-level studio, not tiny like Fever Pitch, but not gigantic either. They had about 50-60 people at the time. They were wrapping up work on Tomb Raider Legend for the PSP and were ramping up work on a sports game for the PS2. I talked to lots of people all day, art leads, engineers, junior artists, lead designers, etc. It took all day! They took me out for lunch and dinner and set me up in a hotel for the night. The next day, the interviews continued until around the afternoon when I had to start thinking about getting back to the airport to head back. The art director, Barry, asked me what I thought and I had to admit that I was still thinking that moving all the way up here just seemed crazy, but I didn't say that of course!
I just said that everything looked really cool and went along with the idea that, if it really comes down to it, I could always just say no to an offer. Typically, I wouldn't actually get an offer until several days after the interview process, so I wasn't anticipating getting one while I was there. Barry eventually got around to asking me what kind of salary I would want. I don't mind talking turkey about the past... probably shouldn't disclose my *current* info, I suppose, although, I guess a lot can be inferred from what I'm going to say... but whatever.
Anyway, in Texas, I was making around $40,000 a year. Not a lot, but not bad for a single guy with a handful of years of experience. I had looked into the northwest enough to know that the cost of living up there was a bit higher then Texas, so I said that I'd like to make around $50,000. Not a bad increase, right?
He kinda swiveled in his chair, smirked at me and said, "How about $60,000?"
It took all I had to not fall out of my chair! I just remember kinda stammering a little and saying "That... that's good too!"
Needless to say, I took the job right then and there. I would be starting in March! I had a few weeks to figure out how the heck I was going to get to Oregon from Texas, but I would figure it out!
Next - New job!
#
52
05-07-2011
, 04:11 PM
Subscriber
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Location: Chelmsford, Essex, UK
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#
53
05-07-2011
, 04:12 PM
The Maya Mountain
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Location: Seattle, WA
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#
54
06-07-2011
, 03:29 PM
The Maya Mountain
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#
55
06-07-2011
, 03:58 PM
The thin red line
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Avatar Challenge Winner 2010
#
56
06-07-2011
, 04:16 PM
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25! in your experience of the games industry, are there any age groups that aren't appreciated...I would have been 25
i.e, first-timers over a certain age, or new entrants under a certain age. I often read people say it's the strength of the portfolio, not the age that counts....but is it? really?
#
57
06-07-2011
, 04:38 PM
The Maya Mountain
Join Date: Aug 2002
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Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 8,245
Also, a middle-aged person who has all of those responsibilities may not be able to work with an entry-level salary, so that could be an issue for them as well.
Other then that, the portfolio and the ability to mesh with a studio's culture are really the only factors when it comes to the actual job. It's just that age and life can affect all of these other extraneous factors that causes the game industry in particular to be considered a "young man's game".
#
58
06-07-2011
, 08:10 PM
Head of 3d Admedia
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Location: nairobi , ken-ya
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#
59
06-07-2011
, 09:26 PM
Subscriber
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Location: Chelmsford, Essex, UK
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Murambi: You have done some modelling for games?
#
60
06-07-2011
, 10:40 PM
The Maya Mountain
Join Date: Aug 2002
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 8,245
I hired a moving company to ship the majority of my stuff and I packed my car as much as it would fit and made my way. The trip took 3 days of constant driving! Drove through Texas, through New Mexico and Arizona, and into the Los Angeles area. Then started north all the way up California, through the mountains that seperate the two states, and finally into Oregon. I made it on Sunday, the day before my job started! Took all day unpacking my car and getting that stuff set up. It'd take another week before the rest of my junk arrived.
The next day I officially began the day as a Buzz Monkey Software Environment Artist!
My first project was NFL Street 3. Now I'm not the biggest sports game fan (I like sports, just don't like sports games) so I didn't know what I would feel about it going in, but I came to realize that, while I didn't necessarily like the game, I DID enjoy working on it. My first task was to create one of the 8 "stadiums".
The NFL Street series was like a successor to NFL Blitz from the old arcade days. Smaller teams, limited rules, crazy tackles and acrobatics. Not "serious" football at all. So the stadium I worked on was a warehouse. The game would be on the floor of the warehouse with tall shelves of boxes and machinery all around.
I was nervous! The only projects I had worked on before that were fantasy, sci-fi, and more fantasy; so to do a "realistic" style was something I hadn't done in a while. But they gave me several weeks, and I learned a ton! In addition to creating the stadium, I had to also port it to the PSP version of the game as well, which meant creating a much lower poly, smaller texture memory version.
In one of my first few weeks working there, they had a ship part for completing work on Tomb Raider Legend. Even though I had nothing to do with that title, I was an employee, so of course I could attend. It was the first such part I had ever been to! NONE of the games I had worked on prior to this had ever shipped, so of course I never had a ship party! It was so great to see that, yes, it COULD be done! Everyone who was on that team all got these awesome decorative swords with the buzz monkey logo on the hilt and a good time was had by all.
The best thing I took from that party was the knowledge that at Buzz Monkey... games got made! But more importantly, games got FINISHED!
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