Howey’s Journey in Reverse

 
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Reece Howe (a.k.a Howey)

Game Developer

Mid-Senior Level Programmer

Occasional Technical Lead

Humble Mentor

Subject Matter Enthusiast

Employment Status: Unemployed and seeking new opportunities.

Dino Rocket

After parting ways with Mighty Kingdom I completed a small contract with a small independent studio called Dino Rocket working on a game called Kādomon: Hyper Auto Battlers. This is a fun roguelike auto-battler where the players assemble a team of Kādomon while they traverse their way through each run. The game is in Early access on steam and has a lot of potential. I’m looking forward to seeing where development leads on this project. While working with this developer I helped with rebuilding and restructuring some of the backend systems in the game.

Growing with Mighty Kingdom

After I graduated I applied at a company called Mighty Kingdom in Adelaide. At the time Mighty Kingdom was a company of about 20+ employees. I was employed at Mighty Kingdom on a short term contract as a programmer working on one of their Shopkins products in late 2016. Early the next year, Mighty Kingdom offered me a long term fulltime contract, which eventually became a fulltime permanent position.

During my time at Mighty Kingdom, I saw the company quickly grow to one of the biggest studios in Australia. As Mighty Kingdom grew, I grew alongside it. My responsibilities moved from Junior Programmer, to graduate Mentor, to Technical Expert and Technical Lead. I helped on a large variety of mobile projects and had the opportunity to work on a console title as well. We were able to produce amazing products and worked with many amazing partners.

I was employed at Mighty Kingdom for over 7 years, until 10 May 2024 . I learned so much while at Mighty Kingdom. I have worked with so many talented people over the years, all of which have helped to build me in to the developer I am today.

A long overdue career pivot in to Game Development

I decided to take a side step into Game Development.  Fortunately, Academy of Interactive Entertainment (AIE) had just announced they would be opening a campus in Adelaide. I applied and was lucky enough to be accepted in their first intake. It was a great experience and I made lots of good friends and contacts.

Fast forward two years (2016), and I am standing at my graduation fully qualified. The Adelaide game development industry seemed relatively small back then. I had been watching the industry grow while I was studying and I was eager join local developers making great games.

Qualifications

  • Advanced Diploma of Professional Game Development: Programming

  • Awarded: The Head of School Award for Outstanding Game Programmer

  • Awarded: The Head of School Award for Most Impressive Advanced Diploma Game Project

Complex Systems Experience

  • Artificial Intelligence (Utility, Behaviour, FSM)

  • Networking (RAKNET)

Engine Experience: Unity 3D

Languages: C++, C#, Visual Basic

Working in IT

After 15 years in the Information Technology Industry.

In roles like Systems Support, Desktop Support, Desktop Rollout and Deployment, Executive Desktop Support, Helpdesk.

I think this is where I got my passion troubleshooting and systems design and improvement.

Studying at TAFE

Working towards and Advanced Diploma in Information Technology.

Skills & Expertise

  • Game Programming/Design

  • Game Development/Testing

  • Game Mechanics/Theory

  • Technical Documentation

  • Project Management

  • Leadership and Mentoring

  • PC Development

  • Console Development PS/Xbox/Switch

  • Mobile Development Android/iOS/Amazon

  • Network Programming

  • Artificial Intelligence

  • Troubleshooting

  • Information Technology

  • Software Development

  • Support Technical/Customer Service

  • Filing and Document Production

  • Computer Hardware

  • Testing

  • Optimization

Programming & Software

  • Unity Developer (extensive)

  • Microsoft Visual Studio (extensive)

  • Programming Languages (Commercial) : C#, C++, Visual Basic, VBA

  • Programming Languages (Certificates) Python, C, C++, C#, Java

  • Unreal Engine: minimal

  • Rider: minimal

    Feature Implementation

  • Ad Mediation (Third Party Ad Mediation)

  • Unity Purchasing and Receipt Validation

  • Store Implementation

  • Analytics

  • Notifications (Local and Push)

  • Firebase

  • Translation and Localization

  • Game Play

  • User Interface and User Experience

  • Multiplayer

  • Animation

  • Platform Permissions

  • Customer Support

  • Audio and Visual Effects

  • Network Communication and Requests

  • East Side Games: IdleKit version 1.4

Technical Interests

  • Artificial Intelligence (Utility, Behaviour, FSM)

  • Machine Learning

  • System Design

  • Portability

  • Game Play

  • Visual Effects

  • Player Guidance

  • Networking (RAKNET)

  • Cross Platform Implementation

  • Optimization

  • Testing