From December 2012 to June 2013, I worked as a Programming Intern at 1st Playable Productions in Troy, NY. I worked on one research project (CYCLES) and two released apps (Pets & Pet Chat, both came pre-loaded on Leapfrog’s LeapPad Ultra tablet for kids).
CYCLES Project
Platform: PC | Engine: Flash
Description: The CYCLES project develops a computer game that teaches players how to recognize six common cognitive decision-making biases: confirmation bias, fundamental attribution bias, bias blind spot, representativeness bias, anchoring bias and projection bias. The goal is to reduce players’ dependency on bias in real decision-making situations by as much as 65 percent. It is funded by the U.S. Air Force and IARPA.
My Achievements:
- Implemented functionality for new scenes in a pre-existing code base
- Designed & implemented an automated testing system to find game-breaking bugs and crashes
- Worked with Lead Programmer to refactor outdated portions of code base to make future development smoother
Pets & Pet Chat
Platform: LeapPad Ultra | Engine: Proprietary C++ API
Description: Pets is an app in which kids customize pets and then play mini-games with them to level them up. Kids can then use the pet as an avatar in other LeapPad games. Pet Chat is an accompanying app where kids can use their customized pets as avatars to chat with other connected users. Both apps come pre-loaded on the LeapPad Ultra from Leapfrog.
My Achievements:
- Wrote gameplay systems for a hang-gliding mini-game and a math mini-game
- Implemented interactive tutorials for several mini-games
- Ensured both projects were bug-free as we approached release
