🏄🏼♂️ Overview
I am currently a Full Stack Unity Developer at Sandford Tech working in a small, dedicated team on the mixed-reality racing and building games, Slot Car VR. Previous to this, I was given responsibility of being the sole developer on the company’s first business-to-business training simulation, a VR application which teaches users the fundamentals of scuba diving.
Before starting at Sandford Tech, I was a Research Assistant and Game Developer at Bournemouth University, helping to develop games for two research projects that were a collaborative effort between multiple universities, companies and organisations across Europe. As part of my work for Bournemouth University, I had the chance to work in Budapest and Malaga. The work was used as part of medical research programs with the goal of helping overweight and elderly people to become healthier, through playing spatial computing video games.
I graduated in 2022 in Games Design from Bournemouth University, with my dissertation ‘How AI Can Be Used To Promote Emergent Narratives In Games’, and also earned an Extended Diploma in 2019 from Guildford College in Video Games Production. Outside of work, making games continues to be my greatest passion, and I am eager to explore the industry in all areas of development.
🧑🏼🏭 Experience
Junior Full Stack Unity Developer, Sandford Tech
- May 2023 - Present
- At Sandford Tech, a startup, I'm involved in every stage of the development pipeline, from initial feature design to final polishing and bug fixing. This extensive engagement has enhanced my understanding of the skills required at each production stage.
- SlotCarVR is the primary project I've worked on, serving as one of two developers. I contributed to various aspects, including networking, building and car physics, Oculus SDK integration, and game and user experience design. The game is now live in Open Beta with positive feedback.
- Additionally, I worked on a VR Scuba diving training simulator for a private client, where I was the sole developer for most of the project duration. The application features full hand-tracking support, optimised for mobile VR, and a modular event-based quest system.
- During Gamescom 2023 in Germany, I represented the company as the only developer showcasing SlotCarVR, a mixed reality, multiplayer racing and building game. Observing people find the game intuitive and enjoyable was a significant highlight in my career.
- Another source of pride in my role is contributing to the founding of Sandford's proprietary code library, Rufas (Reusable Unity Framework and Systems). This tool is integral to all projects undertaken by the company.
Research & Development, Bournemouth University
- August 2022 - April 2023
- After graduating, I secured a position as a research assistant at Bournemouth University, working on two projects: iGame and ASPIRE. Both projects focus on utilising computer games to promote healthy living and an active lifestyle. My primary responsibility involves developing games for upcoming clinical trials, aiming to encourage participant exercise.
- These collaborative projects involve partnerships with universities and companies across Europe. I had the opportunity to go on secondments to Hungary and Spain, acting as a liaison between the University and our European partners.
- I was part of a small team that created a total of six mobile games for my role. Five were small brain-training style games, while the sixth, Seed & Sow, was a more complex AR farming RPG. Combining PokemonGo-style real-world movement with a farming mode similar to Stardew Valley, Seed & Sow aims to teach users about a healthy diet through the farming and cooking mode, while the active mode promotes exercise. The game utilises the Go Maps Asset for spatial computing and Firebase for storing user data.
Operations Team Member, FunTech
- September 2021 - July 2023
- After working as a tutor for the summer, I was offered a position as a operations team member during the academic year of 2021-22. I was responsible for overseeing classes at Funtech, which range from creative courses for younger children all the way up to A-Level & GCSEs. My role required me to communicate with parents and students alike, fix technical problems, mark student’s work and help out with any other problems that may arise throughout the academic year.
- I also taught a wide variety of courses this year to cover for tutors (often on a moments notice). The software and tools I have taught includes: Python, Unreal Engine, Unity, Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, Construct 3, Ableton, Filmoria, Animate & Microsoft Office.
- During my last year at FunTech, I did not work regular hours but instead took on a advisory position / support role to the new operations team. I occasionally stepped into cover shifts, train new team members, mark students work and advise the new team on any problems that they are unsure on how to deal with.
- References: Available upon request.
Game Development Tutor & Assistant Lead Tutor, FunTech
- July 2021 - September 2021
- Throughout the summer of 2021, I taught over sixty children (with ages varying from 7 to 16) the core principles of programming and game development. My favourite course to teach was Unreal Engine 4. It was incredibly fulfilling to pass on my knowledge and witness the start of some potential future game developer’s careers.
- I taught at multiple schools across London including schools in Wimbledon, Richmond and Barbican. I ask to move schools to cover over teachers or resolve scheduling issues multiple times which I always did; I think this proves my flexibility regarding problem solving and wanting to do what is best for the team as a whole.
- At Wimbledon, I was asked to be the assistant lead tutor. This meant I was responsible for communicating with parents, organising early drop off and late pick up, making lunch for the students. I would also be expected to provide any other additional support to the other tutors in any way I could; this often included helping to calm down a energetic classroom or support a struggling student 1-1.
- For this role, I was required to pass a DBS check and get a certification in Emergency Pediatric First Aid.
🎓 Education
Bachelor of Science, Games Design
- Bournemouth University, Faculty of Science & Technology, Class of 2021
- Final Grade Achieved: Second Class Honours (Upper Division)
- Dissertation Grade & Topic: How AI can promote Emergent Narrative (First Class)
Extended Diploma, Video Game Production
- Guildford College, Class of 2019
- Final Grade Achieved: Distinction, Merit, Merit
🛠️ Hard Skills
- Unity Game Engine (Over Six Years Experience)
- Virtual Reality & Mixed Reality
- OpenXR, Oculus SDK (Hand Tracking, Meta Avatars, Presence Features)
- C# Programming Language (Over Six Years Experience)
- Unreal Engine 4 & 5 (Experience in Teaching UE4)
- Python (for Data Analysis and game development)
- Godot 3/4 & GD Script
- Modelling & Animation in Blender & Maya
- Adobe Creative Cloud
- Version Control (Git & Plastic)
🧠 Soft Skills
- Experience working on complex and undocumented projects
- Experience supervising and supporting employees as well as coordinating with external contractors
- Experience developing within a tight deadline
- Experience working independently and part of a small team
- Experience working with new technologies (both hardware and software)
- Experience showcasing a game in front of press, publishers and the general public at Gamescom 2023.
- Effective communication and listening (both written and verbal)
🏕️ About Me
I have been developing in Unity for over eight years and am currently looking for new opportunities on commercial projects where I can further develop my skills. I have experience developing with a wide variety of programming techniques and mediums. These include VR & MR, Networking, Spatial Computing, Speech Recognition, Procedural Generation, and most recently goal-based AI simulations.
What excites me most about game development is designing and programming complex systems that create believable and immersive worlds for players to explore. Over the last few years, I have developed a passion for both AI programming and emergent narrative design. These two topics were the focus of my undergraduate dissertation in 2022, for which I achieved a first class grade. Since then, I have continued my research and experimentation in this area, I plan to experiment on using goal-based AI in combination with systemic gameplay in order to promote emergent narrative.
Outside of the office, I love to keep myself active with my favourite hobbies: Camping, Climbing and running. In April of 2023, I ran the London Marathon on behalf of the RNLI which is a charity I am passionate about supporting. I am lucky to say will be running again for charity in 2024.
I am prepared to relocate for work for the right position, but I am also open to working remotely. In the past I have taken on roles working both remotely and in person as well as having experience travelling for work.
📬 Contact
Email: j.c.duffy@outlook.com 📧
Linked In 👨🏼💻