Brad Jacobs Level Designer
bradj@smu.edu
SKILLS
Level Design
Design: documentation, whitebox” gameplay creation, 2d and 3d concept creation, BSP editing, texturing, lighting, prop placement, Terrain editing, visual communication through Level Design
Level Editors: UnrealEd 3.0 (Gears of War, Unreal Tournament 3), Valve Hammer Editor (Half Life 2), Radiant (Doom 3), UnrealEd 2.0 (Unreal Tournament 2004), Elder Scrolls Construction Set (Oblivion), Unreal Ed 1.0 (Unreal Tournament, Thievery mod), Build (Duke Nukem 3d), Torque 2d 1.0 (Lycan: The Dark Secret)
Scripting & Programming: C++, Radiant Script, Unreal Script, Torque Script
Art Creation
Adobe Photoshop CS 2: concept painting, texture creation, sprite creation, photo manipulation
Maya 7 & 3d Studio Max 8: low and high polygon modeling, UV Mapping, lighting and rendering, animation
Other: video editing, sound effect creation, music editing, HTML, subversion, particle effect creation
GAME EXPERIENCE
The Ghastleybriar Zoo Incident, The Guildhall at SMU January - July 2008
Lead Game Designer (faculty selected) – Team Half-Life 2 Project
• Communicated game vision to a 15 person team, illustrated diagrams and held specialized meetings
• Wrote a 120+ page Game Design Document, documented various systems such as the combat system, the health system, and the animal behavior system
• Held regular play test sessions and received and responded to feedback from a Quality Assurance team
Reverie Chapter 1, The Guildhall at SMU January - July 2008
Level Designer / Game Designer – Personal Half-Life 2 Project
• Wrote 40+ page Level Design Document
• Created all BSP, lighting, optimization, and scripting
• Modeled, textured, and unwrapped nine models
Reverie, Vertical Slice Independent Mod Project October - December 2006
Level Designer / Game Designer – Personal Half-Life 2 Project
• Created original concept
• Designed and created level
• Created all BSP, lighting, and optimization
• Modeled, unwrapped, and textured 10 models
Insurrection, The Guildhall at SMU July - October 2007
Level Designer – Team Unreal Tournament 2004 Project
• Wrote 30+ page Level Design Document
• Created all BSP, lighting, and optimization for Pentell Station level
• Painted 30+ textures for use on BSP
Dissection, The Guildhall at SMU October - December 2007
Level Designer – Personal Doom 3 Project
• Designed and implemented adventure style gameplay in Doom 3
• Wrote 40+ page Level Design Document
• Created all BSP, lighting, optimization, and scripting
• Effectively told a storyline through Level Design within Doom 3 constraints
Lycan: The Dark Secret, The Guildhall at SMU January - March 2007
Level Designer, Environmental Artist, Co-Game Designer – Team Torque 2d Project
• Created all environmental art in the game (100+ assets)
• Designed two levels and implemented three levels with Torque 2d 1.0
• Produced all sound effects (10+)
• Wrote Game Design Document , developed gameplay systems such as the coin mechanic, breakable windows, and created overall mood
EDUCATION
The Guildhall at SMU July 2008
Professional Certificate in Digital Game Development GPA: 3.77
Specialization: Level Design
RELATED WORK EXPERIENCE
Toys R Us June 2005 - July 2006
Sales Associate in “R-Zone”
• Sold Video games to customers
• Evaluated stock, set up displays, and restocked shelves
• Recognized for outstanding sales and rewarded for elevating store rank from 42nd to 24th in the nation
AREAS OF INTEREST
• Storytelling through innovative Game Design
• Design for single player and multiplayer
• Balancing by Level Design
• Texture Painting