Meet The Team

Hailing originally from the Frozen North of New England, Darren has since journeyed to warmer climes and misses fall and winter - though he admits it's nice not having to dig his car out of the snow anymore. He's just as happy telling a story with music, gameplay systems, or words; in fact, he prefers to use all three whenever possible! He's never met a concept he can't break down and systematize into a spreadsheet. Yet he is also sentimental, with a soft spot for bugs (except the blood-sucking kind).

Quite good at a lot of things but not outstandingly good at anything, David’s epitaph will probably be, “he was clever but not wise.”

His favorite games are ones he can win.

At the tender age of 5, Diego was tasked with rescuing Princess Peach from the evil King Bowser. Today, he’s building his own kingdoms, setting sail on an endless voyage to learn and practice what the tales of the ages call game development. That voyage now brings him to Hidden Variable Studios, where he shall continue his quest! Though programming is his main bag, Diego also admires architecture and building his own creations in Minecraft. When duty calls, he makes his own game art as well.

The Almighty Bones was chiseled out of a piece of sandstone in the American Southwest. His mustache was then flown in from Cooperstown and attached shortly after. Since defeating the submarine level in Earthworm Jim, Bones knew he could make it in the gaming world. He enjoys spending time with family, watching baseball, and playing with his dog, Baby Driver.

Jenny peaked in 2017 with the creation of Barles Charkley’s Shut Up and Paint! Since then, she has been wallowing in weltschmerz and systematically hitting platinum in every FromSoft game. Her only hobby is reading comments on ambient music videos on YouTube, which every day brings her closer to transcending human consciousness.

Arriving at the studio under Cthulian circumstances involving a flying mollusk, Jesse has fought on the distant battlefields of PC, Mac, Vive, Oculus, and Console… all in one trunk, on a single project. What does his arrival herald? It might be awesome. It might be terrifying. It might very well be the end of the world. But whatever it is, he’ll be laughing all the way.

Fresh onto the fighting game scene, Joanna is a quick learner who is ready to adapt to any new things that might come her way. When not listening to true crime podcasts, Joanna can be found trying to cook new dishes or meticulously reorganize a different part of her home. So, naturally, she thrives when it comes to games involving crafting, managing farms, and interior decorating.

Born on the island of Java, the Justine has a natural affinity for video games and coffee. Legends say she is endlessly lurking in data analytics tools, forums, and Discord. Always watching from the shadows... In reality, she is actually quite social and generally loves people. Especially if they give her food.

Liam loves learning new things every day. His insatiable thirst for knowledge is only outmatched by his love for competitive fighting games.

If he's not traveling across North America to crush others in Fighting Game tournaments, he's probably working, or programming. Legend has it he sleeps sometimes, too. 

As a second-generation "office mom," Nissa loves planning team events and putting everyone to sleep with her tired puns. She enjoys knitting soft things, baking sweet things, trouncing her friends and family in mahjong, and snuggling with her cat. She once spent three months in college intensively playing NetHack because she "really liked picking up cool stuff." Her favorite game at the moment is Animal Crossing, where she now has a house to store all the cool stuff she picks up. 

Raheel travelled all the way from sunny South Africa to be here. She loves to speak in hypotheticals and is constantly chasing a high through code which properly compiles. She exclusively reads fantasy books and is unconditionally and irrevocably in need of a chiropractor (iykyk). 

As a long-time fighting game fan, Ren is always looking for new challenges. You can either find him labbing out every new fighting game that comes out or spending way too much time in Final Fantasy XIV. He loves coffee, curry, and is the #1 monkey appreciator in the world.

If there’s a place where Ruby thrives, it’s in front of a karaoke machine. She may not be an incredible singer, but that doesn’t stop her much (perhaps to the dismay of everyone else). When Ruby’s not channeling the Bee Gees, she’s off enjoying the genres of sci-fi, horror, and fantasy, in all their forms. Her childhood dream was to be a baker… but last night she burned some cookies, so a career in video games might be a more fitting pursuit. Luckily, there’s no risk of fires in games. At least, not the literal kind.

Sairus has always been fascinated by games, and while he may have graduated from Breakout to Combo Breakers over the years, the obsession never waned.

Sairus now balances that obsession with a healthy dose of drawing, movies, and meticulously curating his ever-growing bandana collection. He also tries to do some Community Manager stuff from time to time.