User:DecafPotato/drafts/Maddy Thorson
Maddy Thorson | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Thorson in 2021 | |
| Born | 18 March 1988 |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Education | Grande Prairie Regional College (BS) |
| Occupation | Video game developer |
| Employer | Extremely OK Games |
| Notable work | |
Madeline Stephanie Thorson (born 18 March 1988; formerly Matt Thorson) is a Canadian video game developer. Under the studio Matt Makes Games, she directed and developed games such as TowerFall (2013) and Celeste (2018). Matt Makes Games was relaunched as Extremely OK Games in 2019, and is developing Earthblade (2024).
Life and career[edit]
1988–2003: Early life[edit]
Madeline Stephanie Thorson[1] was born on 18 March 1988.[2] In the late 1990s, her mother allowed her to acquire Game-Maker, a software designed to assist in video game development. Through online communication with those also interested in game development, Thorson met Chevy Ray Johnston.[3] Video games in the Super Mario and Donkey Kong series were noted by Thorson to have been important to her childhood,[4] and she later cited those games as inspirations for her future work.[5]
Throughout high school, Thorson earned money by creating small "pay what you want" downloadable games through Game-Maker.[3] In 2004, she created the platform game Jumper.[6] She attended the Grande Prairie Regional College in 2006 to earn a Bachelor of Science majoring in computer science,[7][6] and to secure employment with a major Canadian video game development studio.[3] During the summer, she worked at HermitWorks Entertainment in Grand Prairie, Alberta.[4]
2004–2008: Helix Games[edit]
2008–2019: Matt Makes Games[edit]
2008–2013:[edit]
2013–2019: TowerFall and Celeste[edit]
On 25 June 2013, Thorson released TowerFall exclusively for the Ouya.[8]
2019–present: Extremely OK Games[edit]
Personal life[edit]
Awards and recognition[edit]
Works[edit]
| Release date | Title |
|---|---|
| 11 February 2004 | Jumper |
| 11 May 2004 | Dim |
| 18 June 2004 | Jumper Two |
| 3 January 2005 | Jumper: Redux |
| 11 July 2005 | Hold Off Red |
| 26 August 2007 | An Untitled Story |
| 19 March 2008 | FLaiL |
| 20 August 2008 | Jumper Three |
| 2 July 2009 | MoneySeize |
| 30 August 2009 | Broken Cave Robot |
| 1 October 2009 | RunMan |
| 6 May 2010 | Give Up, Robot |
| 16 September 2010 | Give Up Robot 2 |
| 7 July 2011 | Fat Wizard |
| 22 April 2012 | Ra Ra |
| 16 April 2013 | Planet Punch |
| 25 June 2013 | TowerFall |
| 11 March 2014 | TowerFall Ascension |
| 25 August 2014 | Chaos Heart |
| 12 May 2015 | TowerFall Dark World |
| 21 July 2015 | Celeste Classic[a] |
| 25 January 2018 | Celeste |
| 2024 | Earthblade |
Notes[edit]
- ^ Originally released as Celeste
References[edit]
- ^ Thorson, Maddy. "@MaddyThorson". Archived from the original on 22 October 2022. Retrieved 27 October 2022 – via Twitter.
- ^ Thorson, Maddy (18 March 2009). "Birthday Randomness". Matt Makes Games. Archived from the original on 8 May 2009. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
- ^ a b c Plante, Chris (2 July 2014). "What It Feels Like To Launch An Indie Hit". Polygon. Vox Media. Archived from the original on 25 May 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
- ^ a b "Interview: Matt Thorson". IndieGames.com (Interview). UBM Tech. 12 June 2008. Archived from the original on 27 June 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
- ^ Brown, Mark (22 July 2019). Celeste's Matt Thorson and Noel Berry | GMTK Dev Interviews. Game Maker's Toolkit (Interview). Event occurs at 14:08–14:44. Archived from the original on 17 November 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2022 – via YouTube.
- ^ a b Polanski, Lana (20 November 2011). "Profile: Matt Thorson". Kill Screen (Interview). Archived from the original on 3 January 2023. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
- ^ Thorson, Maddy (16 April 2008). "Who is this Matt character, anyway?". Matt Makes Games. Archived from the original on 3 February 2009.
- ^ Polson, John (25 May 2013). "Matt Thorson's TowerFall hits OUYA at launch, works with Xbox 360 controllers". IndieGames.com. UBM Tech. Archived from the original on 9 June 2013. Retrieved 28 June 2013.
- ^ Thorson, Maddy. "Matt Makes Games". Matt Makes Games. Archived from the original on 17 December 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
- ^ "Games". Extremely OK Games. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2023.