   Sector 13 Seeks A.I. Programmer and Texture Artist (screenshots and videos inside!)
Team name:Reactor Interactive, LLC.Project name:Sector 13Brief description:Sector 13 is a multiplayer space combat game. We've been featured several times here on GameDev, so you may have already heard about us.  If you haven't, you can find out more at our website at http://www.reactorinteractive.net.  We're in the finishing stages of our production run, and we're scheduled for release later this year. That means that yes, the game is playable now, and as a part of the team you'll get to play and see as your work is integrated!Sector 13 was the first prize winner of the 2005 Summer Shootout Competition sponsored by Caligari and ATI, and was a finalist in the 2005 Slamdance competition.  We were on the 2005 GDC show floor last spring along side GameDev.net, and have given presentations for Caligari in Manhattan and Namco in Austin, Texas.  Also, Sector 13 has garnered some acclaim from other websites such as Entertainment Insiders, MegaGames.com, and Caligari gameSpace.Target aim:Retail (PC, Xbox360 LIVE Arcade)Compensation:Please contact for information.Technology:Target Platform: PC/Xbox360Language: C++APIs: DirectX & OpenGL3D Engine: Ogre3DPhysics: ODENetwork Engine: ReplicaNetOther: Boost, CEGUI, TinyXML, Groove (project management and filesharing software), Subversion (version control)Talent needed:1) A.I. ProgrammerMust be proficient in C++Must have a working knowledge of DirectX and/or OpenGLAt least a little experience with Ogre3D preferredMust have experience with A.I. constructs such as finite state machines, pathfinding alorithms, flocking, etc.Strong math background a plusMust be able to devote at least 10-20 hours per week to the projectExperience working in a team environment using code sharing and versioning tools a plusMOST IMPORTANT: Must be dedicated, willing to communicate on a regular basis, and must love to make and play video games!  [smile]We are looking for someone to help us out with revamping our entire A.I. subsystem.  This includes, but is not limited to: starfighter dogfighting, coordinated tactics within a squadron, capital ship turrets, and homing weapon behaviors.2) Texture ArtistExperience using popular 2D art packages to create textures and bump maps for low- and high-poly 3D modelsMust be familiar with UV mappingMust have a basic working knowledge of how 3D game engines work (blending and rendering states, vertex and pixel shaders, etc.)Must be able to supply a portfolio or similar sample of your workWe're currently looking for an additional texture artist to augment our art team. You'll be working primarily on maps for large, capital class, space vessels. These range from fighter carriers to battlecruisers. They require attention to a high level of detail, and experience in science fiction genre art is preferable.  You can contact me if you're interested, or with any questions you may have. I can be reached me via MSN messenger or e-mail at csekorski@reactorinteractive.net.3) Web DeveloperMust have extensive experience in designing clean, high-tech corporate websitesExperience with Flash or similar web animation tools a definate plus, but not a requirementMust provide us with a portfolio of examples of your workMust have experience with video and audio compression tools, specifically for streaming web contentWe will be completely redesigning the Reactor Interactive website, as well as creating very small mock websites for the fictional corporations represented in the game.  If you're into space fighters and high-tech "Star Warsy" gaming, this is the project for you.Team structure:Producer/Art Director: Drew ClarkTechnical Director: Ryan BuhrProgramming Lead: Mark JohnstonProgrammers: Timothy Graupmann, Gilad Eisenberger, Craig Edwards, Mike Vasily-Cioffi, Zach Bethel, Liam Graham, Mark WilliamsArt Lead: Chris Sekorski3D Artists: Paul Nurkowski, Ernesto Llamas, Jim Burchfield, Lou Digi, Troy Gann, Hao WuSound Effects: Nathan Smith (NL3 Audio)Music Lead: Evan ArnettMusicians: Tom Aetmos, Amit Yadav, Michael Watts, Chanda Dancy, George Shaw, Michael HuangStory/Dialog: Chris Dailey, Richard Thompson, Bruno Dias, Jay-Dev KarunaratneWebsite:http://www.reactorinteractive.netContacts:Ryan Buhr - rbuhr@reactorinteractive.netChris Sekorski - csekorski@reactorinteractive.netDrew Clark - dclark@reactorinteractive.netForums: http://www.reactorinteractive.net/forumsAdditional Info:If you're interested in joining an indie team with real potential, with a real working game, a real schedule for release, and professional team members who aren't going to disappear, or if you're interested in having people see your work, and having integrated game code and artwork in your résumé or portfolio, then this is the team for you.I would like to point out that even if you don't feel like you meet the posted requirements, don't be shy!  We'd love to hear from as many people as we can.  We will read and respond to everybody who contacts us.  Any prospective member of the team will be required to sign a non-disclosure agreement before gaining access to our developer forums, our Groove workspace, and our SVN code repository.  Be prepared to supply samples of your work in the form of code snippets, demo programs, art portfolios, etc.  MORE SCREENSHOTSGAMEPLAY VIDEO
  I might be interested in the AI coder spot, but what does AI coding have to do with OpenGL and DirectX?Oh, 10-20 hours per week... sorry, can't fulfill that requirement at all; as I have a full time job. So only my question remains, I guess.By the way, great screen shots.   ;  As this is an indie project with a relatively fluid development team, it really helps if all the programmers are well-rounded in their game programming experience, because A.I. is potentially not the ONLY thing our A.I. programmer would be working on, depending on his or her interests.  However, as I said in my final paragraph in the "Additional Info" section, it's not absolutely critical that everyone meet every single requirement to the letter.  The vast majority of our development team is made up of professional programmers and artists, but we're happy to consider anybody at any skill or experience level. Thanks very much for the kind words Thygrrr!  [smile]   ;  When you say "DirectX and/or OpenGL," are you providing two renderers, or do you just figure that experience in one will map to the other?Do you have any intent of porting the game? Would you be in need of a "porting guy"?[Edited by - Ravuya on June 13, 2006 11:03:32 AM];  The Ogre3D engine runs both a DirectX and OpenGL renderer, so in that sense you might say it is possible that we provide two renderers.  In reality though, we are currently only supporting the DirectX side of it (particularly with regards to how textures and shaders are handled) to speed up development.  We were originally trying to support both renderers, but it slowed us down significantly trying to get the different portions of the game to run the exact same way under OpenGL.  We have since stopped supporting OpenGL, since our first release will be PC only anyway.When I mention a "working knowledge of DirectX and/or OpenGL", I'm not necessarily saying that knowledge of one will map directly to the other...what I mean is simply that we'd prefer someone who has taken the time to understand how a rendering engine works and how it integrates with the rest of game.As to porting Sector 13 to other platforms, yes, we have considered ports to Linux and Mac using the OpenGL flavor of Ogre, but this is not nearly a priority at the moment.  Our biggest goal right now is to finish up the PC version of Sector 13 (DirectX only), after which we will immediately port to Xbox360 for release via the LIVE Arcade service.  Xbox360 development will start in early 2007, at which point we may seek more help in porting.   