Studio
Based in Plano, Texas, Robot Entertainment is a world-class independent game development studio owned and operated by many of the founders of Ensemble Studios. With a team that has proven experience and expertise in creating games that appeal to massive audiences, Robot Entertainment is focused on titles that set new standards for their respective genres as well as groundbreaking original Intellectual Properties. Our output includes the Age of Empires series and Halo Wars for Xbox 360.
MEET THE BOTS
Lizette "Lizard" Atkinson
Office Manager
Lizette came into the game industry after burning out in her previous career as a Corporate Event Planner. She should have known games were her destiny, since her dad owned a video game arcade. Lizette has happily taken on a slew of new responsibilities, such as facilities management, payroll, human resources, accounting and a mountain of other random responsibilities, including babysitting a bunch of guys. When not at work, she spends time with her husband and two beautiful girls. Lizette graduated from Texas Tech, so she'll leave you with a reminder to "Get Your Guns Up!"
Eric Best
Programmer
AKA YoYo |Evil Eric|Hateweaver; TI 99/4a + Masters in CS + (10 years of game industry code grinding / 5 shipped titles on 4 platforms) == Network|Live|ranty game programmer.
Won "iwon35" Choi
Concept Artist
Won was born in Seoul, Korea, and moved to the States when he was 13. After a short stint in Cincinnati, Ohio, he ended up in Texas. As a teenager, he was fascinated by drawing and playing video games, so it was only natural that he would find his way into the game industry. His career includes positions at Rogue Entertainment, Monolith, Gearbox, and Ensemble. Won has now joined the other art-bots in the yellow pod at Robot, and can often be found drawing something interesting during meetings.
Stephen Clayburn
Programmer
Stephen spent ten years of writing credit card processing client / server code before making the leap to the game industry. When he's not at the office, he enjoys cooking and playing video games. A fan of all genres of games, he counts Ultima 7, Fallout, GTA, and World of Warcraft among his favorites. Stephen has two beautiful daughters and a wonderfully supportive wife who puts up with him working all the time.
Brad "Crowbot" Crow
Art Director
Brad is a Texas native who graduated from the Art Institute of Dallas in 1995. He loves FPS games, and enjoys tearing apart his co-workers in epic lunchtime Battlefield 2 matches. Brad's hobbies include art and exercise, and he loves spending time with his family and friends. A sci-fi junkie, Brad enjoyed the process of being turned into a robot (perhaps a little too much).
Timothy Deen
Designer
Tim is a native Texan (Go Aggies!) and an ex-programmer who has since moved over to the dark side of game development. These days, spreadsheets, databases and a good calculator are Tim's tools of choice. When he's not working, Tim can usually be found slaying dragons and demons from behind his keyboard as he explores the most current MMORPG.
Jake "D_Dawg" Dotson
IT Infrastructure Administrator
From workstations to servers to networks, Jake uses the can-do attitude he honed in the U.S. Marine Corps to deliver world-class IT services and support. Outside of work, Jake is a loving husband and father, dedicated friend, and selfless community volunteer. In his spare time he roots for the Cowboys and shoots his AR15 - sometimes simultaneously. His favorite saying is "Hey, y'all watch this! Hold my beer."
John Evanson
Programmer
John graduated from the University of Connecticut in 1997 and immediately joined Ensemble, working on every subsequent shipping ES title until the studio closed. He's had his fingers in a large variety of systems - from rendering to random maps to pathing. John likes PC and console games, poker and board games, and making (and drinking) beer. He doesn't like writing bios about himself.
Rob "Xemu" Fermier
Lead Programmer
Rob has been making games professionally since 1994's "System Shock," and unprofessionally since 1979's "Space Combat Game in Third-Grade Notebook." He has a degree in Computer Science from MIT, and loves programming and designing games of all kinds. Determining his favorite game would be nearly impossible, but a short list of contenders would include Star Control 2, Chrono Trigger, GTA San Andreas, and Civilization.
