Keith S

Game Design Director

Bio

Height 6' 8". Blue eyes. Born in 1972 in Florida. Married since 1993, and has two children. Worked on Duke Nukem Forever for many years. Has been balding since high school. Size 15 shoes. Wears glasses. Enjoys eating gyros, sushi, and chocolate, but not together. Non-smoker. Right-handed.

Length of time I have been employed in the industry

The word "employed" has a different connotation than "worked in." I was getting BASIC games published in Rainbow Magazine as early as 1987. During high school I worked on some shareware games and was paid by people who registered them, but I still didn't have an "employer." In 1990, during my senior year of high school, Softdisk published one of my games, but they didn't have me on the payroll. I worked on Paganitzu and Realms of Chaos up until 1996, and Apogee published them, but I still wasn't technically an employee. In 1996, I finally began working at 3D Realms, and there I collected a paycheck and got a W-2 form, so I guess I have been officially "employed in the industry" since 1996.

Game companies I have worked for

Apogee/3D Realms and Gearbox. That's it.

Titles I have worked on

I've been in the industry long enough that I've got a list of obscure games I've worked on that you've probably never heard of. I also worked on Duke Nukem 3D: Plutonium Pak, Shadow Warrior, and Duke Nukem Forever.

Advice

Resources I would recommend for those interested in getting into game development (books, tutorials, sites, etc)

I've used the Wrox Press books to learn C++ and C#. Other than that, I can't cite any specific examples, but there are a ton of resources out there. A quick Google search will get you started.

Favorites

First game I remember playing

Sprint, the old top-down black-and-white racing game. I played it at a Dairy Queen somewhere in Michigan with my father, while on a family road trip. I may have been 6 or 7 years old at the time.

All-time favorite game

Bioshock. I haven't played it yet, but I tend to like games better before I actually get my hands on them and the warts become apparent. My favorite game I've ever played would have to be Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss. Other favorites include System Shock 2, Thief 2, Morrowind, and the entire Grand Theft Auto series. As you can probably tell, I'm a huge fan of free-roaming emergent gameplay.

Non-video gaming hobbies

Nothing I spend any real time on. Does playing with my kids count as a hobby? Before they came along, I spent a lot of time reading fantasy and science fiction novels. I play racquetball once a week, I suppose that's sort of a hobby.

Favorite bands/music

I enjoy a wide range of music, and listen to different things depending on what mood I'm in. I do not generally listen to rap, hip hop, or country. I also don't listen to much "easy listening", but even so, I still like the occasional Carly Simon, Anne Murray, Barbra Streisand, or Bette Midler song. I will listen to black metal, trance, radio pop from any era, classical, new age, rock, heavy metal, rap metal, folk, fusion, or just about anything.

Favorite books/authors

I absolutely love the Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin, and I grew up loving the Chronicles of Narnia and the Prydain Chronicles. I've also read the Wheel of Time series multiple times, Harry Potter, and Lord of the Rings.

Favorite TV shows

Heroes is my current favorite, but I also watch 24, Lost, and Battlestar Galactica.

Favorite movies

The Empire Strikes Back, Aliens, Return of the King, and many others.

Favorite quote

"Most of my favorite quotes would be something one of my friends said, which was probably stolen from a movie or TV show, and would have no meaning outside of context. My least favorite quotes are anything latched onto by politicians and turned into preachy, overused cliches that ruin my whole day when I hear them."

Keith's blog activity

Gearbox Sightings in OXM

Guitar Hero Controller Project

Keith's forum activity

Re: Bodnar!!!