Hi, I’m Tim Swope, the newest addition to the Environment team here at Runic Games. I started in July and so far it has been great. They mostly keep me busy making props and dungeon tile sets. Before I started here I worked at Griptonite Games making hand held games. Before that I worked at a grocery store.
I have lived here in Seattle since 2002. Before that I was at school in Rhode Island. Before that I grew up in Connecticut. My education was in Illustration which doesn’t translate easily into a job after graduation. I had never considered a job in the video game industry because back then I thought all video games were made in Japan. Once I moved out here and met some folks in the industry, I wised up, and took some classes at the University of Washington in 3D Studio Max. With 3D skills added to my illustration education I was able to land my first industry job within a few months. Yay!
I had picked up Torchlight soon after it came out and gotten hooked. It had an engrossing mood, lovely art and addictive game play. I knew it was made locally and I had a secret wish inside my heart to one day work there. I nearly pooped when I saw the listing for an environment artist on their site. I spent the weekend making a mock Torchlight environment to add to my online portfolio. I sent it off on Monday and now I am here. Golly!
