| André LaMothe | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 14, 1972 Silicon Valley |
| Occupation | CEO Nurve Networks LLC, Computer Scientist, Game Programmer, Author, Embedded Systems Developer |
André LaMothe is a computer scientist, author and embedded systems developer. He was responsible for the development of hardware and software for artificial intelligence research and worked specifically on the sparse distributed memory project at NASA's Research Institute for Advanced Computer Science (RIACS).
LaMothe attended San Jose State University where he triple majored in mathematics, computer science, and electrical engineering.
LaMothe is an international best selling author and his books on game programming have sold up to 400 to 500 thousand copies in total,[1] and has written numerous computer games for 8-bit computers. Among others the FPS 3D Rex-Blade series in the mid-1990s. Other projects he has pioneered in was the development of the first super computer virtual reality location-based games while working at Vision of Reality using the Sense8 API and SGI Oynx super computers.[2]
LaMothe is the creator of the XGameStation,[3] one of the world's first video game console development kits. Recently he added a new more powerful Parallax Propeller multi-core based system, called the HYDRA Game Development Kit, to the earlier systems that were based on the SX52 Processor and SX28 Processors. These were followed by the MACH64 Programmable Logic Starter Kit which teaches CPLDs. Lamothe's latest next generation gaming products are the XGS AVR 8-Bit and XGS PIC 16-Bit, these systems are designed to be used as AVR/PIC development kits targeting engineers, hobbyists, and students.
Recently, LaMothe released the Chameleon AVR 8-Bit as well as the Chameleon PIC 16-Bit. These systems are Arduino compatible to varying degrees, but rely on a multiprocessor, multicore architecture to leverage the strengths of the Arduino's philosophy while enabling simplified media generation such as NTSC VGA, audio, as well as interfacing to devices such as keyboard and mice with very little code.
He founded Xtreme Games LLC in 1994, which represented hundreds of small independent or amateur game companies and claims to be the "world's largest virtual game company." In its heyday, Xtreme Games licensed hundreds of valueware games to companies such as Expert Software, Activision, and eGames. LaMothe is founder of the Xtreme Games Developer Conference (XGDC) a grass roots game developer conference which was licensed to Course PTR in 2002 as the XGDX.
LaMothe developed the "Black Art Series" for Waite Group Press in the mid-1990s, which was recently brought back to life by Sams Publishing, and is the series editor of the Premier Publishing Game Development Series.
Currently, LaMothe is the CEO of Nurve Networks LLC which develops embedded systems catering to entertainment and educational hardware kits. He is also an instructor at GameInstitute.com and Chief Scientist of The SafeCig.com.