Jeffrey Tunnell is a
video game
A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...
producer,
programmer
A programmer, computer programmer or coder is an author of computer source code someone with skill in computer programming.
The professional titles Software development, ''software developer'' and Software engineering, ''software engineer' ...
and
designer
A designer is a person who plans the form or structure of something before it is made, by preparing drawings or plans. In practice, anyone who creates tangible or intangible objects, products, processes, laws, games, graphics, services, or exper ...
.
In 1984 he founded
Dynamix
Dynamix, Inc. was an American developer of video games from 1984 to 2001, best known for the flight simulator Red Baron (1990 video game), ''Red Baron'', the puzzle video game, puzzle game ''The Incredible Machine (video game), The Incredible Mach ...
with
Damon Slye
Damon Slye (born June 15, 1962) is a computer game game designer, designer, director, and game programmer, programmer. In 1984 he founded Dynamix with Jeff Tunnell in Eugene, Oregon, Eugene, Oregon. He is best known for creating the historic fligh ...
in
Eugene
Eugene may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Eugene (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name
* Gene Eugene, stage name of Canadian born actor, record producer, engineer, composer and musi ...
,
Oregon
Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...
.
In 1990, Tunnell left
Dynamix
Dynamix, Inc. was an American developer of video games from 1984 to 2001, best known for the flight simulator Red Baron (1990 video game), ''Red Baron'', the puzzle video game, puzzle game ''The Incredible Machine (video game), The Incredible Mach ...
to start
Jeff Tunnell Productions. Tunnell would go on to create famous brands such as ''
The Incredible Machine'', ''
Trophy Bass'', and the ''
3-D Ultra Pinball
''3-D Ultra Pinball'' is a series of pinball computer games developed by Sierra Entertainment's Dynamix.
The games try to escape from the traditional, arcade pinball and feature animation, more than one table at once,
and "temporary targets" (s ...
'' series while at
Jeff Tunnell Productions. These products were some of the most successful retail products to be published by
Dynamix
Dynamix, Inc. was an American developer of video games from 1984 to 2001, best known for the flight simulator Red Baron (1990 video game), ''Red Baron'', the puzzle video game, puzzle game ''The Incredible Machine (video game), The Incredible Mach ...
.
In 1993, ''
Sid & Al's Incredible Toons
''Sid & Al's Incredible Toons'' is a puzzle video game developed by Dynamix and released by Sierra On-Line in 1993.
Summary
This video game is designed with the same style as that of '' The Incredible Machine'', except that the game takes plac ...
'' earned Tunnell and Chris Cole a
patent
A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...
for the game's concepts.
In 1995, Tunnell returned to
Dynamix
Dynamix, Inc. was an American developer of video games from 1984 to 2001, best known for the flight simulator Red Baron (1990 video game), ''Red Baron'', the puzzle video game, puzzle game ''The Incredible Machine (video game), The Incredible Mach ...
in a leadership role.
In 2001, after Dynamix was disbanded, Tunnell co-founded
GarageGames
GarageGames was a game technology and software developer. GarageGames was the parent company of GG Interactive, developers of educational technology in the areas of computer science, video game development and Computer programming, programming. I ...
, an
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States
* Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...
video game publisher
A video game publisher is a company that publishes video games that have been developed either internally by the publisher or externally by a video game developer.
They often finance the development, sometimes by paying a video game developer ...
, which is also the developer of the
Torque Game Engine
Torque Game Engine, or TGE, is an open-source cross-platform 3D computer game engine, developed by GarageGames and actively maintained under the current versions Torque 3D as well as Torque 2D. It was originally developed by Dynamix for the 2001 ...
.
In 2007,
GarageGames
GarageGames was a game technology and software developer. GarageGames was the parent company of GG Interactive, developers of educational technology in the areas of computer science, video game development and Computer programming, programming. I ...
was acquired by
InterActiveCorp
IAC Inc. is an American holding company that owns brands across 100 countries, mostly in media and Internet. The company originated in 1996 as HSN Inc. as the holding company of Home Shopping Network and USA Network before changing its name to ...
