John Carmack (born in 1970)
American IT engineer John Carmack earned the nickname John Engine as a student. From 1990 to 2012, he designed 41 (!) games, including Wolfenstein 3D, Quake, Rage, Commander Keen, and the legendary Doom, released by John's company ID Software. It was Doom that brought him worldwide fame as a super-efficient developer. The games developed further cemented the success of the programmer, who opened a new era in the world of computer games.
Innovations that Carmack has applied to 3D graphics include the Reverse algorithm for shadow volumes, adaptive tessellation, binary space tiling, beamcasting, surface caching and MegaTexture technology, pointer conversion, objects beyond borders, and more. Original 3D techniques have become an integral attribute of subsequent computer games, especially shooters.
The developer of revolutionary programming methods was awarded two Emmy awards from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS), as well as the GDC Awards at the Lifetime Achievement Game Developers Conference (2009).
In the period from 2013 to 2019, Carmack was actively engaged in virtual reality technology in Oculus VR. At the moment, the scientist is riveted to creating powerful artificial intelligence in his new company Keen Technologies.