Today we have a real treat for any young players interested in working in the gaming industry one day. Cheryl Starcher, a Lead Software Engineer here at KingsIsle, has taken some time to let us know a little bit about her background and what can help an aspiring player become a game programmer one day!
I love my job. Here’s how I got to this position and why you might also love a job as a game programmer.
I graduated from Duke University with a degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering and a second major in Computer Science. I worked for IBM in their server group doing logic design and verification using C++ while getting a masters degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering. Eventually I reached a point where I wanted to do something more creative and that’s when I went to work for KingsIsle. I’ve been working on Wizard101 since before it launched and I still love it.
Having a four-year degree and work experience with C++ opened the door for me into the game industry. Luckily for me, KingsIsle was working on MMO games which are the most complicated and challenging type of game to program. They involve a huge codebase and major technical challenges. Supporting the game after launch is just as challenging as we keep adding more features making the code more complex, and fixing problems while maintaining the data we have (you can’t solve a problem by starting over from scratch).
KingsIsle also supports a lower min-spec machine than is typical for an MMO so we jump through hoops to keep the game accessible and we debug problems that only exist on odd pieces of old hardware. We’ve localized the game for different languages including Asian languages, which are an additional challenge. With our partner, CodeWeavers, we support the Mac. I can’t say enough about how interesting it is to be a game programmer and encounter such a variety of challenges.
I recommend that anyone who wants to be a game programmer one day should get a four-year degree in Computer Science. I also recommend that you play games – all kinds of games including board games! Even though a four-year degree and gaming experience are great, the thing that is really going to get you that game job is making your own games. Start off simple and make something you can show to other people. This is what shows future employers your dedication and ability to figure things out. I’ve listed some free resources below that one of my fellow programmers, Gary, has compiled that should help you get started making games.
As a final word of advice, being a game programmer requires someone who thinks logically and is creative. Programming teaches you precise attention to detail, but allows you to solve a problem in multiple ways. Any code you write is an expression of yourself and all of the training and knowledge you acquire allows that expression to work as intended.
Cheryl Starcher
Lead Software Engineer
Some Resources to Make Your Own Games
- Make Games Now – Scratch and Alice are free programming environments which support making simple games.
- Resources for programming more complex games
When you think of your grandmother, what’s the first image that comes to your mind? Knitting? Home baked cookies? What about her logging on to the computer with a headset, gearing up for an intense match of PvP! Since online gaming has many benefits for the senior community, playing alongside your grandparents might be a lot more realistic than you think.
Bob Stephen of AARP recently did a blog series about the benefits of gaming for the senior community. This is something we have always felt very strongly about here at KingsIsle – gaming can and should be something everyone can enjoy regardless of age! We’ve always believed that developing deep content woven with layered humor that played on many levels was a key way to attract a broad audience. We also maintain that creating challenging game play that scales with game progress really brings along many casual (and non) gamers. By pulling all this together our goal was to create virtual worlds for gamers of all ages to connect with their loved ones no matter how far away they live in the real world. Well, that and have a great time and a lot of fun while playing!
In his blogging series, Bob Stephen touches on this cross generational gaming in relation to the senior community:
The virtual world aspect of Wizard101 and similar games provide participants with an opportunity to interact and get to know others — all from the comfort of home. There are certainly similarities to social media where friends can be made based on shared interest — but the game environment adds a twist in that you can do things together while making friends or staying connected.
Besides being able to connect with family from across the country, online games like Wizard101 and Pirate101 offer seniors a chance to be just as “hip” and knowledgeable as younger gamers. Think about it – when you’re in a tough duel with a boss and a nice player helps you beat the bad guy, you don’t care how old they may be or where they’re from… you’re just glad they helped you win! Everyone is on a level playing field in the virtual world.
In Stephen’s article, Games for the 50+: A New Outlet for Mentoring, a senior KingsIsle player comments on being a gaming mentor:
In a world where many young people are abandoned to their own abilities I found a new world of young people willing to work with and learn from us old guys.
– jagarland61
So next time you talk to your Grandparents, see if they’d be interested in doing a little online gaming. You never know… Grandpa might just be the epic Life Wizard that you need to round out your PvP team! Do any of you game online with your grandparents? Or grandparents, do you game with your family? If so, tell us about it in the comment area below!
Lauren Mauldin
Marketing Website Producer
Last week, Principal Artist Jeff Toney gave us a glimpse into the evolution of Bartleby through a series of original art concepts. This week in part 2, Jeff shares how Bartleby turned from a 2d drawing into a 3d model!
