Joshua Ross
I'm a driven software developer with high-functioning autism, seeking real-world experience in the industry.
Joshua Ross
I'm a driven software developer with high-functioning autism, seeking real-world experience in the industry.
Chrome Arena, Version 0.2
August 24th, 2024
Welcome to the second beta version of my latest and greatest game: Chrome Arena, a rock-paper-scissors-like battle strategy! Choose three squads to send into battle against your opponent's three squads, and see which three prevail. Be mindful of squad colors, however; certain colors have an advantage over others, which equates to double damage! With that said, go forth, discover your favorite units, and strategize with them to dominate your opponents!
To showcase my programming skills, the scripts in use were written entirely by me from the ground up. As such, most of the sprites, audio, and other related assets are licensed by third parties, for which the credits are in-game. I am still open to exploring other positions in the industry, but programming is my strong suit.
Furthermore, this is only a beta version; I am aware that it is not a complete product as is. I am unsure whether or not I will develop it more in the future after I graduate from college, but if I do, I have still bigger plans for Chrome Arena: more units and levels, a level-up system, dialogue, save data, powerful weapons to interact during the fights, and more. In the meantime, thanks again for checking out my game.
Project Elef
May 9th, 2024
Project Elef is a video game that offers an innovatively unique experience with the characters. No longer constrained by pre-scripted dialogues, you and the characters can say whatever they want! I have been developing video games for over 10 years, and now, seeing the rise of more advanced artificial intelligence, I aspire to incorporate this technology into a new video game by giving the game’s non-player characters the ability to communicate freely.
This was my senior project for my Bachelor's degree in computer science that challenges "pre-scripted dialogue" in video games. This is a form of text dialogue often used by characters in video games, whose contents are hard-coded into the game. This is a great system to use for precise storytelling. However, it has flaws that sometimes compromise immersion and engagement. With Project Elef, I sought to resolve that flaw by enabling the player and the other characters to say whatever they want with the power of OpenAI!
Unfortunately, the dialogue no longer works now that I have revoked the API key. Should I move forward with this project long-term, it will be an entirely different game with much better gameplay and more to do/explore. In the meantime, however, I'm glad I developed this project, and I look forward to seeing how AI affects the gaming industry in the near future.
Viva
Real Skin and Bones
Real Skin and Bones
March 21st, 2024
Night has fallen, and your cat is unsheltered, unfed, and unrested. You must guide your cat to fulfill these needs before it's too late! Find some wood for shelter, some meat for sustenance, then snuggle up under the blankets for a good night's sleep. (How hard could that last one be?)
This was my entry for my last game jam at College of the Ozarks. Working alone, this short, three-level game took 20+ hours to develop, putting together everything I learned from previous game jams and hackathons along the way. Consequently, the project placed first and won the popular vote. Sometimes, simplicity is key. I did not spend much time on this project, but while it lasted, I enjoyed the experience of developing this game and sharing my creation with others in the end.
Real Skin and Bones
Real Skin and Bones
Real Skin and Bones
February 15th, 2024
"Skin and Bones is a woman owned small business located in southern Missouri. [They] specialize in ethically sourced animal products, including furs, skulls, teeth, bones, tails, and more."
This was my first official web site project. For it, I researched GoDaddy and used it in collaboration with an agriculture professor to develop an online presence for their new business. Though I specialize in programming and software development, I am open to learning in other computer science areas such as web site design.
View Guys
November 5th, 2023
Welcome to View Guys, a simulation where you moderate the text chat for three livestreams for the View Guys channel. Watch and read the incoming comments carefully and quickly determine how to deal with them: pin the good comments, delete the negative comments, and block the bot users to uphold the video's like-dislike ratio and remain in good standing with the channel. If, however, you make too many wrong moves or let the bad comments/users go undetected, you will be fired. Happy moderating!
View Guys was developed with the help of a team at a hackathon that I attended called Tiger Hacks, where we only had two days to develop the project. I was responsible for most of the Unity development among other things, as well as collaborating with and helping a teammate who was also working in Unity. The others conducted research and found assets for us to use, and they voiced for the trailer video. Although a natural introvert, I know the importance of teamwork and cooperation for developing a product far more efficiently and successfully than when I work alone. Without my team for this 36-hour project, it would not be nearly as polished or enjoyable.
Chrome Arena
October 1st, 2023
Welcome to the beta version of my greatest game so far: Chrome Arena, a rock-paper-scissors-like battle strategy! Choose three squads to send into battle against your opponent's three squads, and see which three prevail. Be mindful of squad colors, however; certain colors have an advantage over others, which equates to double damage! With that said, go forth, discover your favorite squads, and use them to dominate your opponents!
It's been four years since my last release, so I built Chrome Arena to restore relevance. I also built it to showcase my programming skills, as the scripts in use were written entirely by me from the ground up. As such, most of the sprites, audio, and other related assets are licensed by third parties, for which the credits are now in-game. I am open to exploring other positions in the gaming industry, but programming is my strong suit.
Furthermore, this is only a beta version; I am aware that it is not a complete product as is. I am unsure yet whether or not I will develop it more in the future, but if I do, I have much bigger plans for Chrome Arena: more units and levels, squad customization, particle effects, and more. In the meantime, thanks for checking out my game.
Jetpack Tunnel
Jetpack Tunnel
Jetpack Tunnel
November 3rd, 2019
In Jetpack Tunnel, you play as a special kind of cave explorer who has been assigned to launch a solo expedition through ten dangerous levels that can hardly be done on foot. You must touch the landing pad at the end to progress to the next level. Just watch out for the red blocks, or else you will have to restart the level.
In this game, I entertained the idea of combining three-dimensional terrain with two-dimensional gameplay to create the best of both worlds, and it wasn't hard to do.
Fire Soldier
Jetpack Tunnel
Jetpack Tunnel
July 5th, 2019
Fire Soldier is a challenging, ten-level platformer where you are to subject to escaping a volcano, evading a handful of its native "catslugs" along the way.
In this game, I experimented with a tilemap in Unity to build the levels. Furthermore, nearly all of the sprites were designed by me.
Glitch Garden
December 6th, 2018
Glitch Garden is like Plants vs. Zombies, only a lot smaller. You must defend against the "attackers" by spending the stars you collect on "defenders," which will chip down the attackers' health. Keep them at bay throughout the five levels for some nice victory music at the end!
This is the only project so far that I tried releasing for the mobile. I got it to work in the tests, but never really posted it online.
Also, the vast majority of these assets were downloaded directly from a discontinued game called Glitch, whose company was generous enough to release their assets into public domain through their website. Click here to visit them.
Block Breaker Moonlight
August 20th, 2018
The name says it all; Block Breaker Moonlight is a pinball game, but with a special moonlight theme. Collect various power-ups along the way such as Star Beam, and beware the "boss block" on the fifth and final level!
This is the oldest project in my portfolio, but easily the prettiest.