Michael Austin: Hidden Path Entertainment

Name: Michael Austin

Company: Hidden Path Entertainment

Profession: CTO

Favorite Classic Game: Legend of Zelda

Quote: “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic – Arthur C. Clarke”

It’s my favourite quote because I think it sums up why it is I wanted to be in the game industry in the first place.  I loved fantasy books as a kid, and creating video games is the closest to true magic that I think you can get- creating worlds where anything is possible, and where not only can you tell stories but you can help people create stories about themselves.

Bio: I have been making video games since I was 6 or 7 on the TI-99.  I’ve always loved computers and technology, and I’ve been fortunate to work on almost every area of game development, from animation to graphics to AI to game design.  Two career highlights for me were working at the Xbox Advanced Technology Group launching the 360, and starting Hidden Path out of my living room.

Project: Defense Grid

Project Info: I enjoyed working on Defense Grid more than any other project I’ve worked on in my career, although it’s one of the smallest.  I have always liked the tower defense genre, and we wanted to make a polished game that was well balanced and had high production values- I’m very proud of the result.  It’s energizing to have people love something I’ve put a lot of late nights and sweat into- it makes me very happy I work in games.

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