tian nya

Biography

I spent most of my life in Ontario. Ever since childhood, I've had a passion for drawing and a knack for computing. I studied piano for 8 years, often participated in holiday concerts, and won several awards from local competitions. My first exposure to video games were Super Mario 64, Runescape and Generation 3 Pokémon. My favourite genre is the shoot 'em up. I hold great interest and nostalgia for the creative Internet scene from the late 00s/early 10s, which influences my work and personality in both subtle and conspicuous ways.

Even when I was around 10 years old, I often sketched out hypothetical game ideas and user interfaces (not even knowing the term existed). I made enough of these sketches to fill entire scrapbooks.

In 7th grade, I discovered MIT Media Labs' visual programming language Scratch. Scratch was my first experience with programming in general, and many years of experimenting and creating projects would evolve into an earnest interest in developing games. Additionally, I picked up game modding in my free time, giving me firsthand experience with real game systems. I realized that I could apply all of my skills — design, drawing, music, computation — towards doing something I loved.

Over the years, I put the various skills I learned into practice. I believe that a valuable member in a development team is someone with an understanding of all aspects involved in the development of a project, such that they can perfectly cooperate with their teammates of varying talents. To that end, I aimed to improve myself equally in a wide array of skills, and I continue to do so today while picking up new ones as well.

Some of my favourite games:
• Touhou Project
• Granblue Fantasy
• Nuclear Throne
• Enter the Gungeon
• 100% Orange Juice
• Team Fortress 2