Ian M. Fischer
Lead Designer
Ian M. Fischer dabbled in several different callings before it dawned on him that, no matter what he was getting paid to do, he always spent his time scribbling away at game designs. He simplified in 1997, joining Ensemble Studios to work on the original Age of Empires as a scenario designer. Two years later he earned his first lead designer credit on the sequel, The Age of Kings. Ian is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh with dual-major bachelor degrees in Political Science and English Writing. As a SAR swimmer in the Navy he once rescued a wayward SLQ-48 minehunting robot and later became a founding member of Robot Entertainment. Coincidence?
Joe Gillum
Designer
Joe abandoned his B.S. in Molecular Biology from Penn State to seek a career in games. So far, it's been worth it - he's been churning out games for almost eight years now, including Age of Mythology and its expansion, Age of Empires 3, and Halo Wars. Originally a Pittsburgh-area native, Joe is waiting for global cooling to kick in and turn Dallas into a temperate zone.
Tony Goodman
President
Tony attended the University of Texas at Austin for two years before striking out on his own. In 1989, he founded Ensemble Corporation, a systems consulting firm specializing in building custom enterprise systems. Ensemble Corporation was acquired by U.S. Web in 1996. Tony then founded game developer Ensemble Studios, the firm responsible for the hit video game franchise Age of Empires. Ensemble Studios was acquired by Microsoft in 2001. Most recently Tony founded Robot Entertainment, a video game developer focused on bringing shared world experiences to the mass market. He can usually be found travelling around the office at maximum Segway speed.
Brian Hapgood
Programmer
Brian is a veteran programmer who’s been in the game industry since he started at Bullfrog in the late ‘80s. He once lived in Wales, near Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch (yes, it’s a real place), and enjoys cricket far more than he should. Brian is also an energy drink connoisseur who plays a lot of World of Warcraft and frequently falls over, though usually not at the same time.
Bryan "bimbosoup" Hehmann
3D Artist
After graduating from the Art Institute of Dallas, Bryan entered the game industry in 1998, joining several of his former classmates at Ensemble Studios and eventually landing at Robot. While at Ensemble, he worked on the Age of Empires series and Halo Wars. Bryan's favorite games include Battlefield, Myst, and World of Warcraft. He also has an unhealthy addiction to Magic the Gathering Online.
Lance Hoke
Producer
Lance claims to have a BBA in MIS/Management from Texas Tech University. Game credits suggest he might have been an Art Producer for seven years at Ensemble Studios on projects including Age of Mythology, AOM: The Titans, Age of Empires III, AOE3: Warchiefs, and Halo Wars. At Robot, he fills the role of Lead Producer on an unannounced project, where his tireless efforts inspire us all. Lance also claims to have a wife, two children, a dog and an addiction to Battlefield 2.
Dion "Pyxlwyz" Hopkins
VFX Artist
Prior to becoming a VFX artist, Dion spent 10 years in the U.S. Air Force as an electronic technician. After the USAF, he spent a few years working in multimedia, television, and even a film before turning to video games. Prior to Robot, he worked at Outrage Games, Doublefine Productions, and Ensemble Studios. Game credits include: Alter Echo, Psychonauts, AoE III, and Halo Wars. Interests include Formula One, MotoGP, and most other motorsports, video gaming , and tinkering in the garage.
Patrick Hudson
Vice President, Operations
Patrick is involved in far too much at Robot. Previously, he was an Executive Producer at Ensemble Studios for six years. Before game development, he worked in boring industries that seem even more boring now. Patrick is terribly overeducated for his current role, with a bachelor's degree from Texas A&M University and a master's degree from Harvard Business School. He regrets not profiting wildly from the credit bubble that sank the global economy.
Jerome K. Jones
Designer
Jerome has been in the game business for over fifteen years, in design roles both large and small, on titles ranging from Felix the Cat to Halo Wars. His favorite games include the Apples to Apples card game, the original N-64 Mario Kart, and World of Warcraft. Of all the games he's worked on, his favorite is still Age of Mythology. Before Jerome joined the game industry, he was in the music business, where his bewitching voice entranced legions of fans.
