Micke Larsson, intern at Pixeltales in Stockholm

Micke Larsson, a game programming student who started his education at The Game Assembly 2008, is soon ending his internship at Pixeltales in Stockholm.

I asked Micke how he ended up at The Game Assembly in the first place, and he answered:

“Well, it started one late night, just before last application date to the university in April 2008. I was going through studera.nu´s homepage and wanted to find an education that suited me. I came up with a long list and I thought that I never would make up my mind.

Then I asked myself what I thought was the most fun in my life. The answer was games. I went through my list with educations again and decided that game programming and programming would be my challenge.

A few days later I received a post card from an education called The Game Assembly in Malmö. I figured I might as well send in an application since the last application date was in May.
I wrote a letter and they called me in for an interview. I mean, a new city could be an interesting experience. Then I talked to Niklas Hansson and from then on I knew it was at The Game Assembly I wanted to be and nowhere else…even if it meant I had to apply again next year.”

How have you experienced your years at The Game Assembly? I asked Micke.

“It has been a roller coaster like no other. Both physically and mentally I have been tested quite often. I’ve never been a person who likes roller coasters at amusement parks,I´ve been the person who more stands with two feet on the ground…maybe by the lottery wheel. But this roller coaster has been great fun, especially with the fellow students. Now I wouldn´t hesitate to do it again but now the ride is almost over.”

Now, Micke, how was it that you chose to do the internship in Stockholm?

“I just got homesick, although today I miss Malmö and hope I get the chance to live there in the future. But I have my family and old friends here in Stockholm and I felt it would give me an extra boost to go back to the old and mix it with what was new.”

Do you feel that the knowledge you got at the The Game Assembly was enough to make you your internship as interesting and developing as it could be, and has been?

“Have you, like me, gone from zero to where I am today in two years and felt the tempo we´ve been through (being the “beta-testers” of the school), I think it´s impossible to get more knowledge. But the knowledge we have received has certainly been adequate for what was required of us on the internship.”

Do you feel that you were sufficiently prepared to be involved in game production at Pixeltales?

“In many ways I was probably as prepared as I could be to go from school to a work place situation. At the Game Assembly we were working in a way that resembled the work we do here at Pixeltales. The small differences were easy to adapt to.”

And finally, Micke, what advice would you give to those who want to apply to The Game Assembly?

“Challenge yourself, there is probably no better chance to do that than at The Game Assembly.
It does not matter if you fail, everybody does that sometimes. And school is the best place to ask for help from both other students and knowledgeable teachers.”