Josh Skinner - Video Game Programmer and Developer
In 2007, I earned my Associate of Applied Science Degree in Computer Programming from Indian Hills Community College located in my hometown Ottumwa, Iowa. Despite my best effect I was sadly unable to get my foot inside the computer programming field due to my lack of job experience. While at first, I will admit, I was not in the best of places that all changed In 2009 when my nephew was born, and I became his primary care giver. It was during this time I re-found my passion for video games. A passion that went beyond just playing them, it was for their lore, the worlds, and characters. I would spend hours discussing game lore, battle tactics, and characters backstory with my nephew, who for the most part cooed, smiled, drooled, and slept but he was only a little guy. I started finding myself creating small little bedtime stories involving game characters. As he got older, I slowly started introduction him to the wonderful worlds I loved from Pokémon, Digimon, Kingdom Hearts, and a few questionable ones such a Mortal Kombat and God of War, thinking back those last two may not have been appropriate to introduce a four-year-old to but they helped him learn the different between movie/game magic and real-life. When he started school, I suddenly found myself with a whole lot of time on my hands, that was when I started thinking about giving my own educational career another chance. This time I wanted to pursue a career in something I was truly passionate about instead of just trying to land a job to pay my medical bills. So, in 2018, I joined the Game Programming and Development program and have never looked back, well except to re-play my massive collection of role-playing games of yesteryears.
I would love to either work at a well-known gaming studio or possibly own my own studio someday. Due to my love and passion for role playing and fighting games I have been eyeing Square Enix and NetherRealm studios for years. Working at ether would be not only a dream come true but also a coming full circle for me. My passion for fighting video games started with Midway’s 1992 Mortal Kombat and my passion for RPGs start with Square’s 1996 Super Mario RPG. While neither Midway nor Square technically don’t exist today their successors NetherRealm and Square Enix do. Besides my passion for the video gaming industry, there was another reason I chose to enter this career. With my overall lack of work experience and the difficulty I had looking for a job in computer programming the idea of being able to enter the video game industry as an indie developer was extremely appealing. Being an indie developer could also help me achieve my dream of owning my own game studio. One of the first games I would like to release is Rise of the Cryptid. You can learn more about it on artifact four.
I have had an absolute blast during my time at SNHU and cannot wait to continue my growth in the gaming industry. While at SNHU, I found that I enjoyed the whole cycle of development although I admit I am slight better at the programming and development side when compared to proof of concepting. I also learn pretty earlier that level design and characters modeling was extremely interesting. On June 28th, 2023, I started my journey to learn how to be a better game design by entering into SNHU's Game Art and Design degree program. While SNHU offered me a lot of information about the Unreal Engine, I am fully aware it not the only gaming engine companies use. I have slowly been teaching myself Unity. Now that I graduated, I will have more time to focus on learning it. The same can be said about other game type like RPG, Fighter, etc. SNHU had us focus on Shooter and Action games. While both game types are fun and huge hit with players around the world, neither are exactly my cup of tea. As mentioned early Mortal Kombat and Super Mario RPG, started my love of gaming, so learning to create my own RPG or Fighter is something I really want to do during my career.
ARTIFACT ONE- 3D MODELING: GHOST
ARTIFACT TWO- UNREAL ENGINE CODING KNOWLEDGE
ARTIFACT THREE - SPINEWHEELZ
ARTIFACT FOUR - RISE OF THE CRYPTIDS
