Hello
I'm Jake McKenna, a game developer with Bachelor's degree in Game Design & Production and currently pursuing a Master's degree in Software Engineering. With experience as an XR Developer at SAIC, AFRL - Fort Sam Houston, and Black Hills Information Security, I've had the privilege of contributing to a number of cutting-edge projects on a professional level. In my personal time, I indulge in creative writing and indie game development. I am passionate about merging technical expertise and artistic vision to create authentic experiences in games that capture slices of the human experience. Thank you for visiting my portfolio; and feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
About Me
I'm a long time PC gamer. I grew up on Battlefield 1942 and Garry's Mod. My main interest is great storytelling in video games and so some of my all time favorite games are: Mass Effect (3 is my favorite), Dishonored 2, Gone Home, Life is Strange: Before the Storm, To the Moon, and Layers of Fear. I think video games are uniquely equipped to tell stories in a far more personal way than traditional media. We put players in the driver's seat of a story rather that the passenger's. My goal as a game designer is to find new ways to make those kind of experiences possible for people.
As a game designer I've worn many different hats on projects. I've done art direction, 3D design, narrative, scripting, level design, and production. My main skillset is in level design, but I think its important to be able to stretch to understand the constraints of other disciplines. It's easy to design an awesome level with no regard for the constraints of actually building it, working with a team in mind is much harder; and my generalist background allows me to do that.