About Alex

The top office, where I mainly work.

Playing games is almost as enjoyable to me as creating them. My favorite computer games include 'Far Cry', 'Duke Nukem 3D', 'Micro Machines', 'Mario Karts' (all versions), 'Manic Miner', 'Jet Set Willy', and 'Sim City 2000'. I also love the Arcade Games I played as a youth, 'R-Type', 'Nemesis', 'Salamander', 'Commando', 'Double Dragon', and 'Super Sprint'. Clare and I battle it out playing Chess to get a break from computers, but are often tempted back to our computers for a game of 'Age Of Mythology'.

I've been working on computer games since I first caught the bug when I was a kid. I'm also interested in AI (Artificial Intelligence) and Neural Networks, inspired by a great AI lecturer at University. Matica Karts used a Genetic Algorithm (a type of AI based on evolution) for the computer controlled Karts to learn the track, it was fun to mix two of my interests together. When I'm not programming games, I'm often writing AI programs.

I spend too much time sitting here.

All that time sitting at a desk gives you a real hunger for some fresh air and exercise. I swim, run, and cycle at least once a week. The cycling can get very chilly in the winter where we live, so I've grown my traditional winter beard every year for as long as I can remember.

I love spending time with my family, I'm lucky enough to have made my hobby into my job and I get to spend a lot of time each day with my family. I also like reading feedback from people who visit Matica.com. They tell us what they like about the games, and often have great ideas too. I'm always interested to hear other peoples ideas for Characters for our games, new levels for our games, and any other comments they may have.

The great thing about running Matica.com is that we can upload a game, and by the end of that day thousands of people will have played the game, and many will have given us their feedback. We see the high score tables fill up, and I'm always amazed when my own high scores are quickly beaten by our visitors. Even though I've developed the game and spent time mastering it, I'm amost always beaten by the end of the first day the game is published live on Matica.com.