User:Supernerd11/John Cooney (video game designer)

Recommendation for finding more sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_Video_games/Sources#List -- in particular there is a Google custom search engine that only searches Project video game's reliable sources -- there are numerous "best game" picks for his work, I think with some judicious editing that can be made clear. If you want to sift through less stuff, restrict the search to site:indiegames.com to start (considered a reliable source by the WikiProject).

John Cooney is a flash game designer based in San Francisco, California. He runs independent studio jmtb02 Studios, and also develops games for Kongregate. He puts a limited license on his games that allows for distribution by anyone but without money involved, believing them to be more enjoyable if they're more accessible.

Early life & influences
He was born and raised in northern California, where one of his interests was Lego. This led to an interest in computer-aided design. He designed his first game when he was 15, and a friend showed him a program for Flash coding, and he uploaded his first games to the internet while he was still in high school, using the name jmtb02 (short for John Mountain Bike 2002). He went to the University of California Davis majoring in Technocultural Studies, where he began JMTB02 (later changed to jmtb02) Studios as a way to pay for college. His first game, Ball Revamped, was popular enough to crash his site. His biggest client was a small startup known as Armor Games, and they ended up hiring him once he graduated. He later became Head of Game Development for them and moved to Orange County, California.

Professional Life
Overall, he has created over 50 flash games, most of them independently, basing them around "simple, yet creative" ideas. A recurring theme in his games is animals, especially his signature blue elephant. He also has various hidden numbers in his games and has never said what they mean, leading to some speculation by fans.

Speeches
On August 18, 2012, he spoke at the 4th Annual Gathering of Video Game Legends & Student Game-Concept Pitch Competition at Westwood College. His topic was “Indie development – the life blood of the game industry”. He was a speaker at the Flash Games Summit 5 in San Francisco on March 24, 2013. Topics he talked about included his experience in the field of game design, the history of Flash gaming, and the rise to prominence of Armor Games. During an interview before the event, he was asked about his proudest moment in his work. He responded, "I had a mom email me to tell me her 4 year-old son was addicted to a game I created called Ball Revamped. He was so obsessed with the game that he drew me levels and designs, which she scanned and emailed to me. On top of that, he kept wondering why he couldn’t find Ball Revamped clothes at the department store. He was obsessed. Its [sic] really great hearing from fans."

Awards
In 2011, he received the Game Developer of the Year from Ecrans. His work has been featured in Electronic Gaming Monthly, BBC World Television, Edge Magazine, and OC Weekly. Indie Games called Epic Combo! was voted the fifth best browser arcade game of 2010. This Is The Only Level 3 was ranked 2011's best puzzle platformer by JayIsGames.

Move to Kongregate
In 2012, after 8 years at Armor Games, he moved to rival site Kongregate.