Danny Vargas Email & Phone Number

Burbank, California, Us

Utilizing proprietary software, Unreal 4, and mixed reality technology to create immersive backdrops for use in film and the entertainment industries, my job here is multilateral. I'm involved in every aspect of the Unreal 4 Engine and I have yet to find a wall that I couldn't climb.Some things I've completed and pushed out whether it was for film, entertainment, or retail:* Completely ported Microsoft's Azure Kinect to UE4 including body tracking, camera output, and the systems needed to make development of it possible via blueprints with event handlers and so on.* Created several full body gameplay experiences including one made for the M&Ms brand that was on display throughout the holiday season at the Los Vegas M&Ms store (2019)* Created a Dungeons and Dragon's like system for the use of a web series called InstaQuest, featuring interactive characters, enemies, items, and effects. Everything was queued by a technician on set and its implementation is dynamic, able to add as many branching paths for the camera to go and enemies to encounter.* Created a music experience on a whim that can obtain the beat of any music given to dynamically drive effects such as scale, particle effects, and lighting* Then there are the numerous minor bits: level design, blueprints, extensive animation trees, packaging, DLC, and even custom plugins and class overrides. The only thing I have yet to touch is multiplayer!

Us

I worked on Dungeon Defenders II, a free to play multiplayer Unreal 3 Engine game, which is now available on Xbox One, PS4, and PC. The project was primarily in UnrealScript and C++ with a focus on a seamless server-based online experience.• Implemented player interactions: Skills, abilities, and character movement.• Implemented Enemy AI: Ground, flying, and boss characters with their own skills and behaviors• Implemented Tower Mechanics: Build placement, targeting AI, and bullet mechanics• Initial console porting: Controller support for both the game and UI• Implemented Intractable Objects: An open library package that featured UI and KISMET elements that were used by level designers throughout the game.• SCRUM work environment with open communication and meetings with art and animation teamsWhile me tenure here was short, I will never forget the time I spent implementing the base mechanics that are in the game today.

San Bernardino, Ca, Us

Founded and lead this student game project under a National Science Foundation grant. Office Tactics was a turn based strategy game built in the Unreal 3 Engine.• Designed the game from the ground up, including gameplay, art, and story design.• Responsible for the programming of most of the games features including: gameplay mechanics, camera movement, character movement, path finding, and User Interfaces using ScaleForm and ActionScript.• Led a relatively small base team of four students (3 programmers and 1 artist) to develop the game, achieving the goal of a playable alpha build after 9 months of hard work.• Led and helped teach a college class of 30 Expert Systems students with an assistant. The class was tasked to create very basic AI for the various units that comprise the game using a baseline AI to extend from.• Agile work environment with full design documentation

San Bernardino, Ca, Us

A video game project under a National Science Foundation grant. Mythic was a third-person action role-playing game built in the Unreal 3 Engine.• Chiefly responsible for the combat, inventory, and save systems.• Managed a team of 17 people at its peak, all of them students of neighboring colleges and high schools in the surrounding area of San Bernardino.• Rigged and animated a full body humanoid using Maya. Imported and implemented into UDK’s animation tree structures. • Agile work environment with full design documentationThe project ended without release and remained as an internal alpha build. The project's large scope a change student graduations were the main reasons why it never took off as we had hoped.