Aspen Forster

Software Engineer / Technical Artist

Hi, I'm Aspen.

I've worked in the games industry for several years, covering many aspects of game development including Tools/Engineering/3D Art & Animation.

Specializing in bridging the gap between different teams and bringing people together to solve technical problems, I pride myself on being a quick learner and am always interested in learning new skills and sharing knowledge with teams.

  • Location: Melbourne, Australia
  • Email: aspenforster@gmail.com

Projects

Jumplight Odyssey

Jumplight Odyssey is a Spaceship Adventure Sim inspired by management sims and classic 70s sci-fi anime.

https://jumplightodyssey.com/

My contributions:

  • Gameplay and rendering systems, especially relating to characters
  • Pipeline Tools & Support for Animation, Art and Design
  • Technical support & education for Git/Source Control
  • Character Rigging, Skin weight painting, Maya tools and scripts for Rigging/Animation.
  • Writing and maintaining robust Pipeline/tools Documentation
  • More details about my work on Jumplight Odyssey


Wayward Strand

Wayward Strand is a real-time narrative game where players explore an airship hospital in the 1970s.

https://waywardstrand.com/

My contributions:

  • Implemented art asset pipeline, including audit of all pre-existing assets
  • UI/UX Design & Implementation for all in-game and menu UI
  • Managing & Mentoring junior 3D artists
  • Creation of a new airship and all interior structural elements, as well as various prop pieces
  • Lighting/VFX/Post-processing/Shader work
  • More details about my work on Wayward Strand

Resume

Summary

Aspen Forster

A software developer and technical artist with a strong background in 3D Art and design. Passionate about all things UX - whether it be for users, players or fellow developers.

  • Melbourne, Australia
  • +61 490 263 680
  • aspenforster@gmail.com

Education

Masters of Information Technology with Distinction

Jan 2019 - Jan 2022

RMIT University, Melbourne GPA: 3.7

Masters by course-work, focussed on software engineering, user experience and agile development techniques.

Bachelor of Design (Games) with Distinction

Feb 2012 - Jun 2015

RMIT University, Melbourne GPA: 3.8

Undergraduate degree focussed on all things game development. Inlcuding: 3D Art, Animation, Game Design, UI, Programming, Shaders

Awards

Rural & Regional Enterprise Scholarship

2019

QTAC

https://www.qtac.edu.au/rres-program/

Women in Games Fellowship Recipient

2018

Vic Screen

https://vicscreen.vic.gov.au/news/women-in-games-fellowship-recipients-announced

GDC Assist Recipient

2016

GDAA

GCAP Assist Recipient

2014

GDAA

Professional Experience

Technical Artist - (Jumplight Odyssey)

Jul 2022 - Present

League of Geeks, Melbourne

  • Engineered a major refactor of our Picture-In-Picture rendering system, optimising rendering performance and implementing support for animated props, characters and VFX
  • Implemented a procedural generation system for character outfits, including developing shaders to support outfit content creation
  • Contributed to and improved several other gameplay systems, individually and through pair-programming
  • Interfaced with stakeholders on a regular basis, identifying business requirements and distilling work into Epics/Tasks/Bugs
  • Supported Animators, Designers, and Artists by creating several Unity Editor tools to accelerate content creation/review turnaround times
  • Maintained in-depth Confluence documentation and tutorials for Unity content creation within our pipelines and conventions
  • Improved cross-disciplinary workflows by creating Unity, Maya, and Photoshop tools
  • Provided version control/merge request/branch management process support

Software Engineer - (Unannounced Project)

Oct 2021 - Feb 2022

Two Bulls/DEPT®, Melbourne

  • Enabled the implementation of responsive front end apps by developing a suite of generic layout tools for Cocos Creator
  • Implemented client-side UI and built reusable dynamic components
  • Ensured COPPA compliance while creating an unannounced LMS for a major kids network
  • Supported a dynamic REST API based web app, consulting with back end devs and stakeholders

Technical Artist, UI/UX Designer - (Wayward Strand)

Apr 2019 - Nov 2021

Ghost Pattern, Melbourne

  • Designed and made assets for a complete User Interface in compliance with Xbox’s Accessibility Guidelines
  • Established asset guidelines and templates to build out 3d environments & props
  • Audited all pre-existing game assets & built new modularized 3D environment and prop assets
  • Overhauled Wayward Strand’s Lighting/VFX/Post-processing to match concept images
  • Managed and mentored junior 3D artists in the creation/implementation of game-ready assets

Sessional Teacher

Feb 2019 - Present

RMIT University, Melbourne

  • Prepared and delivered course content for 10+ courses for 1st, 2nd and 3rd year undergraduate students
  • Lectured and tutored on many topics, including Unity Game Development, Programming, Technical Art, 3D Modelling/Animation
  • Developed assignments and assignment rubrics, marked assignments and gave timely written and verbal feedback

3D Artist - (Sims Freeplay, Real Racing 3)

Jan 2015 - Oct 2018

Firemonkeys EA, Melbourne

  • Created and consulted on tools development for the 3D art team
  • Built optimised 3D models, materials and textures in a variety of aesthetic styles
  • Organised production of assets including writing art briefs, delegating tasks, providing written and verbal feedback to internal and outsourcing art teams
  • Developed a variety of marketing materials for use in digital storefronts, ad spaces and interstitials

Skills

Programming / Shaders

C# Python MEL pyMel Java Maxscript Unity HLSL Amplify Shader Editor Object Oriented Programming

Web Development

HTML CSS TypeScript JavaScript React PHP MySQL jQuery Bootstrap Flask AWS GraphQL Responsive Design Agile Development

Game Development

Unity P5.js Cocos Creator Twine Debugging Optimisation

Development Tools

Git GitLFS GitHub GitLab PlasticSCM TortoiseSVN JIRA Confluence Notion ClickUp Trello Hansoft Asana

UI / 2D / 3D Art

Figma Adobe Photoshop Adobe XD Adobe Illustrator Adobe After Effects Autodesk Maya Autodesk 3DS Max Z-Brush Substance

Soft Skills

Adaptability Problem Solving Communication Teamwork Collaboration Critical Thinking Creativity Leadership Time Management

Contact

Call:

+61 490 263 680

Location:

Melbourne, Australia