Derrickman: Pure C++ Project
The video actually shows the Derrickman level from Oil Strike 75, which is a game made by apprentices at the Sumo-Digital Academy and published on Steam.
- Personal Project: A small retro-inspired game coded completely by me using C++
- Demonstrates the use of DirectX 11 and my own shaders
- Includes OO C++ features like polymorphism and inheritance
- Implemented an analytics system to visualise heatmap data for player deaths
Access the GitHub repository HERE
Game download HERE (4MB)
Every game programming portfolio should contain a good-sized project written completely in C++ unless you are exclusively targeting small, indie game development companies. You are unlikely to be interviewed at larger companies without this. If you’ve not found a way to use C++ in your degree assignments, then you could try using The PlayBuffer C++ Framework to create a simple 2D game. When making a portfolio game the complexity is often less important than the level of finish: a half-broken GTA clone is less likely to impress than a polished 2D Super Mario Bros clone (circa 1985). If you are making a tech demo then make sure you are using recent versions of relevant APIs: not something 5 years out of date.
Get A Wiggle On: Unreal C++ Project
The video actually shows the Snake Party game, created by apprentices at the Sumo-Digital Academy (entirely in C++ and not Unreal).
- Group project: Originally a Ludem Dare game which my team continues to develop for 3 months
- My role involved creating the semented physics and collision system for the snakes
- Demonstrates custom Blueprint nodes written in C++ (minimal Blueprints used)
- The team is working towards releasing the game on Steam
Access the GitHub repository with just my C++ code HERE
Full UE5 project download HERE (8GB)
Game programmers need to be able to work well with team members across different disciplines, including artists and designers. A fast and fun way to get this kind of experience is to take part in a Game Jam. Make sure you work in a multi-disciplinary team including artists and designers, and not just other coders—as this is a key experience to be able to talk about at interview. Try and team up with other students building their portfolios, as it’s well worth spending additional time tidying up the project after the jam to make it portfolio-worthy. Finally, for a group project, make sure that you are very clear in your portfolio which of the game’s features and code you worked on personally.
Maths Buster: Unity C# Project
The video actually shows the Gardeners of the Galaxy game, created by Martyn Mees et al.
- Final Year Individual Project: An educational mathematics game coded completely by me in C#
- Demonstrates use of Unity and adaptive difficulty algorithms
- I recieved a 74% overall mark for individual project work
- A paper written on the game was presented at the ECGBL conference in Spain
Access the GitHub repository with just my C# code HERE
Full project download HERE (2GB)
Most commercial games are developed in Unreal or Unity, so its useful to have some experience of using one or both of these game engines. Nonetheless, engine demos are often seen as less informative portfolio demos than pure C++. For example, it’s unrealistic to expect hiring managers to download and assess a 3GB Unreal project file, and when it comes to Unity, if you can program in C++ then you should have no problem programming in C#. Due to the size and complexity of game engine project files it’s probably not worth sharing them on your portfolio, and instead focus on providing a video of the game and a select few source code files that illustrate a key feature that you developed.