When Mitchell Hartwell first explored where he wanted to take his career, he knew one thing for sure: He wanted to develop games. “I really, really, really wanted to work for Riot 游戏 back when I was in high school and playing 英雄联盟 一直如此，”米切尔回忆道. “所以我做了一个决定, 我要去奥兰多, 我将参加满帆 for Game Development, 获得Riot的实习机会, 会很棒的.” But after applying for Riot’s internship 程序, Mitchell wasn’t accepted. Hitting his first major bump in his career, Mitchell decided it was time for some soul 搜索ing.

而在 满帆的游戏开发 程序, Mitchell took a trip to the annual Game Developer’s Conference to see where in games to go next. “I was trying to decide if this is really the direction I wanted to go... I went to GDC and it made me realize, ‘Wow, I don't want to do this.’”

With this realization, Mitchell returned to Orlando and switched degree 程序s to 模拟 & 可视化. Mitchell thrived in the 程序, applying his mathematical brain to projects including CECO的辅助技术阶梯, 仿真实验室的运动平台等等.

“从技术角度来看, a lot of the stuff that I did in my classes directly translates into the work that I do today,米切尔分享道。. “所有这些东西都非常适用. 但除此之外, 的时间, just all of the people that I met and all of the cool projects that we talked about, 所有的网络, and just getting in the mindset of putting in what you want to get out was great.”

毕业后, Mitchell continued his explorations in simulation and coding by working on a series of subcontracting projects for Boeing with 满帆 and later applying for a position with Holovis. A company that designs and installs world-class experiential solutions for global-themed entertainment, 吸引游客, 企业客户, Holovis brought on Mitchell as a solutions architect for projects involving gamified theme park attractions. 这是他在公司的第一个重大项目, Mitchell relocated to Japan to assist in the development and implementation of Mario Kart: Koopa’s Challenge, a ride at Universal Studios Japan's SUPER NINTENDO WORLD™.

“I wrote a good portion of the code that runs the experience of the attraction. 然后和所有主题公园一样, our team worked with all of the people delivering other components of the show to make sure that we were all speaking the same language from a 程序 perspective. I would say there’s an hour of coordination required for every line of code. That experience of learning what every component’s job was and how all of it comes together to make a unified experience was invaluable.”

After the pandemic required Mitchell to return stateside, he continued to work on the project remotely through 2021, a unique challenge for any developer working on something as physically immersive as a theme park attraction. “There were a lot of unique challenges around the pandemic…but one upside of the delay is that we got more time with the creative director to understand the experience better,米切尔补充道。.

Currently serving as the Director of Gamification at Holovis and working on projects that are still under wraps, Mitchell has found himself in an incredible career he didn’t quite imagine while dreaming of game development back in high school.

“I just want to make cool things and make a good living. 这就是我真正想做的，”米切尔说. "It's a very difficult lifestyle just because when you're on a project, 你每天工作10个小时, 你不在家, you're working odd shifts and working on construction sites, 无论如何，这绝对不是一份光鲜亮丽的工作. 但最终的产品是惊人的. You're creating joy for the world, which is pretty hard to beat as far as a job.”