{"id":136267,"date":"2023-07-19T09:57:56","date_gmt":"2023-07-19T13:57:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/?p=136267"},"modified":"2024-05-17T16:17:45","modified_gmt":"2024-05-17T20:17:45","slug":"ucf-alum-on-how-fiea-took-him-from-gamer-to-creator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/ucf-alum-on-how-fiea-took-him-from-gamer-to-creator\/","title":{"rendered":"UCF Alum on How FIEA Took Him From Gamer to Creator"},"content":{"rendered":"
More than 3 billion people are estimated to be active video game players, with the worldwide gaming market projected to be $347 billion. Behind the largest entertainment industry in the world are creators like Blake Battle \u201912MS<\/strong>, who is an accomplished producer at Bungie, which has developed popular games like Destiny and Halo.<\/p>\n A UCF interactive entertainment<\/a> alum, Battle grew his gaming hobby into a career through his training at the university\u2019s Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy<\/a> (FIEA). FIEA provides an authentic and unparalleled video game development experience that helped Battle hit the ground running. While a student, he interned at EA Sports and seamlessly transitioned into a full-time employee with the gaming company upon graduation \u2014 showcasing the value of FIEA’s plug-and-play approach.<\/p>\n As a leader, strategist, and customer, Battle is always looking at the next level of gaming, which he says is currently service gaming. Service games forgo upfront costs and instead rely on in-game monetization to benefit both player and developer.<\/p>\n “Games as a service is a return to form,\u201d Battle says.<\/p>\n As Battle works to innovate Bungie\u2019s offerings \u2014 which focus on creating games that inspire friendship \u2014 \u00a0he reflects on his time with the first game development community he joined: FIEA.<\/p>\n What inspired you to pursue a career making video games and to attend FIEA?
\n<\/strong>Before FIEA, I was a legal assistant studying for the LSAT exam to become a lawyer. Before that, I was a recent college graduate trying to find his way in the business world. I quickly learned after college that neither of those things made me happy, and I needed to pursue a field I was passionate about. Video games had been the one unquestionable object of passion in my life. I found FIEA via a Google search for \u201cBest Video Game Grad School\u201d, (and) found it in a Princeton Review list. The cohort-based program seemed like the best fit for me.<\/p>\n