How long have you been in the industry? Eight years
How long have you been with d3t? Eight years
What was the first game that you worked on? Shenmue I & II HD
How did your career begin?
I previously worked in IT for ten years before deciding to go to university and retrain to work in the games industry. I have always been passionate about games going back to the days of the Commodore Amiga, Atari systems and early PC gaming. To pursue this change, I attended the University of Hull and studied a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, followed by a master’s degree focused on 3D graphics. I always loved the creativity and satisfaction that programming visuals in games gives you and decided that this was the field that I wanted to specialise in.
What do you do day-to-day in your role?
Graphics programming work can be quite varied depending on the project you are on. You tend to work on lower-level systems, closer to the engine side than some other disciplines, which lends itself well for looking at performance and optimisations of various kinds. You also make use of various graphics debugging tools for troubleshooting issues and highlighting bottlenecks.
You’ll work with various rendering API’s (such as DirectX12) where implementation is split between two different domains. Firstly, the CPU side where you are programming the renderer to create and manage the various graphical resources and systems that will ultimately interface and issue commands to the GPU hardware. Then, you have the GPU itself, where you are programming the rendering pipeline stages via shaders. Shader programming can be challenging to debug, hence the importance of being familiar with the graphics tools that can aid you. Shaders also tend to draw on more specific areas of graphics theory such as lighting, image manipulation, sampling and the nuances of GPU hardware required to optimise performance. Sometimes I could be working purely on the renderer API, or alternatively writing shaders for lighting, post-FX and other techniques which often borders on a more technical art level at times.
You may also find yourself working closely with content and art teams to help facilitate their needs and troubleshoot various material pipeline issues. You may implement a new rendering feature into the engine, but it is the artists who may need to utilise it to achieve the desired look, so you have some role in supporting that.
What is it like working at d3t?
d3t is very friendly place to work with a great work-life balance and anti-crunch mindset which was one of the most appealing aspects for me. There were only 20 or so employees when I joined, and despite the business having grown much larger, they still manage to maintain that same friendly and accommodating atmosphere. As well as many new juniors coming into the fold, we have a good amount of industry veterans that have been around the block, and yet choose to stay and work here and I think that speaks for itself.
I worked in the office for six years or so, but then following Covid I have worked remotely from home full-time. For me, this has offered greater flexibility and d3t has provided support and the tech infrastructure enabling this to be a seamless process for the projects I’ve been involved with.
Do you have any tips for people looking to get into the games industry?
From a graphics programmer perspective, one of the key things would be having a stand-out portfolio of 3D rendering related techniques to showcase your knowledge. Rather than making a game, I would strongly recommend instead starting your own C++ engine / renderer project in your own time, utilising DirectX API (preferably 12), reading around on modern graphical techniques (e.g. forward and deferred rendering, PBR lighting and materials, normal mapping, shadow mapping, screen-space techniques and/or post-processing FX, anti-aliasing etc) and implementing these into your renderer, importantly taking the time to understand how they work fundamentally.
I also recommend getting very familiar with graphics debugging software such as PIX and RenderDoc since these really help understand what is going on behind the scenes. For me, working on my own renderer is a fun hobby too and if you enjoy this process, it’s also a good sign you’d enjoy getting into a graphics programming role which I’d definitely encourage people to do.
We are hiring
Stay tuned for more spotlight features coming soon. In the meantime, if you’re feeling inspired and want to join our team, check out our vacancies page!
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
I have completed three years at Abertay University on the Computer Games Applications Development course, where I worked primarily with C++. I have worked with numerous different API’s, including DirectX 11, SFML and Opengl, alongside the Unreal game engine.
During my spare time, I have helped develop a game for a game jam using Unity, which was very fun yet challenging as I had never worked with C# or Unity before, though a lot of the principles of programming were transferrable.
Alongside university, I also worked part-time as a Deliveroo rider, as a cyclist.
Why d3t?
I was extremely excited to join d3t as a Programming Intern after learning about it through an email from our module leader. Originally when I first saw the email, I assumed there was no chance of me getting into this internship, as all the students in Abertay had also received this email, but I decided to apply anyway, and I am very grateful to have been accepted.
After the challenging interview process, I knew that I had to choose d3t as I learned new programming knowledge from the interview, which was extremely interesting and enticed me to accept the offer. During the interview, my old programming from university was questioned with constructive criticism, making me approach it from a completely different, efficiency-focused mindset. This peek into the expert knowledge of the d3t team inspired me to join, as I know I have so much more to learn, yet I am incredibly eager to rise to this challenge.
