A credit to their skills - UOIT students play role in developing Avatar game

Two University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) students turned their internship at an international gaming company into an opportunity to work on a game spawned by one of the most commercially successful movies of all time, Avatar.

Ryan Hill and Mina Tawadrous, both in their fourth year with the UOIT Bachelor of Information Technology in Game Development and Entrepreneurship program, are listed in the credits of James Cameron's Avatar: The Game, developed by Ubisoft. The two worked on the game, which was released in December 2009, while they were at Ubisoft Montreal, first on an internship from January to April 2009 and then on summer contracts through July.

"This is a terrific achievement for Ryan and Mina and I'd like to congratulate them both," said Dr. Pamela Ritchie, dean, UOIT Faculty of Business and Information Technology. "To be able to attain such an impressive professional creative credit will serve them very well as they finish their studies and move on to careers in the industry. Offering students opportunities to pursue internships as part of their programs helps them gain the real-world experience and skills that will put them in demand by today's leading employers. In industry terms, these students have 'shipped a game,' which is the ultimate goal of all members of the industry."

Avatar: The Game promises to take gamers "deep into the heart of Pandora, an alien planet that is beyond imagination." Tawadrous and Hill initially worked on script architecture with Ubisoft level designers and programmers, before getting opportunities to take control of their own levels and a range of tasks. During that time they worked on game events, sequences, boss fights and more. They also note it was fascinating to have access to the Avatar script and some film images long before the movie was released in theatres.

"The first time I played the game and came to the credits I was in absolute awe," said Hill, a Georgetown native." I've been playing games since before I can remember and never thought that one day my name would be part of something like this. This has been a tremendous opportunity for me and given me invaluable experience working for an internationally leading gaming company."

He added the wide range of knowledge he gained through the UOIT Game Development program helped him adapt to the many different situations he faced while at Ubisoft and made the opportunity to work on the game possible.

Tawadrous was similarly excited by his inclusion in the credits, noting he's even made it his Facebook profile picture. He also agreed UOIT prepared him well for the internship and the success he enjoyed.

"The ideas and toolsets we developed from being a student in the Game Development program definitely prepared me for this internship," said the Scarborough native. "We were able to apply what we learned in the classroom to our work with Ubisoft. I'm excited about the future opportunities I will have that have come as a result of this internship."

Going forward, both Hill and Tawadrous hope to work at Ubisoft following graduation and continue to gain experience in the game development industry.

The Faculty of Business and Information Technology offers innovative degrees in both Commerce and Information Technology that provide a useful balance between theory and applied learning. The Game Development and Entrepreneurship program is designed to provide students with expertise in the field of game design and technology, and is unique in that its core value is entrepreneurship. The curriculum allows graduates to quickly advance their careers, by having knowledge and skills in business and management necessary to facilitate rewarding employment in existing corporations or entrepreneurial opportunities.

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