The start to 2012

When I look back on my life I am most likely going to remember the start to 2012. The very first day of the new year had Nikki suffering through a stomach virus, which a couple days later I got and the entire first week was pretty miserable. To top that off, both our jobs were getting fairly busy and once I felt up to it I went back to work and into a crunch mode of working 10+ hours each day. This continued into the second week of the new year but things were starting to look up. We were just about to launch our first title and major bugs were being fixed and I was learning a huge amount about cross platform development headaches.

Then friday the 13th arrived, we were all pushing for a build to send to our new partners to approve and the entire studio was caught off guard. Our email accounts were severed, then HR and parent company IT stepped through the door to announce the entire Fierce Wombat Games studio was being shutdown. That day was our last day and although a couple employees who were at the parent company before this studio was founded managed to keep their jobs, everyone had to pack up and leave an almost finished product sitting in limbo. I've always heard stories of games that were pretty much done but funding was cut and the launch just couldn't go through. I am sad to say I have one of those stories now.

I know startups run the risk of closing all the time but since we had a solid parent company I figured we really could make a product and release when it was ready. Opinions change and although no one person can be at fault I can't help thinking I should have put more time in earlier on to hit our first milestones. If I had, maybe we could have kept the decision makers happy long enough to see what a success the company could have been. I am however extremely glad for the experience as I met 22 of the best people in the industry. The most interesting veterans I've yet to meet and it was an absolute joy to work beside them. I hope I can stay in touch with everyone as I know every single person will continue to make their mark in the games industry.

As for my plans, I've updated my RESUME and will start the job search again. Most likely continue searching for a development/engineering gig as I learned at Fierce Wombat I have a ton more I am eager to learn. It is truly amazing how sheltered I was working on a single platform, and even though I thought PC and 360 were different platforms, I know now I have plenty I can learn to be the very best engineer I can be. I do still like to flex my business knowledge, and it continues to help me be a better engineer, knowing what the producers, designers, and even the studio heads are going through.

If you wish to chat or have an opportunity you feel I would be a good fit for please don't hesitate to contact me. My email is my name at gmail dot com and I make every effort to respond to my emails within 24 hours. I am also open to helping anyone who wants advice as I know its rough in this industry and any support is welcomed. For now I wish everyone the best and I may be writing a few more posts about different topics I want to share my thoughts on. So stay tuned here and on my social links.

Mark G.