By Jim Mendoza. Repost from HawaiiNewsNow – February 27, 2024.
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Fans of League of Legends know how big Riot Games is in the video gaming industry.
University of Hawaii graduate Ryan Guerrero works as a visual designer for the creative company.
“I learned a lot from working at Riot Games, just being able to build my craft,” he said. “Now I’m working at EA where I’m actually working on a video game.”
And not just any video game. Ryan’s graphics and artwork are part of the top selling Madden NFL series. His first assignment at Electronic Arts was on Madden 2023. Now he’s working on Madden 2024.
“I was that student at UH in the dorm room, playing that exact game mode, and now I’m actually creating the card art for that game mode, which is pretty crazy to me,” he said.
He learned his craft in the UH Esports program, first as a student. After he graduated he helped with visual design and produced some of the university’s most-clicked-on graphics.
“The University of Hawaii is really creating a cohort of students that are making some pretty significant moves within the broader esports, video game industry overall,” UH Esports director Nyle Sky Kauweloa said.
UH helped Ryan land the job at Riot Games.
“When I first started at Riot they threw me into the fire helping the marketing team create some marketing ads for the Netflix show Arcane, and then World’s 2022 which is the biggest esports event in the world,” he said.
Ryan graduated from UH in 2020 with a degree in communications. The Esports program gave him a foundation to build on and a portfolio that showcased his skills to potential employers.
“I just know that the job market is very competitive. I know it’s very fierce. And I knew he had it in him, and I do know a lot of our students currently have it in them as well,” program assistant Kevin Nguyen said.
“I definitely learned a lot,” Ryan said. “I owe them pretty much my career.”
That career is just getting started. So the next time you play Madden football, remember that a UH grad is part of the EA graphics team – and he’s got game.
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