Difference between revisions of "Christina Coffin"
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After working at [[Sculptured Software]] for about a year, Christina Coffin was hired by [[Sega of America]] in 1995{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}} as Technical Director of its semi-independent development studio [[Sega Technical Institute]]. Working in a number of roles within the two companies, she notably served as programmer of the [[Sega Saturn]]'s [[Sega Graphics Library]] development tools{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}}, acted in a development and advisory role at Sega of America's various R&D subsidiaries{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}}, and assisted the company's affiliated third-party developers with their technical support questions.{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}} | After working at [[Sculptured Software]] for about a year, Christina Coffin was hired by [[Sega of America]] in 1995{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}} as Technical Director of its semi-independent development studio [[Sega Technical Institute]]. Working in a number of roles within the two companies, she notably served as programmer of the [[Sega Saturn]]'s [[Sega Graphics Library]] development tools{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}}, acted in a development and advisory role at Sega of America's various R&D subsidiaries{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}}, and assisted the company's affiliated third-party developers with their technical support questions.{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}} | ||
| − | Coffin would later serve as Technical Advisor on the upcoming [[Sega Dreamcast]]{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}}, programming the system's core software libraries and playing a significant role in its engineering{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}} - notably the first time the American division of Sega would have such a direct role in a home system's production. | + | Coffin would later serve as Technical Advisor on the upcoming [[Sega Dreamcast]]{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}}, programming the system's core software libraries and playing a significant role in its engineering{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}} - notably the first time the American division of Sega would have such a direct role in a home system's production. Through her time at the company, Coffin experienced developing for a number of different platforms and architectures - the Saturn, Dreamcast, Windows PC, Silicon Graphics workstations, arcade hardware, and various prototype systems.{{ref|https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/}} |
==Quotes== | ==Quotes== | ||
Revision as of 01:38, 31 October 2021
|
| Christina Ann Coffin |
|---|
| Date of birth: 1972 (age 51-52) |
| Company(ies): Sculptured Software[1], Sega of America, Sega Technical Institute, Konami of America, Origin Systems, Rockstar San Diego, Ubisoft Canada, DICE[1] |
| Role(s): Programmer[1], Engineer[1] |
| Education: University of California San Diego (Bachelor of Computer Science; 1990) |
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Christina “Chris” Ann Coffin is an American video game programmer and engineer[1], and former member of Sega Technical Institute.
Contents
History
Christina Coffin acquired her first computer at the age of 9 - a VIC-20.[1] After typing in her first BASIC program, and realizing she could now code her own games instead of asking her parents to purchase them, she quickly grew an affinity for video game programming and found herself coding games in her free time. After later acquiring an Amiga 500[1][2], and being exposed to its burgeoning demoscene, Coffin grew well-acquainted enough with the system to build a small library of demos, and continued creating games on her own for some time.[1]
While Coffin was completing her computer science degree at University of California San Diego in 1994, she saw a classified ad in a local San Diego paper advertising an available programming position at nearby Sculptured Software. Initially shocked to see what was her first exposure to the video game industry proper, and feeling like her life could use a more relevant change of direction, she applied for the job, bringing a number of her projects and Amiga demos to the interview. Despite her lack of professional experience, her visible passion and desire to create something meaningful shone through, and she was soon hired as one of the company's junior programmers.[1]
Since then, Coffin has remained in the video game industry and has acted in a number of roles, particularly the programming and maintenance of game engines. She eventually found a developer which shares her specific passions for engine programming[1], DICE (where she serves as the company's Platform Specialist Senior Engineer[1]), and also frequently relates her personal experiences and thoughts as a woman in the game industry - something for which she earned the 2011 International Game Developers Association Women in Gaming Award (Engineering).[3]
Sega Technical Institute
- Main article: Sega Technical Institute.
After working at Sculptured Software for about a year, Christina Coffin was hired by Sega of America in 1995[4] as Technical Director of its semi-independent development studio Sega Technical Institute. Working in a number of roles within the two companies, she notably served as programmer of the Sega Saturn's Sega Graphics Library development tools[4], acted in a development and advisory role at Sega of America's various R&D subsidiaries[4], and assisted the company's affiliated third-party developers with their technical support questions.[4]
Coffin would later serve as Technical Advisor on the upcoming Sega Dreamcast[4], programming the system's core software libraries and playing a significant role in its engineering[4] - notably the first time the American division of Sega would have such a direct role in a home system's production. Through her time at the company, Coffin experienced developing for a number of different platforms and architectures - the Saturn, Dreamcast, Windows PC, Silicon Graphics workstations, arcade hardware, and various prototype systems.[4]
Quotes
| “ | I want to make sure I’m doing what I love. And I want to be able to look back on my life and say "Wow! I made all these cool games and a lot of people enjoyed them." That’s what would make me feel like I’ve done something useful with my life. | „ |
— Christina Coffin[1] | ||
Production history
- Quake (Saturn; 1997) — Special Thanks[5] (as Chris "Applejack" Coffin)
- Sonic X-treme (Saturn; unreleased) — Boss Programming (as Chris Coffin)
- Sonic X-treme (Saturn; unreleased) — Conceptual Gameplay Design (as Chris Coffin)
Interviews
External links
- Official website (Wayback Machine)
- Christina Coffin at Twitter
- Christina Coffin at LinkedIn
- Women In Gaming 2011 Award Winners Announced article by Annette Gonzalez at Game Informer
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 Interview: Christina Coffin (2011-03-10) by H. Brun
- ↑ https://www.mobygames.com/user/sheet/userSheetId,71745/v,sl/ (Wayback Machine: 2021-10-30 09:31)
- ↑ https://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/03/03/women-in-gaming-award-winners.aspx (Wayback Machine: 2021-04-21 19:54)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinacoffin/
- ↑ File:Quake sat us manual.pdf, page 18