Full-time Programmer

I worked on a variety of different projects at LFG Studio Red. Most of which are currently under NDA.

During my time at LFG Studio Red I primarily worked as a gameplay and tools programmer getting to work with Unreal Engine 5’s newest systems.

Besides working on the several game projects I also designed and worked on the implementation of an Unreal Engine 5 based framework built around Multiplayer and the Gameplay Ability System to be used as a shared toolset for all Studio Red projects. This framework tackled challenges such as:

  • A modular framework structure which can easily be extended and modified to suit a projects purpose
  • Integrating networked gameplay prediction to create a smooth client side experience while keeping a secure server authoritative structure
  • Serialization for Gameplay Ability System Data for persistent gameplay states
  • A unified system to control initialization order for the main game classes
  • Continuous integration tests and QA Validators to enforce good practices and blueprint conventions

Duration:August 2022 – August 2023 (1 Year)
Team Size:40+
Technologies:C++, Unreal Engine 5, TeamCity
Platforms:Windows, Playstation 5
New Project (1)
New Project (2)
Company Info
Untitled-2
Untitled-1
Company Info

(now Behaviour Interactive Rotterdam)
Internship

When starting my intership I got to work on finishing porting the PSP and PSVita cult classics “ZHP: Unlosing Ranger V.S. Darkdeath Evilman” and “Makai Kingdom: Reclaimed and Rebound” to the PC and Switch, my main responsibilities included:

  • Fixing Gameplay and Graphical Issues in a Large-scale Legacy Japanese Codebase
  • Adding Keyboard and Mouse support to many of the UI elements
  • Implementing Steam Achievements

After the ports were released I got to work on multiple (NDA) projects which include the revealed but unreleased in-house title Spellbenders. During this period my main focus was on:

  • Developing and Iterating on multiple Gameplay Systems
  • Creating stable networked experiences using Unity’s Photon
  • Making shaders and post-processing effects
  • Setting up and working in a VR Environment within Unity Engine

Duration:January 2022 – June 2022 (6 Months)
Team Size:20+
Technologies:C++, C#, Unity Engine, Git, Steamworks
Platforms:Windows, Nintendo Switch, Oculus Rift, Steam

Melodramatica

 A casual Victorian themed management game where you step into the shoes of a stage manager to manage a troupe of actors and prepare grand plays.

My main contributions included:

A stylized crosshatching shader with added tools, giving the game its unique vintage aesthetic.

Dialogue tools and systems that allowed designers to import lines, dialogue trees and game events callbacks from Google sheets.

Interaction system and interface that supports multiple interactions per object.  I then used this for miscellaneous systems like changing the stage décor, the crafting system and accessing dialogue with the characters.

Managing the technical processes for the team. This included planning, setting up conventions and pipelines, and aligning with Art and Design. As well as automated builds and distribution using Jenkins and Steamworks.

I also worked on profiling and optimisation, making use of Unreal Engine’s profiling tools and collaborating with artists to reduce the overhead of assets.

Duration: September 2020 – July 2021 (32 weeks)
Team Size: 20
Technologies: C++, Unreal Engine 4, Steamworks, Perforce, Jenkins, Jira
Platforms: Windows, Steam
Download on Steam
Visit the itch.io page

Streamlined Mastermind

A strategic heist planning game, plan out routes and actions for your crew beforehand and watch your masterplan unfold. Use your earnings and spend them to gather intel and tools for future heists.

My main contributions included:

Heist Planning System & Execution of Heists

The player could plan multiple action sequences for the heist which would create a timeline of events that would then be executed. I was responsible for the tech behind this, which included tackling challenges such as action dependencies, prioritization and the timing of actions when executing the plan.

Dynamic Context Menu & Interactions

Because of the many possible actions you could queue, I made a dynamic context menu that works with the action planning system to display and queue the available actions.

Shaders/VFX

Because of the specific camera angle the game featured, we needed a shader that allowed players to see through walls and objects. I made this post-processing shader with Unreal Shader Graph.

Duration:February 2020 – July 2020 (8 weeks)
Team Size:18
Technologies:Unreal Engine 4, Perforce, Jenkins, Jira
Platforms:Windows

Poco Engine

A lightweight scriptable 2D engine that aims to emulate games from the Pico-8 fantasy console on Windows and the Nintendo Switch.

A solo engine project with the main intent of bolstering my knowledge of C++. I wrote a small pixel perfect renderer with OpenGL and used the Sol2 binding library to extend the C++ functionality into Lua scripting.

As the virtual fantasy console “Pico-8” was a big inspiration for this project I got the idea to implement Pico-8’s API and have the engine double as a Pico-8 emulator in functionality. This not only lets me extend the API as I please but the cross-platform compatibility for Nintendo Switch would allow me to run these games on console!

The engine can load and parse both game and texture data directly from Pico-8 cartridge files and I have extended the Lua parser to partially support Pico-8’s unique Lua dialect.

Duration:July 2021 – September 2021
Team Size:1
Technologies:C++, Lua, Pico-8, Git
Platforms:Windows, Nintendo Switch
Github Repository

Catmodeus

Stylized Rendering & Gameplay

Made in 48 hours for the GMTK Jam 2020 using Unreal Engine 4

Become a demonic cat riding around on a roomba as you attempt to keep up with a dark ritual using telekenetic powers.

Visit the itch.io page

Dithercat

Gameplay & Dithering Shader

Made in 48 hours for the Yogscast Jingle Jam  2019 in Unity

Another cat game set in neo-tokyo, collect birds as gifts for your owner and grow fat and bouncy as you eat too much.

Visit the itch.io page

Screenchart

Gameplay & Networking

Made in 48 hours for the Global Game Jam in Unity

An online party game, find treasure using your treasure maps or look at your friend’s screens and steal theirs first!

Visit the itch.io page

Skills and Proficiencies

Languages

C++

C#

Lua

Software

Visual Studio

Unreal Engine 4 & 5

Unity

Perforce

Github

Jira

Jenkins

Arduino

Platforms

Windows

Nintendo Switch

Raspberry Pi

Creative Thinking

Quickly coming up with potential solutions or unconventional ideas helps me tackle complex problems and contribute to brainstorms. It also make sure I have always multiple options to consider instead of gunning for the first available solution.

Foresight

When tackling a problem or starting implementation I tend to think about potential pitfalls or risks that might occur in the future. Being able to mitigate these things early saves a lot of time in the long run.

Jack of all Trades

I love to explore the many other facets of game development. Getting to know about their intricacies helps me understand the bigger picture of creating games and how I can contribute best.

Communication

My interest in Art and Design helps me be a bridge between disciplines. I can easily identify dependencies between fields and offer technical insight or fresh ideas to different roles

About Me

Hello! My name is Joaquín Aguilera, I am 25 years old and currently working in the game development industry as a generalist programmer.



I love to create things, as a kid I pursued plenty of creative hobbies such as drawing, music and even sculpting. I discovered programming through scripting in Roblox and the Computercraft mod for Minecraft through which I learned basic Lua. Game development became a great way for me to combine my desire and my apt for problem solving, as well as indulge myself in my passion for games. I made a few small games during high school and applied for the Game Programming course in 2017.



Right now I have a lot more projects behind my belt and have found myself ever passionate to create more. I’ve practiced many different roles but feel as though a good part of my motivation comes from seeing a tangible product, so I enjoy working as a gameplay programmer and I love working on cool visuals through either graphics programming or technical art.