Gene Kohler
Character Artist
Gene was born and raised in Aliquippa Pa, and spent three years in the US Army as a field artillery crewmember serving in the First Gulf War. Following his service, Gene attended the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. Over the past fourteen-plus years Gene has created art for titles including Anvil of Dawn, Sanitarium, Daikatana, Metroid Prime, Age of Empires III, and Halo Wars. Gene currently lives outside Dallas Texas with his son and beagle. He digs riding his Buell street and Honda dirt bikes, watching his Steelers rack up the Lombardi's, fishing, games, and creating "sick" Fantasy \ Sci-Fi art.
Justin "SixOkay" Korthof
Community Manager
Justin has been playing around on the internet and with videogames for decades. It was around twelve years old that he really got into both, though. He spent a short but intense chunk of his formative years working on a small community sci-fi writing website and spending evenings building DOOM II multiplayer maps and mods. Over the years, he’s worked on several community fan sites for various passions until eventually shoe-horning his way into the videogame industry. He started at EA working on the Medal of Honor and Tiberium franchises out of EA Los Angeles, then moved up to Microsoft Game Studios to spend some time in the trenches with the Gears of War and Halo franchises. These days Justin spends his time watching as many movies as possible, playing videogames, and working to grow the Robot collective.
David "-kube-" Kubalak
Art Director
Dave has been on the assembly line in the art department in the games industry since 1995. He's an older model, made of 100% pure Pittsburgh steel. Whatever this particular robot lacks in knowledge, he makes up for passion within art. When Dave isn't busy at the Robot factory, he can be found spending time with his family of droids or plugging additional art modules into his braincase.
Angelo Laudon
Programmer
At twelve years old, Angelo taught himself to program on his TI-99/4A. Before joining Robot, he was the very first employee of Ensemble Studios in 1995, and was the lead programmer on Age of Empires and Age of Empires II. Angelo always wanted to work on console games, and finally got his chance when he served as lead programmer on Halo Wars. Some of his favorite games include World of Warcraft, Zuma, New Super Mario Bros., and Settlers of Catan. In his free time, Angelo plays games with his children and girlfriend and tries to get away to Vegas a few times a year to clean out the tourists at Texas Hold'em.
Dave "Learguy" Leary
Designer
Dave has a J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law that he never uses, except when signing employment agreements. A mediocre law student at best - probably because he spent all his spare time on freelance writing jobs and creating shareware text adventures - he entered the game industry "for real" in 1994. After stints at three other studios, Dave landed at Ensemble in late 2001, and subsequently Robot in 2009. He has been known to say many highly inappropriate things, though never in a website biography - yet.
Jessica "JessaBelle" Lemmons
Receptionist
Before becoming a Robot, Jessica worked at a day spa for three years. She enjoys watching movies, playing with goofy Facebook applications, and spending time with her miniature schnauzer and her gamer boyfriend. When she's not being picked on for being the youngest in the office, Jessica can be found filing, stocking, or helping Lizette plan the next Robot party. She is working on a psychology degree that will hopefully help her understand her co-workers.
David Lewis
Dev Support
David has a BS in Computer Science from Sam Houston State University, and has been playing games from the earliest he can remember. He enjoys all kinds of games, computer and otherwise. Dave worked on the entire Age of Empires series, Age of Mythology, and Halo Wars. His first introduction to the games industry involved sleeping on a cot and waking up to write code on an Intel 286 computer.
Juan "monsterBlues" Martinez
Animator
Juan's passion for art and video games made it easy for him to choose to become a video game developer. A self-taught animator, his skills include scripting, rigging, modeling, and workflow design. When Juan's not at work, he can be found spending time with his family, drawing, reading, exercising, or teaching a class at SMU's Guildhall.
