About
Hello there! My name is Jonathon Sherwood, and I’ve had a love for creating games since as far back as I can remember. Whether it was with my magnetic doodle-board at 5 years old, building levels in game editors as a teenager, or hosting DnD sessions with coworkers, I’ve always had a passion for creating memorable experiences no matter what it took. Regardless of the medium, I love being part of something that people can enjoy, and I can’t wait to help bring even greater projects to life with a wonderful team!
Skills Include:
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Work Experience
FWS Game Programming Tutor 11/2020 to Present
University of Advancing Technology – Tempe, AZ
• Mentored and guided students in improving their game development skills.
Cyber Security Staff Sergeant 01/2014 to 11/2018
Air Force – Ramstein AB, Germany
• Conducted weekly training which authorized access to critical information systems for over 400 personnel.
• Authored 10 unique briefings and training procedures that were incorporated throughout the DoD
• Performed risk analyses and identified appropriate security countermeasures for all of Europe and Africa DoD systems
University of Advancing Technology – Tempe, AZ
• Mentored and guided students in improving their game development skills.
Cyber Security Staff Sergeant 01/2014 to 11/2018
Air Force – Ramstein AB, Germany
• Conducted weekly training which authorized access to critical information systems for over 400 personnel.
• Authored 10 unique briefings and training procedures that were incorporated throughout the DoD
• Performed risk analyses and identified appropriate security countermeasures for all of Europe and Africa DoD systems
Community Statement
From the first days of the earliest games, one issue tends to loom in the background. The success tended to attract people who wanted the success themselves rather than had any love for creating them. While there is no harm in this intrinsically, one of the biggest problems with this is that these people typically find ways to become the heads of the corporations rather than staying lower on the totem pole. Today, the gaming industry is being bled dry by these very people who hope to make a profit without releasing anything of value, and I want to put a stop to this.
More than just making poor quality games for the sake of money, these kinds of practices come with a lot of extra baggage that the gaming community doesn’t want to talk about. The people at the top have become untouchable because they know how to exploit the entertainment industry. People don’t typically get into games to make money; they want to make something they are passionate about. With the elite all choosing who can work for them, these passionate people must carefully toe the line without a single ripple for fear of being excommunicated from the industry forever, losing their dream along with it. This kind of environment allows for the most heinous of issues, such as sexual assault, underpaid employees, and erasing hard working members from the credits as punishment for finding a new job. There doesn’t seem to be much anyone can do about it from the outside which is why I intend to attack it from within.
I am one of these passionate developers. I’ve already felt a bit of the strain from AAA companies enforcing their standards and expectations on their “peons,” and know how much it can burn out a creator. As such, I’ve taken to creating my own studio named “Autumn’s Dawn,” a euphemism for what my hopes for this company will do to the gaming community. The hope is that the decaying state of industry will fall like leaves, and that a new dawn for equality amongst employees, and even gamers, will emerge. However, this isn’t the only way to tackle the issue.
Making money as a new company is all well and good, and I may even be able to rescue a few hundred employees if I truly can make it big, but that won’t stop the industry altogether. Companies that have been in the business for decades aren’t about to lose all their power due to one small indie company hiring a handful of employees. Instead, I would want to educate and be a part of a movement to allow the voice of the employee to be heard. While I work for AAA companies, I will make it my mission to support each other employee. As they say, “they can’t fire all of us.” While this isn’t necessarily true, typically an employer will find ways to appease an entire office than to fire all of them and find new talent, especially on a deadline. This will need to be a gradual process, but I think employees who are willing to risk their career to take care of their peers would cause a cascading effect on the industry.
Starting a company and being a positive employee won’t cure the problem overnight. People in positions of power have been there for a long time and have a long history of putting down free thinkers like myself. However, the point is to be part of the community. My hopes for the future of the gaming industry relies on every member of the community doing their part along with me. Over the years, I hope I can continue to contribute both my company and my morals to the issues and help to bring in a new age of equality in game development. It may be a challenge, but everything worth doing is.
More than just making poor quality games for the sake of money, these kinds of practices come with a lot of extra baggage that the gaming community doesn’t want to talk about. The people at the top have become untouchable because they know how to exploit the entertainment industry. People don’t typically get into games to make money; they want to make something they are passionate about. With the elite all choosing who can work for them, these passionate people must carefully toe the line without a single ripple for fear of being excommunicated from the industry forever, losing their dream along with it. This kind of environment allows for the most heinous of issues, such as sexual assault, underpaid employees, and erasing hard working members from the credits as punishment for finding a new job. There doesn’t seem to be much anyone can do about it from the outside which is why I intend to attack it from within.
I am one of these passionate developers. I’ve already felt a bit of the strain from AAA companies enforcing their standards and expectations on their “peons,” and know how much it can burn out a creator. As such, I’ve taken to creating my own studio named “Autumn’s Dawn,” a euphemism for what my hopes for this company will do to the gaming community. The hope is that the decaying state of industry will fall like leaves, and that a new dawn for equality amongst employees, and even gamers, will emerge. However, this isn’t the only way to tackle the issue.
Making money as a new company is all well and good, and I may even be able to rescue a few hundred employees if I truly can make it big, but that won’t stop the industry altogether. Companies that have been in the business for decades aren’t about to lose all their power due to one small indie company hiring a handful of employees. Instead, I would want to educate and be a part of a movement to allow the voice of the employee to be heard. While I work for AAA companies, I will make it my mission to support each other employee. As they say, “they can’t fire all of us.” While this isn’t necessarily true, typically an employer will find ways to appease an entire office than to fire all of them and find new talent, especially on a deadline. This will need to be a gradual process, but I think employees who are willing to risk their career to take care of their peers would cause a cascading effect on the industry.
Starting a company and being a positive employee won’t cure the problem overnight. People in positions of power have been there for a long time and have a long history of putting down free thinkers like myself. However, the point is to be part of the community. My hopes for the future of the gaming industry relies on every member of the community doing their part along with me. Over the years, I hope I can continue to contribute both my company and my morals to the issues and help to bring in a new age of equality in game development. It may be a challenge, but everything worth doing is.
@2021 Jonathon Sherwood, All Rights Reserved