After the round of concepts, we had several ideas that solidified what we wanted with our magical tree. We wanted a face that had an old, wise look in the side of the tree. Bartleby also needed a rough moustache of bark growing around his mouth to mark the entrance of his teleporter to other worlds in the Spiral. With this in mind, I sketched out a rough idea about Bartleby and the surrounding schools in Ravenwood.
I made this sketch to show people what I planned to model, and then was given comments and suggestions to make this a better model. Since making a video game is a team project, having easy steps to see the progress as it is happening is always good. It is much easier (and cheaper) to make changes in the sketch, then it is to make them after we go to a 3D model in the game. After some revisions, my sketch was approved and I could then go to the 3D model!
At KingsIsle we use 3D Studio Max for all of our modeling work in the game. It is a versatile program that is used in many video game studios. When you start modeling, you always begin with a basic object that is closest to your final model. For a building I would start with a box, but since Bartleby is round I started with a cylinder.
At this stage, all we wanted is a simple shape of Bartleby. We call this a “proxy”. The proxy is the next stage in the process from translating the sketch we created to a final 3D model. Using this Bartleby proxy, we could walk around it in our level editor and see if we liked the size and shape of the object so far.
Looks good! The size of the tree feels good and the tree roots are not too small. I imagined myself as a player walking up to Bartleby for the first time. I should feel some awe in such a great, big, magical tree but he should also have a sense of peace around him. He is, after all, the source of all magic in the Spiral.
Next, we started moving polygons around. Polygons are 3D virtual triangles that make up everything in an object. They are made up of points in 3D space called vertices. The surface of the triangle is called a polygon. The more polygons you have in a tree, the more “smooth” the surface of the tree will be. Think of this as “virtual clay”. Since there is only one Bartleby in the scene (as opposed to 5 different school buildings and tens of trees around the level), we could make him have some more polygons to his face and branches and roots than other, smaller trees in the level.
This is what we have so far. He does not look like Bartleby quite yet, but you can definitely see the direction we are going. In the next post I will show you how we added a texture to his surface that resembles bark, moss and leaves — everything that looks like a tree!
Stay tuned for part 3 where we will turn Bartleby into the final tree that you know and love in Wizard101.
Jeff Toney
Principal Artist
One Eyed Jack is here with the first Pirate101 game play tip article, some tips on how to pick the perfect Pirate!
When you first create your Pirate, every player is faced with three questions:
- How did you lose your parents?
- Where did you grow up?
- How did you get arrested by the Armada?
It’s the backbone of Pirate101 and makes for some really fun re-playability because if you chose different answers for each of these questions – you’ll experience the game differently. Sure, you’ll still be crashing your way through the Armada’s forces and finding all the pieces of the map to El Dorado, but these small choices will cue certain punch lines and apply game altering affects for the rest of your character’s Pirate101 existence.
This post will attempt to demystify a few of these choices. Below is an example of how the choices you make early on will affect your Pirate later in the game.
Didn’t help? Here’s more:
1- The “How you lost your parents” question will directly impact which companion you receive after you completed the “Presidio” dungeon of Skull Island. A good Internet search will yield information from pretty much every fan website out there, so to avoid spoilers, we’re not going to give you them all outright! However, choosing storm will net you a Swashbuckling companion, choosing shipwreck will result in a Privateer companion, and if you lost your parents to any of the other choices, you’ll receive one of three really awesome Buccaneer companions. All of them are great companions, so you can’t go wrong with your choice here.
These “Presidio Five” companions will talk to you throughout your journeys, and each has their own distinct personality. Moreover, each of these companions knew your parents personally, so they will share insights about them when the situation arises. If you like finding all the unique little tidbits in the Pirate101 story, make sure to choose a different path for each of your different Pirates!
2- The “Where you grew up” question adds a very basic power card to your list of passive abilities. Of course your character will be able to complete the entire game regardless of what power card is chosen, but there are a few extremely detail-oriented players out there who might want to re-roll their character if they didn’t make the right choice here:
- Marleybone: Keen Eyes (+5% accuracy)
- Krokotopia: Naturally Spooky (increased power effects)
- Grizzleheim: Naturally Tough (+5% health)
- MooShu: Born Warrior (+5 damage)
- Skull Island: Born Sneak (+5% dodge)
All of these abilities play into a major question – which class will you be? As a Witchdoctor, it would seem Naturally Spooky is an obvious choice, correct? But what about Privateer? Naturally Spooky will help them with their healing, but arguments could be made for any of the choices above . . . it really comes down to how you like to play your character. If you like to put them out in the middle of the battle, you might choose health or dodging. If you like to do a lot of damage, you might be swayed in that direction, and almost everyone can benefit from accuracy because it’s better to hit your target more often than not, right? The debate is endless, but we definitely like to give you a lot of options here because we know you love options!