, the media conglomerate founded by
Barry Diller
Barry Charles Diller (born February 2, 1942) is an American billionaire businessman. He is chairman and senior executive of IAC and Expedia Group and founded the Fox Broadcasting Company with Rupert Murdoch and USA Broadcasting. Diller was ind ...
. Tunnell remained on as Chief Creative Officer of
GarageGames
GarageGames was a game technology and software developer. GarageGames was the parent company of GG Interactive, developers of educational technology in the areas of computer science, video game development and Computer programming, programming. I ...
. Tunnell was a contributor behind the vision of the original
InstantAction
InstantAction was a game portals, web gaming site and Digital distribution, digital distributor featuring 3d rendering, 3D, browser-based games.
The site was created by GarageGames after being acquired by IAC/InterActive Corp in 2007 and released ...
distribution platform.
In 2008, Tunnell left
GarageGames
GarageGames was a game technology and software developer. GarageGames was the parent company of GG Interactive, developers of educational technology in the areas of computer science, video game development and Computer programming, programming. I ...
to pursue other interests.
In 2009, Tunnell founded PushButton Labs along with former partners and employees from
GarageGames
GarageGames was a game technology and software developer. GarageGames was the parent company of GG Interactive, developers of educational technology in the areas of computer science, video game development and Computer programming, programming. I ...
and
Dynamix
Dynamix, Inc. was an American developer of video games from 1984 to 2001, best known for the flight simulator Red Baron (1990 video game), ''Red Baron'', the puzzle video game, puzzle game ''The Incredible Machine (video game), The Incredible Mach ...
. PushButton Labs led development on one of the most successful games of 2010, Playdom's ''Social City'', which reached more than 10M
monthly active users
Active users is a software performance metric that is commonly used to measure the level of engagement for a particular software product or object, by quantifying the number of active interactions from users or visitors within a relevant range ...
. PushButton Labs IP was acquired by Disney in 2011 and they subsequently wound down operations.
In 2012, Tunnell founded Spotkin along with former partners of PushButton Labs,
GarageGames
GarageGames was a game technology and software developer. GarageGames was the parent company of GG Interactive, developers of educational technology in the areas of computer science, video game development and Computer programming, programming. I ...
, and
Dynamix
Dynamix, Inc. was an American developer of video games from 1984 to 2001, best known for the flight simulator Red Baron (1990 video game), ''Red Baron'', the puzzle video game, puzzle game ''The Incredible Machine (video game), The Incredible Mach ...
.
On March 22, 2017, Tunnell announced his retirement from game development, citing market saturation as a deciding factor.
On June 13, 2020, Tunnell declared his return to gaming development by announcing the creation of Monster Ideas, a company that plans to produce "community economy" games that use crypto technology on the backend.
Games
* ''
Arcticfox
''Arcticfox'' is a science fiction tank simulation video game developed by Dynamix and published by Electronic Arts in 1986. It was published in Europe by Ariolasoft. A sequel to Dynamix's ''Stellar 7'', it was released on Atari ST, Commodore ...
'' (
1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
** Spain and Portugal en ...
), Dynamix
* ''
Skyfox II: The Cygnus Conflict'' (
1987
Events January
* January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency.
* January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade.
* January 3 – Afghan leader ...
), Electronic Arts
* ''
Project Firestart'' (1989), Electronic Arts
* ''
Motocross
Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom.
History
Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competi ...
'' (1989),
Gamestar
''GameStar'' is a monthly-released PC gaming magazine in Germany. It is the best-selling German-language magazine focused on PC gaming and it also hosts the largest video gaming-related portal in the German-speaking internet.
''GameStar.de'' i ...
* ''
Ghostbusters II
''GhostbustersII'' is a 1989 American Supernatural fiction, supernatural comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. The film stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Ramis, Rick Moranis, Ernie Hudson ...