What do you love about games?
The best part about video games to me is the ability to be completely immersed in an entirely different world. The mechanics, narrative, graphics, audio and more, all come together to create this unique experience that is completely different from any other form of media.
Also, I love that games range from being extremely relaxing to highly competitive, allowing anyone to have access to and enjoy this amazing hobby.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
My favourite game series must be Spyro, as I used to play a few of them on the Wii and PlayStation as a kid. The recent remastered games have also been amazing, as they have brought back lots of positive memories.
A game I am currently playing is Project Zomboid, an indie zombie-survival game that specialises in realism. The game has an impressively immersive world, as a single bite from a zombie ends the entire run.
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
I love socialising and hanging out with people, especially whilst playing board games. I have quite a sizeable collection of them, including classics such as Dune and Betrayal at House on the Hill. I am also a WW2 Tank history fan, as I used to play a lot of the games such as “WarThunder” and “World of Tanks” when I was younger.
We are absolutely thrilled to announce that we have been recognised as a GamesIndustry.biz Best Place to Work for 2022!
The award highlights the best games studios to work for in the UK, and 2022 marks the fourth consecutive year in a row that d3t has won the award and the fifth time in our history.
However, what makes this award more special for us is that it is voted for primarily by our team, with 75% of a studios score coming from an anonymous employee survey and the final 25% via an in-depth company questionnaire.
Speaking on the announcement, our Head of Studio, Richard Badger, said: “I am delighted that we at d3t have not only been announced as one the best games studios in the UK to work for, but also that this is the fifth time that we have received the award – 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, and now 2022.
“Since d3t was founded in 2010, we have grown from strength to strength, not only on the scale and complexity of the games that we work on, but also in the size of our team, which now stands at 141 strong. But with this growth, we have made sure that we have continued to keep our culture at the forefront of what we do.
“To this end we are continuing to improve and advance ourselves, whether its investing into our studio, increasing our team’s benefits, or adapting our policies and practices to ensure that the needs of our people are met. We do this because we care about everyone, and without their talent, and passion for all things games, we simply would not be where we are today – so a huge thank you to every one of them. It takes everyone to make a great place to work, and this award is an award that is for every single member of our team.”
The winners of the coveted MCV/Develop 30 Under 30 awards were announced recently at a star-studded event in London.
The awards which set out to showcase 30 of the most talented individuals under the age of 30 working within the games industry, identifies those that have not only worked in the industry for some years, but those that have also demonstrated excellence and progression during that time too.
With more nominations received than ever before for a place on the cohort, we are delighted to announce that our very own Associate Programmer, Stuart Pentelow has been recognised as one of this year’s winners.
Stuart, who is a strong advocate for helping and mentoring those who aspire to work in the industry, has formed close ties with Abertay University in Dundee, where he has helped spearhead d3t’s support and team involvement in assisting with the Professional Project module. This support sees d3t provide an open-ended brief for students to work on, and at the end of the mentorship programme they then keep their own IP rights to the work. You can take a look at some of the past work with Abertay University here.
Speaking on Stuart’s win, Head of Engineering at d3t, Phil Owen, said: “Stuart’s programming skills have developed steadily and effectively since joining d3t from university and he has contributed greatly to the projects he has worked on. Everyone at d3t is extremely proud of Stuart’s well-deserved achievement. Going forward I hope that his development as a Programmer continues to go from strength to strength and that he takes great confidence from being one of MCV/Develop’s 30 under 30. Very well-done Stuart!”
Stuart, also spoke on his recent win, saying: “I am incredibly pleased to be one of MCV Develop’s 30 Under 30 Cohort for the year of 2022.
“Visiting London and networking with a wide range of incredibly talented games industry professionals at the IRL event was an experience that I don’t think I’ll be able to forget for a good while!
“I can’t thank my friends and my fantastic colleagues at d3t enough for encouraging me and pushing me forward for this award, so a massive thank you to you all.”
You can take a look at the full MCV/Develop 30 Under 30 cohort for 2022 here
The peer-voted industry excellence Develop Awards are all about the game dev community, and celebrating the creative excellence of the game makers behind the best games of the previous 12 months.
Taking place in Brighton at the Hilton Metropole Hotel. d3t won in recognition of its work on both Alan Wake Remastered with Remedy Entertainment, and Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy with Eidos Montreal.