Mike McGlumphy, "McGlu"
Web Programmer
Mike has been a gamer since birth, and has fifteen years of experience working with internet technologies. He collects games of all types, especially wargames and board games. His wife Yulia, daughters Emma and Laura, and cats Oscar and Dinah are all extremely understanding. His favorite game is all of them.
Justin "Mastermind" Moe
Programmer
Prior to becoming a robot, Justin spent two years working on the Command and Conquer franchise at EA Los Angeles. His degree in Comparative Media Studies from MIT might seem odd for a programmer, but it means he can sometimes understand the things designers ask for. Besides games, Justin enjoys reading, collecting computer hardware, and is attempting to convince other Robots that Magic the Gathering can be played with pieces of paper called "cards", not just online.
Chris "muPPetman" Moffitt
Character Artist
Prior to working with his fellow robots, Chris worked on a few unknown PS2 titles, an animated feature film and most recently Halo Wars. He attended the Art Institute of Dallas where he received a degree in Computer Animation. To this day, he has never learned how to animate - but he did figure out how to push verts around and paint textures. In his free time, Chris enjoys being with his family, playing xbox and working on art projects that will probably never get finished.
Shovaen "Shoop" Patel
Programmer
Shovaen began his love affair with games of all types (video, card, sports, board, etc.) at an early age with ancient consoles, 80s Macs, and chess. He earned a Computer Science degree from Georgia Tech, worked as a consultant at Ariba, and attended The Guildhall at SMU prior to robotification. Shovaen is an avid Tampa sports fan, with the obvious exception of his beloved Yellow Jackets.
Roy "Royster" Rabey
IT Director
Roy, who originally hails from New Orleans, has a B.S. in Computer Science and over three decades of IT experience. He has been focusing that experience in the video game development industry since joining Ensemble Studios in 1998. Roy was fascinated by robots at a very young age and being a bit of an electronics hobbyist has built several of them. He has enjoyed his recent transformation from meager human into elite robot and is excited to work side-by-side with fellow robots to alter the landscape of entertainment history. Roy promises to use his new robot powers for good and not evil.
Chris Rippy
Producer
Chris entered the video game world in 1994, doing sound design and scenarios for the original "Age of Empires." Since then, he has moved into production, and was most recently the Producer for "Halo Wars." Chris is a big fan of pizza and sandwiches.
Justin Rouse
Designer
Justin began his journey into game design by learning to play Age of Empires and Starcraft while getting his B.A. in Economics / Business and minor in Japanese Language and Culture from Lafayette College. A couple of years in the business world served as an obvious stepping stone to a game balance testing position at Ensemble Studios. Before long, he was a member of Ensemble's design team. Now a designer at Robot, Justin is ready to begin the next chapter...
Harter Ryan
VP of Production
Harter's journey to Robot took a serpentine path; he started as an avid board war gamer and RPG player in his teenage years and worked as a programmer in the oil industry in the late 1980's and 1990's before finally ending up at Ensemble Studios in 1997. While at ES, Harter was the Lead Producer on Age of Empires II, and Executive Producer on Age3 and Halo Wars. Recently identified as surplus to requirements at Microsoft, he's joined many of his former coworkers as an independent game developer. His education at the University of Oklahoma, marriage to an awesome wife for seventeen years, and two wonderful kids have all helped him reach this stage in his life with sanity (mostly) intact.
Duane "Saint" Santos
3D Artist
Duane graduated from the Art Institute of Dallas in 1995, and has been in the game industry for over thirteen years. He joined Ensemble Studios in 1996, and worked on several titles before being turned into a robot in 2009. Of all the games he's worked on, Age of Empires II is still his favorite. He also loves MMOs and also enjoys shooting people in FPS games.
Paul "sPankyAce" Slusser
3D Artist
Paul has several associate degrees which never quite added up to the B.A. in Computer Science he wanted. Conquering his hatred of math through art, Paul graduated from the Art Institute of Dallas in spring of 1999 and was quickly hired by Ensemble Studios. He has been fortunate enough to work on several titles, including Age of Empires 2, Age of Mythology, Age of Empires 3, and Halo Wars. Paul's responsibilities include creating buildings, random maps, scenarios, home cities and resupplying the soda machine.
