Steve Polge

Steve Polge
OccupationGame programmer

Steven Polge is a game programmer, most noted for his work on Epic Games' Unreal series of games. Polge was hired by Epic in 1997 after creating the Reaper Bot, which is recognized by Guinness World Records as the first computer-controlled deathmatch opponent.[1][2][3] In addition to programming on the franchise, he served as lead designer on Unreal Tournament 3,[4] and has been credited on other Epic titles such as Gears of War, Shadow Complex and Fortnite.

Prior to joining Epic, he had worked at IBM after getting his master's degree in computer engineering.[5][6]

  1. ^ Conley, Stacey (December 21, 2012). "The Longevity of Unreal Tournament: Part One". Epic Games Community. Epic Games. Archived from the original on July 30, 2013. Retrieved September 6, 2014. After I released the Reaper bot for quake, Epic offered me a job working on Unreal. After we shipped the first Unreal game, we realized we wanted to go farther into multiplayer. The bot AI I was developing gave us the opportunity to make a multiplayer focused game that could also be enjoyed stand alone, which was important at that time when not everyone had good internet connections or experience with multiplayer gaming. I was the lead programmer for Unreal Tournament, and focused on AI, networking, player physics, and general gameplay.
  2. ^ Totilo, Stephen (December 7, 2011). "The Quiet Tinkerer Who Makes Games Beautiful Finally Gets His Due". Kotaku. Gawker Media. Retrieved October 7, 2014. The engine-licensing was an epiphany. Sweeney and his pals at Epic realized that they could make money by granting other developers the right to use their tech. He loved it, because deals like that made Epic the money it needed to focus on making games. Sweeney's involvement in the first Unreal Engine diminished after the first Unreal game shipped. Other programmers, including Epic's bright AI wiz Steve Polge moved to the forefront ... Polge was the first programmer that Sweeney worked with who he discovered was as good as him. He's still at Epic and a big Sweeney fan since he joined the company in 1997.
  3. ^ "First computer-controlled deathmatch opponent". Guinness World Records. Retrieved July 9, 2017.
  4. ^ Park, Andrew (May 9, 2005). "Unreal Tournament 2007 Exclusive Preview - An Overview of the Next UT". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  5. ^ "Steve Polge Interview". OzUnreal. Archived from the original on April 12, 2001. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  6. ^ Fragmaster. "Fear The Reaper, An Interview with Steven Polge". Quakewiki. Retrieved September 6, 2014.