Handmade Games
700 West E Street Unit #405
San Diego, CA 92101
(901) 497-7688
http://www.hmglarp.com
hmglarp@hmglarp.com
The organization known as Handmade Games is made up of a wealth of wonderful people. There are those who simply own and run the company, and then there are the blessed ones who volunteer to help out when the owners need it the most. Below is information of both of these groups, as well as a short history of the company.
HMG
Staffers
The Company
The people who are officially in charge of Handmade Games are the following:
Joseph Cotton - Financial, Operations and Production Director
Joe is the driving force behind Dark ConFrontation, ultimately responsible for project deliverables and timelines as well as game rules and game development tools. Joe has a long and storied gaming career beginning over 15 years ago with D&D and Bureau 13 and has been a veteran of Dark Con since ‘96. Since then he has become passionate about game development in its various forms: LARP, table-top, computer, and board. He holds bachelors degrees in both Computer Science and Philosophy from the University of Alabama, showing a strong predilection for logic and puzzles. You could call Joe a Rules Lawyer, but that wouldn't quite encapsulate it since he loves to actually create the draconian laws that dictate game play. We are lucky to have someone at the helm who enjoys that which drives most people crazy.
ruby booth - Creative Director
Ruby has worked with Dark ConFrontation in a variety of roles since 1998. She is currently responsible for scripting and pacing, as well as plot creation, character writing, editing the DC Times, managing our volunteer staff of writers, and generally fighting the good fight to ensure that we make as few atrocious grammatical mistakes as possible. Originally a serious-minding major in poetry, she came to the madness and glee of game writing via a circuitous route, which may in part explain the labyrinthine nature of our typical plot. If you have a brilliant idea for a plot, character, or Petrarchan sonnet, ruby is the one you should contact.
Joe Wack - Technology Director
Coming Soon
Jonathan Thomas - Art, Props, and Warehouse Director
Jon (or J.T.) is the one responsible for prop design and fabrication as well as coordinating the artistic efforts of our various contacts. If something is drawn, built, sewn, painted, glued, or altered in Photoshop, it more than likely is something J.T. had his fingers on at one point or another. JT received his bachelors degree in Theater from Jacksonville State university, giving him immense experience at set design and stage production, both very useful talents when it comes to designing and running LARPs. JT is also an avid gamer, with nearly two decades of exposure to role-playing games, starting with Bureau 13 (which he introduced Joe to), and is a veteran of Dark ConFrontation since '95.
Nicholas Casiday - Marketing and Communications Director
Nick is responsible for all Marketing and Communications duties for Handmade Games. Nick has been involved in games for longer than he can remember, and interested in game development for almost as long. Nick first became involved with Dark ConFrontation in 2001, and has been an advocate and fan ever since. With a degree in Philosophy from the University of Alabama with a special interest in psychology, Nick is uniquely suited to setting our companies strategy to both enhance the sense of community we want to establish and grow with our existing players, and identifying and bringing in new players.
Mike Rowe - Communications and Mechanics Development Director
Mike has been working with HMG for longer than he has been actually present in Atlanta. He's responsible for working out little mechanical bits, like the tweaks to powers and abilities, and large mechanical bits, like Nightmares and giant Procyon battlesuits. Occasionally he spins a wheel and hands out prizes... but only occasionally.
Benji Hughes - World Development Director
Benji has a weird domain in a game with indeterminate continuity and no ongoing story: he's responsible for continuity and ongoing story. If a person, place, thing, or idea sees use in multiple years or outside an event's "main plot", Benji supervises its conjuration, gestation, and realization. He brings undergrad and graduate study in Medieval Lit, years as a bar bouncer, more recent years as a teacher and corporate trainer, and two decades writing Live Action games to Handmade Games. (Which of those proves relevant most often can be hard to predict.)
Any others who look suspiciously like they might be running the show are either our beloved Staffers or cleverly disguised decoys.
2011 Staffers will be announced soon...
This section is dedicated to those people who volunteer their time and energy to keep Dark ConFrontation running. They are our eyes, ears, hands, and often brains when we just can't be there, or at least be there sane. Our staffers do the toughest, most thankless, most time-consuming job that I can think of. Not only that, but they essentially miss out on one of the biggest, best Fantasy/Sci-Fi Conventions in the world because they're too busy helping us out. And what do they get for all this hard work and sacrifice? Sadly, just our eternal thanks and a mention in this section. A hugs. Joe gives good hugs, so don't under estimate the persuasive power involved in those hugs.