Duncan "dunkman" Stanley
Community Coordinator
Prior to joining Ensemble Studios in 2007 as a Community Manager, Duncan worked at Ritual Entertainment, MumboJumbo, and GodGames in a variety of roles including technical support, quality assurance and package relocation engineer. Duncan has a B.A. in Political Science from Southern Methodist University. Duncan is responsible for customer support, forums moderation and website updates for Robot's products. He compares this role favorably to herding cats.
Chris Stark
Programmer
Chris has a double degree in computer science and software engineering, and a Master's in computer science. A veteran of Ritual Entertainment and Ensemble Studios, Chris loves a good game of WoW, Halo, Quake, or Starcraft; he's also been known to get outside for some bike riding, hiking, or gardening. Chris's workstation will be featured on the 24-hour StarkCam(TM) - coming soon!
Nate "N8" Stefan
Concept Artist
After graduating from Sheridan College in 2001, Nate started working at Ensemble. When the studio closed, he joined up with Robot Entertainment. Nate loves to draw and is always searching for new ways to become a better artist.
Marcin Szymanski
Programmer
Marcin was originally going to become a doctor; he even attended medical school for a year after majoring in Genetics, but switched to Computer Science and soon joined Ensemble Studios. His favorite game is Zelda: Ocarina of Time, but he's also played enough Final Fantasy XI and World of Warcraft to equip his characters in the coolest-looking armor. Marcin enjoys fast cars, live music, comedy, and eating, which he tries to do at least several times a day.
Charles Tinney, chazBot
Animator
Charles has been a professional animator since 2002. He started in video games at Ritual Entertainment working on Star Trek Elite Force 2 and Counter-Strike. Early 2004 Charles left to work at a TV and Film studio, DNA Productions. There he spent his time animating on The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius TV show for Nickelodeon and The Ant Bully feature film. In the latter part of 2005 Charles headed to work for Ensemble Studios, returning to the video game industry. At this prestigious RTS studio Charles was an animator on Age of Empires III: The War Chiefs and Halo Wars. After the closure of Ensemble Studios Charles was assimilated into the Robot Entertainment collective; where resistance was futile. The only remaining humanity he has left is expressed to the outside world through his blog and website.
Bart "Rice_and_Eggs" Tiongson
Concept Artist
Bart graduated from the Fine Arts program at Centennial College and the Classical Animation program at Sheridan College in the temperate sunbelt of Ontario, Canada. He joined Ensemble Studios in 2000, and was turned into a robot on March 1, 2009. Bart's hobbies include family, friends, drawing, painting, music, film, travel, food, drink, basketball, sun, ocean ... rinse and repeat.
Wallace "Zeo" Wachi
Producer
Wally has been in the game industry for twelve years, though almost every company he's worked for is now gone (Robot has been warned!) In 2002, he moved to Dallas from L.A. to work at Ensemble and considers that to be one of the best decisions he's ever made. Wallace enjoys gaming with his wife Cydney, scolding his two dogs, traveling, eating at good restaurants, adding to his already long list of unfinished home electronics/automation projects, and napping on the couch Sunday afternoon with NASCAR blaring on the TV.
Rob "Grimm2012" Walden
3D Artist
Rob, a 1996 graduate of the Art Institute of Dallas, has been in the game industry for twelve years. His previous projects include Halo Wars, Age of Empires 3, and Spy Hunter. He's secretly been following Michael Bean on his spy missions - but don't tell anyone.
Terry Wallace
Programmer
Born in Scotland, Terry came to the US when he was 10. After time in CA & most recently Las Vegas, NV, Terry took a position in Texas in the credit card industry. Glad to finally be in the gaming industry, Terry is happy to be a Robot. He enjoys reading (esp. sci-fi), computer games and three cats who think they are human. Terry and his wife are expecting their first child in August.