Speaking on the win, Head of Studio, Richard Badger, said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to have been recognised by our peers for our creative excellence on both Alan Wake Remastered and Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy.
“I’d like to pay tribute to both Remedy Entertainment and Eidos Montreal, for entrusting us with their projects, and to our team whose passion, hard work, and talent has and continues to enable us to work on the world’s greatest games.
“I have worked in many teams over my long career within the games industry, but this d3t team is without doubt the best team that I have been a part of, so a massive thank you to each and every one of them.”
This award marks the second one in a week for d3t, after also being announced as a GamesIndustry.biz Best Place to Work for 2022 – for the fourth consecutive time, and for the fifth time in its history.
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
I graduated in Computer Games Design back in 2021, and during this course I was involved with the creation of numerous projects where I found that I was pretty good at finding bugs within games. I have also contributed to various Game Jams, however, for these I have tended to focus on other aspects of the games pipeline e.g., 3D art.
Why d3t?
I first heard about the studios culture from my friends Lewis and Charlotte who both work at d3t, and they were always telling me of the great things that the studio hosts and works on for their team. This for me gave the studio a very close-knit feel which I’ve never really felt outside of my university friend group.
In addition to this, it is clear to see that d3t has a deep passion towards the games that they are involved in. This is highlighted through the various awards that the studio has won.
What do you love about games?
This is a hard question for me to answer as I love everything within a video game, be it the music, the mechanics, the story, or the atmosphere they provide. But what I think I love the most when it comes to video games is the communities they garner.
I am part of a few communities myself though I mostly look at what other people do. However, seeing their creativeness and passion for a particular game, for me really shows how impactful this media can be.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
I have…a fair few games in my library, be it Steam and PS2, but currently I am going through the Assassin’s Creed series in release date order. I am on AC 3 remastered and I’m really enjoying it so far. I am also playing through Psychonauts, which I am very much enjoying at the moment.
As for my favourite game, I could go with my childhood classics such as Need for Speed Most Wanted or Crash Bash. But I can’t single it down to one game, rather two. The game that got me into gaming in the first place: Burnout 3: Takedown and the game that got me wanting to be part of this industry was The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
I love hanging out with other people, though I tend to be quite shy. If I get the opportunity to, I quite like to do a bit of sport like tennis, cycling, or go-karting.
Otherwise, I like to spend my time at home playing games either with myself or with other people. I also like to create 3D art as the modelling and texturing seems to satisfy and relax me.
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
I have been in the QA industry for a little over 25 years’, with the majority of my career being at Sony/PlayStation studios, where I have learnt a lot and have made some great memories. However, I am now looking forward to creating new memories with the team at d3t.
Why d3t?
d3t is an established and well-respected studio with a broad portfolio of projects. I also know existing d3t staff that are happy within their teams, and I am excited to be a part of the award-winning culture that the studio is renowned for.
What do you love about games?
The variety. Games can be blockbuster projects or small well designed indie games. Combine this with great design, amazing art, and fantastic music, and you have a truly great form of media.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
I’m currently playing a few games, some being Destiny 2, Dead Cells, Crypt of the Necrodancer, and Zelda Tears of the Kingdom.
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
Gaming takes a lot of my time as I am a keen gamer! However, aside from games, I’ve been trying to learn bass guitar. Although, I promise never to play to anyone as I’m not very good!
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
Over the past five years, I’ve had the pleasure of calling Team 17 my home. I started as a Junior Artist and worked my way up to a Senior Artist position. Recently, I led a project called Killer Frequency, which was an incredible experience.
During my time at Team 17, I contributed to five released titles and various other projects. Although I’ve never worked on a big-name title, I’m immensely proud of the work I’ve contributed and the people I’ve worked alongside. I can honestly say that I’ve loved every minute of it, and there’s no better job than this.
As an Environment Artist, my skill set is quite varied. I tend to lean towards the technical aspects of the role, but take on different tasks to keep things fresh. I love working in tight-knit teams and I especially enjoy working across departments, plus finding the right balance between needs is a fun challenge.
Working in small teams has given me the opportunity to work within the full asset creation pipeline, from reference right the way through to implementation. I’m confident in creating artwork and set-dressing, and I’m excited to stretch my artistic legs again, and grow.
