Marc LeBlanc
Encyclopedia
Marc "Mahk" LeBlanc is an educator about and designer of video games.
LeBlanc attended MIT
where he received a B.S. and M.S. in Computer Science
.
Through his work with Looking Glass Studios
, LeBlanc contributed to a number of important video game titles including Ultima Underworld II
, System Shock
, Flight Unlimited
, Terra Nova
, and Thief.
After Looking Glass, LeBlanc went to work for Sega
, developing artificial intelligence
for the Visual Concepts
line of sports games. In 2003, LeBlanc went to work for Mind Control Software, where, with Andrew Leker, he co-developed Oasis
, which won an Independent Games Festival
award. In addition, LeBlanc has participated in a number of Indie Game Jam
s.
LeBlanc has led a number of Game Design Tuning Workshops at the Game Developers Conference
, where he explores his theories on game design, specifically the Mechanics/Dynamics/Aesthetics (MDA) framework. MDA is based in part on the Formal Abstract Design Tools for games discussion initiated by Doug Church
. LeBlanc runs a site, 8kindsoffun.com, including the MDA work and his breakdown of "fun" for game design.
LeBlanc attended MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
where he received a B.S. and M.S. in Computer Science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
.
Through his work with Looking Glass Studios
Looking Glass Studios
Looking Glass Studios was a computer game development company during the 1990s.The company originally formed as Looking Glass Technologies, when Blue Sky Productions and Lerner Research merged....
, LeBlanc contributed to a number of important video game titles including Ultima Underworld II
Ultima Underworld II: Labyrinth of Worlds
Ultima Underworld II: Labyrinth of Worlds is a 1993 first-person role-playing video game developed by Looking Glass Technologies and published by Origin Systems. It is the sequel to Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss. Set in the Ultima fantasy universe, the game puts the player in control of the...
, System Shock
System Shock
System Shock is a first-person action-adventure video game developed by Looking Glass Technologies and published by Origin Systems. Released in 1994, the game is set aboard the fictional Citadel Station in a cyberpunk vision of 2072...
, Flight Unlimited
Flight Unlimited
Flight Unlimited is a 1995 aerobatic flight simulator video game developed and published by Looking Glass Technologies. It allows players to pilot reproductions of real-world aircraft and to perform aerobatic maneuvers. They may fly freely, race through floating rings against a timer or take...
, Terra Nova
Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri
Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri is a 1996 tactical first-person shooter video game developed and published by Looking Glass Technologies. Set in a science fictional depiction of the 24th century, the game follows a faction of humans who colonize the Alpha Centauri star system to escape from a...
, and Thief.
After Looking Glass, LeBlanc went to work for Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
, developing artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
for the Visual Concepts
Visual Concepts
Visual Concepts is a California-based video game developer best known for developing Sega Sports' 2K series of sports games. After the success of the series, they were picked up by Sega and became a wholly owned studio with Sega, usually termed a first-party developer...
line of sports games. In 2003, LeBlanc went to work for Mind Control Software, where, with Andrew Leker, he co-developed Oasis
Oasis (computer game)
Oasis is a computer game for Microsoft Windows developed by Mind Control Software and published by PlayFirst in April 2005. It is a turn-based strategy/puzzle game set in ancient Egypt...
, which won an Independent Games Festival
Independent Games Festival
The Independent Games Festival is an annual festival at the Game Developers Conference, the largest annual gathering of the indie video game industry. It was founded in 1998 to assist and inspire innovation in video game development and to recognize the best independent video game developers...
award. In addition, LeBlanc has participated in a number of Indie Game Jam
Indie Game Jam
The Indie Game Jam is an effort to rapidly prototype video game designs and inject new ideas into the game industry. Started in 2002 by a group of game designer-programmers, the event features a shared game engine technology worked on by other designer-programmers for a single long weekend...
s.
LeBlanc has led a number of Game Design Tuning Workshops at the Game Developers Conference
Game Developers Conference
The Game Developers Conference is the largest annual gathering of professional video game developers, focusing on learning, inspiration, and networking...
, where he explores his theories on game design, specifically the Mechanics/Dynamics/Aesthetics (MDA) framework. MDA is based in part on the Formal Abstract Design Tools for games discussion initiated by Doug Church
Doug Church
Doug Church is an American computer game designer and producer. He attended MIT in the late 1980s, but left and went to work with Looking Glass Studios, when they were making primarily MS-DOS-based first-person adventure/shooter/roleplaying games, including Ultima Underworld, Ultima Underworld II,...
. LeBlanc runs a site, 8kindsoffun.com, including the MDA work and his breakdown of "fun" for game design.