3- The last and most impactful decision you make is why the Armada arrested you — that directs both your class and your starter companion. Whether it’s hoodoo, dueling, brawling, treason, or smuggling, you’ll be off to adventure with one of what we like to call “The MooShu Five” companions.
- Buccaneer: Kobe Yojimbo
- Privateer: Egg Shen
- Witchdoctor: Kan Po
- Musketeer: Wing Chun
- Swashbuckler: Subodai
Just like “The Presidio Five,” “The MooShu Five” companions are powerful allies who will banter with you throughout your journey and serve as faithful companions with several promotion quests. They are awesome! Keep them leveled up and they will help keep you alive.
See you in the Skyways and thanks for reading.
One-Eyed Jack
Community Manager
Today we have a guest blogger who hardcore Wizard101 and Pirate101 fans are familiar with… Jester from Wizard101 and Pirate101 Central! Jester takes a moment to explain the full story of how Wizard101 Central began.
Olivia and I have been working with Wizard101 for about five years now and it seems like it was just yesterday that we got started. Time sure flies when you’re having fun! As I write this, I realize that despite being asked about how Wizard101 Central came to be more times than you can shake a sheep pet at, I don’t think we’ve ever told anyone the full story. Well, gather around and listen my fellow Wizards, for a little bit of history about Wizard101 Central.
A few years before anyone had heard about Wizard101, back in 2005, our young daughter was playing the top child-friendly MMO at the time. She was actively visiting a community website for that game where she was looking up tips, organizing events and socially interacting with other players who were as excited about that game as she was. While everything seemed fine for a while, one day out of the blue she told Olivia and me that she wasn’t visiting that website any longer. Surprised and concerned, we discussed the matter with her and it turned out there was a bully who was teasing other people on that fan site. Right at that moment we decided to start our own community for that MMO where we could be sure she’d be safe from bullies. This would be a place where people could discuss aspects of the game without having to worry about being teased and pestered. For the next three years, that site slowly grew and became a fun, bully-free alternative to the “other” community.
One fateful day in 2008, my daughter mentioned a new game to us that she had read about called Wizard101. We did as much research as we could about the game and the company that made it. It was a family entertainment game and was being made by a company committed to family high quality games appropriate to all ages. It also helped that the game looked really cool! Our daughter applied for and got accepted into the Wizard101 beta program where she began playing the game like crazy. Olivia and I also wanted to play this awesome game, so we applied to the beta program as well. Before we knew it we were all playing Wizard101 together as a family and having more fun than a fire wizard who just summoned a Helephant! The more we played, the more we realized this game was going to be something very special.
On August 12th, 2008 we started Wizard101 Central with a single purpose; Olivia and I wanted to create a fun, safe place for everyone to visit where bullying and rudeness would never be tolerated.
Both Wizard 101 and Wizard101 Central steadily grew in popularity over the next few years. While Wizard101 has grown to become one of the most popular child friendly MMO’s, Wizard101 Central has grown to become the destination for anyone looking for Wizard101 information on any aspect of the game and a great compliment to KingsIsle’s forums. Our Wizard101 Wiki is full of accurate information and is ranked as one of the top wikis in the world!
In the spring of 2012, we had the privilege of participating in the alpha/beta programs for KingsIsle’s next family friendly game, Pirate101. We immediately loved the game and began to create a safe community for it, Pirate101 Central. Even though this community is young, it’s growing and has quickly become the largest archive of Pirate101 information on the internet.
Central forum members are friendly, helpful and fun to be around. They are the reason the Central forums are the best communities I personally have ever been a part of. We even have a few active members that are still with us from our first MMO website back in 2005. I cannot say enough good things about our Central teams either. Each and every Central team member is extremely hard working and dedicated to keeping our communities safe for all ages. It’s a privilege to be associated with each and every one of them and they are all a true pleasure to work with.
So that, my fellow wizards, is how and why the Central forums came to be. Over the last 5 years we’ve suffered growing pains, server outages and a few other stresses along the way but we can honestly say that we have had a blast though it all. One thing is for sure, there is never a dull moment!
Jester and Olivia
Wizard101 and Pirate101 Central Founders
KingsIsle Blog 