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Hi, I’m Jacob Schertz, a game programmer focused on building robust gameplay systems, AI behaviors, UI, and tooling in Unreal Engine with C++. I thrive in collaborative, cross-disciplinary teams and enjoy turning design intent into performant in-engine solutions. My experience spans technical leadership, engine architecture, debugging, and performance-aware systems design. Over the years I’ve led multi-disciplinary production pipelines on student projects and personal builds, coordinating task planning, code integration, and designer-driven iteration to deliver scalable gameplay experiences. I’m always looking to push the boundaries of what’s possible in the engine while keeping pipelines streamlined and maintainable.…Hi, I’m Jacob Schertz, a game programmer focused on building robust gameplay systems, AI behaviors, UI, and tooling in Unreal Engine with C++. I thrive in collaborative, cross-disciplinary teams and enjoy turning design intent into performant in-engine solutions. My experience spans technical leadership, engine architecture, debugging, and performance-aware systems design. Over the years I’ve led multi-disciplinary production pipelines on student projects and personal builds, coordinating task planning, code integration, and designer-driven iteration to deliver scalable gameplay experiences. I’m always looking to push the boundaries of what’s possible in the engine while keeping pipelines streamlined and maintainable.

Jacob Richard Schertz

Game Developer, Game Designer, Programmer, +4

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Hi, I’m Jacob Schertz, a game programmer focused on building robust gameplay systems, AI behaviors, UI, and tooling in Unreal Engine with C++. I thrive in collaborative, cross-disciplinary teams and enjoy turning design intent into performant in-engine solutions. My experience spans technical leadership, engine architecture, debugging, and performance-aware systems design. Over the years I’ve led multi-disciplinary production pipelines on student projects and personal builds, coordinating task planning, code integration, and designer-driven iteration to deliver scalable gameplay experiences. I’m always looking to push the boundaries of what’s possible in the engine while keeping pipelines streamlined and maintainable.…Hi, I’m Jacob Schertz, a game programmer focused on building robust gameplay systems, AI behaviors, UI, and tooling in Unreal Engine with C++. I thrive in collaborative, cross-disciplinary teams and enjoy turning design intent into performant in-engine solutions. My experience spans technical leadership, engine architecture, debugging, and performance-aware systems design. Over the years I’ve led multi-disciplinary production pipelines on student projects and personal builds, coordinating task planning, code integration, and designer-driven iteration to deliver scalable gameplay experiences. I’m always looking to push the boundaries of what’s possible in the engine while keeping pipelines streamlined and maintainable.

Available to hire

Hi, I’m Jacob Schertz, a game programmer focused on building robust gameplay systems, AI behaviors, UI, and tooling in Unreal Engine with C++. I thrive in collaborative, cross-disciplinary teams and enjoy turning design intent into performant in-engine solutions. My experience spans technical leadership, engine architecture, debugging, and performance-aware systems design.

Over the years I’ve led multi-disciplinary production pipelines on student projects and personal builds, coordinating task planning, code integration, and designer-driven iteration to deliver scalable gameplay experiences. I’m always looking to push the boundaries of what’s possible in the engine while keeping pipelines streamlined and maintainable.

Skills

Experience Level

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Intermediate

Intermediate

Intermediate

Language

English

Fluent

Work Experience

Teacher's Assistant at DigiPen Institute of Technology

September 1, 2024 - July 31, 2025

Responsible for grading assignments and helping students in areas they were struggling with in class. September 2024 – May 2025: Assisted with Freshman Game Project Class. June 2025 – July 2025: Assisted with Game AI class.

Tech Lead at Midnight Delivery

September 1, 2024 - May 1, 2025

Led technical development for a multi-system adventure game including movement, quest progression, inventory, UI, pause menus, and cutscene systems. Designed and implemented scalable gameplay systems in C++ to support designer-driven iteration and content expansion. Coordinated task planning and code integration across programmers, maintaining system visibility and technical consistency. Collaborated with designers and artists to translate design intent into performant in-engine solutions. Strengthened Unreal Engine workflows, Perforce version control, and large-team production pipelines.

Gameplay Programmer at Simple Tower Defense Game – Unreal Engine

June 1, 2025 - July 1, 2025

Built core gameplay systems including player controls, tower behaviors, upgrade logic, projectile systems, and UI. Implemented modular tower logic with configurable variables to support balancing and rapid iteration. Collaborated with designers to tune gameplay mechanics and enemy progression. Developed primarily in C++ with minimal Blueprint usage, emphasizing engine-level programming practices. Gained experience debugging complex gameplay interactions and maintaining source control in Perforce.

Teacher’s Assistant at DigiPen Institute of Technology

September 1, 2024 - July 1, 2025

Assisted instruction for Freshman Game Project and Game AI courses. Provided technical mentoring, debugging assistance, and code reviews for student projects. Evaluated assignments and reinforced programming fundamentals and best practices.

Gameplay Programmer at Simple Tower Defense Game

June 1, 2025 - July 31, 2025

Built core gameplay systems including player controls, tower behaviors, upgrade logic, projectile systems, and UI. Implemented modular tower logic using configurable variables to support balancing and rapid iteration. Collaborated with designers to tune gameplay mechanics and enemy difficulty progression. Developed primarily in C++ with minimal Blueprint usage, emphasizing engine-level programming practices. Gained experience debugging complex gameplay interactions and maintaining source control in Perforce.

Technical Lead at Midnight Delivery

September 1, 2024 - May 1, 2025

Led technical development for a multi-system adventure game including movement, quest progression, inventory, UI, pause menus, and cutscene systems. Designed and implemented scalable gameplay systems in C++ supporting designer-driven iteration and content expansion. Coordinated task planning and code integration across programmers while maintaining system visibility and technical consistency. Collaborated closely with designers and artists to translate design intent into performant in-engine solutions. Strengthened expertise in Unreal Engine workflows, Perforce version control, and large-team production pipelines.