'' (1989), Activision
* ''
Deathtrack
''DeathTrack'' is a first-person, futuristic racing game developed for MS-DOS by Dynamix and published by Activision in 1989.
Gameplay
There are two ways to win a race: be the first to finish the race, or be the only one to finish the race. Bas ...
'' (1989),
Activision
Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one o ...
* ''
David Wolf: Secret Agent'' (1989), Dynamix
* ''
Caveman Ugh-Lympics'' (1989),
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by former Apple Inc., Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry ...
* ''
A-10 Tank Killer
''A-10 Tank Killer'' is a 1989 combat flight simulation video game for DOS developed and published by Dynamix. An Amiga version was released in 1990. The game features an A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft. Following the success of ''Red Baron ...
'' (
1989
1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...
), Dynamix
* ''
Stellar 7
''Stellar 7'' is a first-person vehicle simulation game, tank simulation video game based on the 1980s arcade game ''Battlezone (1980 video game), Battlezone'' in which the player assumes the role of a futuristic tank pilot. The game was created ...
'' (1990),
Dynamix
Dynamix, Inc. was an American developer of video games from 1984 to 2001, best known for the flight simulator Red Baron (1990 video game), ''Red Baron'', the puzzle video game, puzzle game ''The Incredible Machine (video game), The Incredible Mach ...
* ''
Rise of the Dragon
''Rise of the Dragon,'' released in 1990 by Dynamix, marks the company's venture into the cyberpunk genre, distinct from its usual portfolio of action and flight simulators. This graphic adventure game is set in a future dystopian version of Los ...
'' (1990), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Red Baron
Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a sec ...
'' (
1990
Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...
), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Heart of China'' (1991), Sierra On-Line
* ''
The Adventures of Willy Beamish
''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...
'' (
1991
It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...
), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Quarky & Quaysoo's Turbo Science'' (1992), Sierra On-Line
* ''Mega Math'' (
1992
1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General.
* January 6
** The Republ ...
), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Sid & Al's Incredible Toons
''Sid & Al's Incredible Toons'' is a puzzle video game developed by Dynamix and released by Sierra On-Line in 1993.
Summary
This video game is designed with the same style as that of '' The Incredible Machine'', except that the game takes plac ...
'' (1993), Sierra On-Line
* ''
The Incredible Machine'' (1993), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Betrayal at Krondor
''Betrayal at Krondor'' is an MS-DOS-based role-playing video game developed by Dynamix and released by Sierra Entertainment, Sierra On-Line in the summer of 1993 in video gaming, 1993. ''Betrayal at Krondor'' takes place largely in Midkemia, the ...
'' (1993), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Alien Legacy'' (
1993
The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as:
* International Year for the World's Indigenous People
The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...
), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Lode Runner: The Legend Returns'' (1994), Sierra On-Line
* ''
The Incredible Toon Machine'' (1994), Sierra On-Line
* ''
The Incredible Machine 2'' (1994), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Bouncers'' (
1994
The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations.
In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...
),
SEGA Entertainment
* ''
Lode Runner Online: The Mad Monks' Revenge'' (
1995
1995 was designated as:
* United Nations Year for Tolerance
* World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War
This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...
), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Hunter Hunted'' (1996), Sierra On-Line
* ''
3-D Ultra Pinball: Creep Night'' (
1996
1996 was designated as:
* International Year for the Eradication of Poverty
Events January
* January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...
), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Rama
Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda' ...
'' (
1997
Events January
* January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States.
* January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis.
* January 1 ...
), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Starsiege: Tribes'' (1998), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Starsiege
''Starsiege'' is a mecha-style vehicle simulation game developed by Dynamix and released in 1999. ''Starsiege'' is set in the Metaltech: Earthsiege, Metaltech/Metaltech: Earthsiege, Earthsiege universe, which contains its predecessors ''Metalte ...
'' (1998), Sierra On-Line
* ''3-D Ultra Minigolf'' (
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...
), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Return of the Incredible Machine: Contraptions'' (2000), Sierra On-Line
* ''
3-D Ultra Lionel Train Town Deluxe'' (
2000
2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year.
Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...
),
Sierra On-Line
Sierra Entertainment, Inc. (formerly On-Line Systems and Sierra On-Line, Inc.) was an American video game developer and publisher founded in 1979 by Ken and Roberta Williams. The company is known for pioneering the graphic adventure game ge ...
* ''
Tribes 2
''Tribes 2'' is a first-person shooter multiplayer video game developed by Dynamix and published by Sierra On-Line in 2001 as a sequel to '' Starsiege: Tribes''.
Setting
Set in the year 3941 of the fictional Earthsiege universe, ''Tribes 2'' ...
'' (2001), Sierra On-Line
* ''
Marble Blast Gold
''Marble Blast'' is a 2002 3D platform game. It was pre-installed on some Apple Inc. computer systems like the iMac, iBook, and Mac mini. It was also available for Windows operating systems as well as various Linux distributions. It was remade ...
'' (
2003
2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater.
In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War.
Demographic ...
),
GarageGames
GarageGames was a game technology and software developer. GarageGames was the parent company of GG Interactive, developers of educational technology in the areas of computer science, video game development and Computer programming, programming. I ...
* ''Chain Reaction'' (
2003
2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater.
In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War.
Demographic ...
), Monster Studios
* ''
Marble Blast Ultra
''Marble Blast Ultra'' is a platform game developed by GarageGames. It was released on January 25, 2006 for the Xbox 360 via Xbox Live Arcade. It is the sequel to ''Marble Blast Gold''. It features 60 levels, enhanced graphics, 2 new power-ups an ...
'' (
2006
2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification.
Events
January
* January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute.
* January 12 – A stampede during t ...
),
GarageGames
GarageGames was a game technology and software developer. GarageGames was the parent company of GG Interactive, developers of educational technology in the areas of computer science, video game development and Computer programming, programming. I ...
* ''Rack 'Em Up Roadtrip'' (
2006
2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification.
Events
January
* January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute.
* January 12 – A stampede during t ...
),
Oberon Media
* ''Puzzle Poker'' (
2006
2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification.
Events
January
* January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute.
* January 12 – A stampede during t ...
),
GarageGames
GarageGames was a game technology and software developer. GarageGames was the parent company of GG Interactive, developers of educational technology in the areas of computer science, video game development and Computer programming, programming. I ...
* ''Grunts: Skirmish'' (
2009
2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...
), PushButton Labs
* ''
Social City'' (
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
), PushButton Labs,
Playdom
Playdom, Inc. was an online social network game developer popular on Facebook, Google+ and Myspace. The company was founded in the San Francisco Bay Area by University of California, Berkeley graduates Ling Xiao and Chris Wang and Swarthmore Colle ...
* ''
The Incredible Machine: Mobile'' (
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
), PushButton Labs,
Playdom
Playdom, Inc. was an online social network game developer popular on Facebook, Google+ and Myspace. The company was founded in the San Francisco Bay Area by University of California, Berkeley graduates Ling Xiao and Chris Wang and Swarthmore Colle ...
* ''Quick Shooter'' (
2012
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
), Spotkin
* ''Double Doodle'' (
2013
2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years).
2013 was designated as:
*International Year of Water Cooperation
*International Year of Quinoa
Events
January
* January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
), Spotkin
* ''
Contraption Maker
''The Incredible Machine'' (''TIM'') is a series of video games in which players create a series of Rube Goldberg devices. They were originally designed and coded by Kevin Ryan and produced by Jeff Tunnell, the now-defunct Jeff Tunnell Producti ...
'' (
2014
The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...
), Spotkin
References
External links
Jeff Tunnell's websiteSpotkinJeff Tunnellat
MobyGames
MobyGames is a commercial website that catalogs information on video game
A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controlle ...
Jeff Tunnell game library at MakeItBigInGamesMakeItBigInGames Jeff Tunnell's development blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tunnell, Jeff
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Video game programmers
Video game designers