How does someone turn their game ideas into the hit games? Twenty-seven-year-old Matthew DeJesus, a former game tester, dreams of being a top game maker (here’s his official site). I met him at the Game Developer’s Conference in San Francisco a few months back, where he was working the rooms, making connections and sharing his ideas.

Frankly, I don’t know if DeJesus can make it or not, but I wanted to keep an eye on his efforts and see just how far his irrepressible energy can take him. Below, you’ll see the basics as he shares his background and some of his game ideas, plus a roadmap for how he plans to break through.

His ambitions are no less grand than this:

I represent the next generation of game designers who will push the industry past its current boundaries. I have the vision and creativity to bring the next great franchise into reality.

Can Matt make it in gaming? How do you think he should spend his next month?

Multiplayer: Matt, I first met you at GDC where you were promoting Team BlackSmith. Since then I’ve seen you blogging and posting YouTube videos, and you’re telling me you plan to enter Epic’s Make Something Unreal contest. You’ve got a number of ideas for video games. So tell me, what are you hoping to achieve in the gaming industry and how do you hope to achieve it?

Matthew DeJesus: Yes I was at GDC, but I was there to promote the game “Window Cutters” as a next gen episodic game, to rival the Xbox 360 game “Alan Wake.” I was looking to find a publisher who would be interested in the project enough to fund the game and to get the ball rolling on its creation. It is an award-winning IP concept that I created. I am planning to enter Epic’s contest because is a way for me to show my skills as a game designer and programmer. Also, I want to win a Unreal license to build the game in.

I am hoping to bring innovation to the game industry. I am adult gamer who grew up as a child that has played those classic games of yesteryear and in my opinion I represent the next generation of game designers who will push the industry past its current boundaries. I have the vision and creativity to bring the next great franchise into reality.

The game IP’s posted on the website are just a few of the game ideas I have created. In reality, there are more than fifty. It is not hard for me to come up with game ideas. That is why I founded Team BlackSmith: to one day become a development studio that produces quality IP’s that bring fantastic experiences to the industry.

I am inspired to achieve my goals by creating and developing quality games that gamers love and that also involve giving the players new gameplay experiences. This is not an easy task but it is my goal nonetheless.

Multiplayer: What exactly is Team BlackSmith? It sounds, from your latest YouTube clip, like there are different versions of the Team.

DeJesus: Team BlackSmith is the humble beginning of a development team/studio. Team Blacksmith was formed after I became a finalist in the Pitch Your Game Idea contest judged by industry veterans, David Perry and Ru Weerasuriyaat E for All in 2007.

I wanted to capitalize on the opportunity to have my game ideas seen by others in the industry. So I searched for and formed a group of individuals wanting to be apart of a exiting new project as well as exhibit there skills. The Team was comprised of recent graduates of a local art and technology school. Together we created the trailer for “Window Cutters” seen on the website. I myself managed the production and directed the video as well as wrote the treatment. Robert Paige created the concept art. Brent Brown contributed the character models. Rich Shuppring rigged the character for movement. And Gabe Smith animated the scene. After its completion I made my way to GDC and showed the trailer to everyone who would watch it and attempted to get feedback and gage interest.

I meet so many wonderful people including you, N’Gai Croal and Phil Harrison (he sat with me for almost a half-hour as we talked about my game concepts). I came away from GDC 08 with many new contacts but no publishing deal. To me this was a step in the right direction but some of the other members did not see things this way. They felt that, without funding, a project of this scale would not be in their best interest. So they chose to seek opportunities elsewhere — and I wish them success — leaving me with only a concept artist and a part-time digital artist. So the main team members currently are Robert Paige and myself.

Multiplayer What have been the hardest things about trying to break in to game design? And what’s come easy for you?

DeJesus: The main roadblocks I’ve faced have been not having enough industry experience for a publisher to take a chance on my IP’s at this time. Also there is this misconception that good game ideas are a dime a dozen. This only applies (in my opinion) to people who have never been in the industry — I have two triple-A titles under my belt as a Quality Assurance Associate — and do not have any kind achievement to prove that their concept in worth the investment.

One other main obstacle is choosing a project that can be done with the current assets available while still displaying the potential that Team BlackSmith has to offer.

The easy part is creating what I know are potently great IP. Figuring out the things I need to implement to receive the desired reaction form the player.

Relaying the things I want to the audience to come away with from the game with to others, even before the creation process is fully under way. I’m truly built for this!

Multiplayer: The first game idea you’re talking about as coming from Team BlackSmith is “Window Cutters.” What’s that game about? And how do you think it’s different from something like “Getting Up”?

“Window Cutters” is a game that has many genres that make up the gameplay.

The game is experienced in third-person, with RPG elements as well as a story that has a psychological thriller theme. The main story is about a graffiti artist who has the gift to see what others are thinking when they created their tags and graffiti. The emotions and the things going on around them are made visible to the player. This is what the clue system is based off of, seeing the actions and thoughts of the artist as well as the things going on around them will lead the player to the destination of the people who can give him information for his next goal.

There are three main characters in the game, the first being Daniel “Tripp” Rodriguez who has the aforementioned gift of insight. His father, Primo, was the premiere graffiti artist of his time, creating pieces that brought tears to the eyes of anyone who happened by. The cause of his death is one of the main things that Tripp has to get to the bottom of. The second main character’s name is Rafael “Shape” Lopez. He also inherited an ability. He can influence the feeling people have about anything. The third character, Kaymi, is the lead female of the story and is in N.Y. from San Francisco to conduct a transaction for her father on the west coast. After meeting and aiding her, Tripp decides to help her — even though she doesn’t want [him to] at first. Doing so will lead him down a winding path to accomplishing his goals.

Players will also gain notoriety points for writing their name and the window cutters logo in soft glass around the environment. There will also be tags from others in the group, notifying Tripp of meeting places where they will relay info to him.

There are many ways that “Window Cutters” is a totally different IP than “Getting Up.” One large difference is the clue-based system that Tripp uses (his ability). A second way is the story. “Window Cutters” is a very story-driven title with many twists and elements to unlock that flesh out the back story. Lastly the fighting engine is designed unlike any other before it. The main character’s fighting style is Brazilian Jujitsu, a very grapple-heavy style that is very popular thanks to MMA. Tripp also hyper-extends the limbs of his opponents.

After careful consideration, and also the fact that “Window Cutters” is a very ambitious project (even as a mod / total conversion), I have chosen to make push forward with “Ninja Nonsense.” [Read about the idea here.] This is the best title to show case our talent, as well as the shortest development time with the least amount of needed resources.

Multiplayer: How far in development are you with the game?

DeJesus: With “Window Cutters” I am in the process of moving all assets to Unreal and updating the character models. “Ninja Nonsense” is closer to completion.

Multiplayer What do you think the next month holds for your and your efforts to make it in the gaming industry?

DeJesus: I predict that, if all goes well, the beta of “Ninja Nonsense” demo will be available on my website, WindowCutters.com

Thank you all for traveling with me on my journey.

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