Mark Nauta '11, Game Director at Firaxis Game
Mark Nauta, W&M '11（古典文明和计算机科学）谈论他在电子游戏开发和设计方面的职业生涯。
What is your graduation year, and did you have a double major?
I graduated in 2011 as a double CS Major: Classical Studies and Computer Science.
Can you tell us a little bit about your experience at William & 玛丽? What drew you to Classical Studies?
I loved my time at W&M! I met some lifelong friends, gained knowledge and skills through my course work, and just got out there and tried things (notably breakdancing and stand-up comedy). I think it was a great place and community to grow in as a young adult.
My interest in Classical Studies grew from a lot of sources, I think. I remember being intrigued by Greek and Roman History when we touched on it briefly in high school. Also, popular depictions in media of Greek Mythology like Disney’s Hercules, the Troy movie, and the God of War video games fanned the flames as well (despite the many, MANY creative liberties they took with the source material). All of that led to me taking a Greek History course for my Gen Ed history requirement freshman year, and I never looked back from there.
What are you doing now and what is your favorite thing about your job?
I’m currently a Game Director at Firaxis Games, a studio focused on making strategy video games. The position is largely about creative leadership and game design. I’ve been at the studio for ten years and have grown from being a designer/programmer into taking more and more design responsibility. Ironically, I have not had much involvement in our history-focused Civilization franchise, where you fill the shoes of great leaders throughout history, including classics faves like Hadrian, Pericles, and Alexander. I’ve mostly worked on XCOM, where you defend the world from aliens by doing research, building new equipment, and commanding troops out in the field.
My favorite thing about my job is getting to collaborate with so many talented and creative people. Making video games is a massive undertaking, often taking dozens of people several years of work. It’s honestly a miracle that any ever get released… but that miracle is made possible by the creative drive and passion of the team.
How has your experience studying the ancient world helped you in your career?
In game design, your main objective can be summed up as building an experience for the player. How interesting, exciting, fun, or immersive that experience can be benefits from the designer’s own experiences, both personal and studied. And to that end, I think studying classical civilization is a bit of a cheat code in filling up that well