I’ve spent significant time in-engine, primarily set-dressing, lighting, creating shader graphs, and VFX. Although I’m not an expert in shaders or VFX, I enjoy the challenges they present.
I primarily use Maya, Unity, PS, and Painter, but I’m always looking to use the best tool for the job, regardless of the software. I’m especially excited to work in different in-house engines, figuring out how they work, and discovering their similarities and differences. (I know I’ll probably end up eating my words!).
Why d3t?
The interviews left me in such a great mood. Everyone I’ve spoken with has been absolutely lovely, and the conversations have been super engaging. That on its own is a pretty good sign.
Additionally, the opportunities to learn are too hard to pass up. The variety of work, the projects on offer, the access to studios, developers, perspectives, and skills will be invaluable. I can imagine d3t being a long-term home for my career.
What do you love about games?
The creation of games encompasses and overlaps with just so much, it’s difficult not to break into a long ramble. Making games captures me, and there’s nothing else I’d rather be doing.
We’re building worlds. To do that we need to break down the world we live in, understand how it works, and then recreate it in our own vision, and tell a compelling story while doing it.
There are also endless opportunities – to learn and engage in interesting conversations; to be creative and technical, to create and build. There’s nothing like it.
I’ll leave it there as this is a topic I can really get into.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
I’m hooked on classic World of Warcraft again… I couldn’t resist giving hardcore a bash. The losses make me want to curl up into the foetal position, but I’m somehow having a blast.
My favourite genres would have to be MMOs, RPGs, RTS(s?), but I’ll jump into just about anything that catches my eye. Usually, open and story-rich worlds in a Sci-fi and Fantasy setting really get me hooked.
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
I really enjoy gardening, cooking; and the occasional fun drive out into the country for a walk in some-place pretty.
This year we’re growing some Peas, Beets, Tomatoes, and various berries.
(Although, the birds and caterpillars will probably eat everything again).
We’ve recently adopted a second kitten! – he’s called Bean.
(If you’re on a call with me and hear tiny squeaks, it’s coming from Bean. If you hear a dodgy meow, then it’s Betty).
Tell us a bit of information about your experience/career background?
I was a Cyber Security Project Manager for a few years in the Public Sector where I designed hardware and software security operating procedures. I have since been working as an IT Support Officer helping grow and look after the IT landscape within another Government Department. However, I have been passionate about video games my entire life, so to be able to take the next step in my IT career with d3t is a dream come true!
Why d3t?
Besides the fantastic opportunity to help support people create amazing games, a big draw to d3t is the culture. I always want to try and better myself as a person and encourage continuous improvement in the workplace. I look forward to being with like-minded people who value the importance of an environment that focusses on the wellbeing, respect, and inclusivity of the staff, alongside also growing stronger personally and professionally with d3t.
What do you love about games?
I love how emotive games can be. A lot of my nostalgic memories are from playing video games, either getting lost into a story-driven RPG or playing a multiplayer fighting game with my friends. I reckon growing up with video games has contributed to a significant portion of my personality and still does. Having a community that you can share your experiences with is great too. Sometimes when you finish a particularly powerful game it can feel quite lonely, like “am I the only one feeling this emotionally wounded right now?”, but it’s nice when you see so many others experienced it the same way.
What games are you currently playing, and what is your favourite game?
Currently I’m playing through the Final Fantasy VII Remake again. I think they’ve done such a good job with the character writing in this game, especially with Aerith, she’s just wonderful. I also recently finished Ghost of Tsushima which was epic and visually stunning! My favourite game is hard to answer as it probably changes depending on any given day. Right now though, I’d say my top three are; Okami, Final Fantasy 8 and Horizon Forbidden West.
Do you have any fun facts or hobbies?
I play lead guitar in a band; we have a lot of fun gigging around the UK and have played in Ibiza and Slovenia. I love board game nights and watching terrible movies with my friends. I’ve recently been getting into graphic novels, currently reading Monstress which I’m really enjoying. I’m into spooky things in fact Halloween is my favourite time of year – I try and watch a spooky movie every day in October. I have a casual interest in Voice Acting and recently went to a Red Dead Redemption 2 panel at Liverpool Comic Con which was awesome.
Speaking on the announcement, our Head of Studio, Richard Badger, said: “I am delighted that we at d3t have not only been announced as one the best games studios in the UK to work for, but also that this is the fifth time that we have received the award – 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, and now 2022.
d3t are delighted to announce that we have been recognised as the 
