Welcome
I am Aaron Stead
About me
Hi I am Aaron Craig Stead I am a games programmer. I have been programming since I was 11 years old, and I have learnt a variety of different coding languages mainly focused on learning coding for games through education for the last 6 years.
I have applied this understanding into games development to allow me to code the core elements of games, along with a growing understanding of AI coding, as well as a new understanding of VFX programming.
Through my time at Falmouth University I have learnt to work in indie sized teams and make a game within these groups. Whilst studying and creating game I also took part in learning boxing, as well as being within a amateur boxing fight which was a great experience for me both Physically and mentally.
In my past time I spent a lot of time playing games of ranging genres as I tend to enjoy different genres at different times, I often find myself going back to survival games or roguelikes games, otherwise I will go on walks, read books although i am very slow at it, or be going to the gym as I have found an enjoyment and helps me relaxed, as well as often meeting up and spending time with friends both in real life, or online.
I have been aiming to be a programmer to make games for others to enjoy and play as I am aware of what games can do for people. Not only how they help people connect and have fun playing together, but also how they can help people feel better about themselves and hopefully get the chance to forget any issues they might be happening in their lives. I want to be apart of this system of making games to give back, as the games that have helped me through all my struggles have done for me, I now want to make games to help the next generation
I have applied this understanding into games development to allow me to code the core elements of games, along with a growing understanding of AI coding, as well as a new understanding of VFX programming.
Through my time at Falmouth University I have learnt to work in indie sized teams and make a game within these groups. Whilst studying and creating game I also took part in learning boxing, as well as being within a amateur boxing fight which was a great experience for me both Physically and mentally.
In my past time I spent a lot of time playing games of ranging genres as I tend to enjoy different genres at different times, I often find myself going back to survival games or roguelikes games, otherwise I will go on walks, read books although i am very slow at it, or be going to the gym as I have found an enjoyment and helps me relaxed, as well as often meeting up and spending time with friends both in real life, or online.
I have been aiming to be a programmer to make games for others to enjoy and play as I am aware of what games can do for people. Not only how they help people connect and have fun playing together, but also how they can help people feel better about themselves and hopefully get the chance to forget any issues they might be happening in their lives. I want to be apart of this system of making games to give back, as the games that have helped me through all my struggles have done for me, I now want to make games to help the next generation
My skills
Unreal engine Blueprint
I have been using the Unreal engine for a few years now, and I have a great understanding of the engine
C#
I have used the C# language for many years now mainly when making games in the Unity engine
Construct
This was the first engine I used to make a game which had a simple block based code, however this helped me to understand the basics of coding for a game.
Python
This was my first coding language that I used to learn the basic understanding of being a programmer.
Maya
I have used Autodesk Maya in the past and have an understanding of the pipeline for 3D artists but I have mainly stuck to programming
C++
I have been learning on the side how to code in the C++ coding language as I am aware it is a big part of the industry in terms of coding
Bite N'Smite
https://linktr.ee/BadPandaGames
Bite N' Smite is a fast paced, easy to learn, 2.5D fighting game inspired by tabletop fantasy that features class and race customisation to determine fighter move sets and parameters. That is a group project I worked on as the lead Programmer over the year of development.
As my role of Lead Programmer I aimed to make sure that my fellow two programmers were not only working to the best they could, but also being the interdisciplinary communications for the programmers to make sure other members of the team know who to talk to when implementing new assets or new mechanics so the game creation could run as smoothly as possible.
Alongside this role I was also apart of implementing core mechanics to help meet the desired feel and outcome of the game me and the group were striving for.
I also was a key part in creating the VFX for the game to help the gameplay pop and have more of an impactful feeling with each hit and block.
Bite N' Smite is a fast paced, easy to learn, 2.5D fighting game inspired by tabletop fantasy that features class and race customisation to determine fighter move sets and parameters. That is a group project I worked on as the lead Programmer over the year of development.
As my role of Lead Programmer I aimed to make sure that my fellow two programmers were not only working to the best they could, but also being the interdisciplinary communications for the programmers to make sure other members of the team know who to talk to when implementing new assets or new mechanics so the game creation could run as smoothly as possible.
Alongside this role I was also apart of implementing core mechanics to help meet the desired feel and outcome of the game me and the group were striving for.
I also was a key part in creating the VFX for the game to help the gameplay pop and have more of an impactful feeling with each hit and block.
Flight to oblivion - UNI 2nd year
https://mdgrance.itch.io/flight-to-oblivion-218
Flight To Oblivion was a group project I was working on with peers on my 2nd year of university.
Within this group I was the lead programmer, Whilst I was working on the player movement, camera lock-on, and the magic system. I was also helping the other programmer focus on what needed programming for the game, as well as working on interdisciplinary relations.
Flight To Oblivion was a group project I was working on with peers on my 2nd year of university.
Within this group I was the lead programmer, Whilst I was working on the player movement, camera lock-on, and the magic system. I was also helping the other programmer focus on what needed programming for the game, as well as working on interdisciplinary relations.
Ninja bear - uni 1st yeat
https://faldevstudent2124.itch.io/ninja-bear
Ninja bear was a group project I was apart of during my 1st year of university.
In this group I was the lead programmer so whilst working on making the player movement and collectable system I was also giving tasks to my fellow programmers, and did my best to maintain interdisciplinary relations. This meant I was often asked by the designers and other disciplines whether the programmers could or could not do certain ideas.
Ninja bear was a group project I was apart of during my 1st year of university.
In this group I was the lead programmer so whilst working on making the player movement and collectable system I was also giving tasks to my fellow programmers, and did my best to maintain interdisciplinary relations. This meant I was often asked by the designers and other disciplines whether the programmers could or could not do certain ideas.
Final college piece
This video shows a game piece I had worked on when I was studying game development at college. This was a game I had made by myself, where the player would have to defend a piece of land from a horde of goats.
When making this game I had used AI for the enemy movement and attacks. I had also needed to make the players movement, and attacking as the player had both a melee and range attack.
When making this game I had used AI for the enemy movement and attacks. I had also needed to make the players movement, and attacking as the player had both a melee and range attack.
College work
The above video is a short demonstration of a concept I worked on for one of my college units that was based around a horror theme, and was made with in the Unreal engine. This was also my first game within the unreal engine. Although short I enjoyed what I had learnt from this project, as it consists of code I can see myself using in the future.