About me

Introduction

My name is Luciano Nooijen, currently working in the games industry as an engineer focusing on online game client development, multiplayer functionality and engine programming.

My current position is senior/lead engineer at Companion Group, a co-development agency focussing on multiplayer games where I work on various projects and in various roles.

Work

Although I was introduced to software engineering via website development, I have quickly moved more towards back-end development and site-reliability engineering. The closer to the computer hardware I get, the more I tend to enjoy the work I’m doing. Though I enjoy automating tasks, processing large amounts of data or optimizing data-intensive applications, I love working on compilers, low-level systems programming and game engines the most.

A few years ago, I was given the opportunity to enter the gaming industry, in which I currently work (details on my experience page), working mostly with Unreal Engine, C++ and various back-end technologies (mostly Golang, C#).

Where necessary, I use my experience in web development to assist in the development of internal web-based tooling used during the game development process, though this work to me is the exception rather than the rule.

Career

I started programming at an early age. In 2009 I made my first website, after having been interested in computers and software from an early age. After making this first website, I continued to learn more about website building, which enabled me to apply my skills on a professional level from 2014.

In 2014 I developed my own webshop and started to develop websites under the name Nooijen Web Solutions. After a while I started working with another developer with whom I later founded Bytecode, which evolved into a software start-up focussed digital agency. Though Bytecode, I have co-founded multiple start-ups, worked as technical lead in even more, leading the development of their software products.

Education

In 2017 I completed my VWO education at the Stanislascollege in Pijnacker. Afterwards I studied Computer Science and Engineering at Delft University of Technology for about half a year. However, the programme did not fit in well with the way I prefer to learn and I didn’t feel challenged enough. I felt I could learn more and better in the way I always did, by myself and by doing, although I later realized this route has challenges of it’s own.

In 2020, I came to a realization that even though I can make great impact with the work I do, there was still a feeling that there was more I could achieve. I considered going to University to get formal education about the true fundamentals to be able to understand what I do at the electrical engineering level, but I chose to go the self-education route here too.

When diving into the fundamentals, I started to delve into theoretical matters surrounding computer science, because I believe that to write software properly, you need to understand the tools and technologies that most people take for granted. Learning about this has changed how I approach writing software and has given me a much deeper appreciation of the craft.

On my dedicated learning page you can read more about my ongoing learning journey, the goals I want to achieve doing this and the path I take to get there, as well as the reasoning behind it all.

Certificates

In 2016 I obtained my Anglia Proficiency certificate with a “Distinction” grade. This shows that I master the English language on at least C1 level on the CEFRL scale.

Leisure

In my spare time I read a lot of books, mostly non-fiction. My personal library mostly consists of books about philosophy, history, linguistics, the classics, and of course computer science and software engineering books.

Apart from reading and learning, I play a few video games and I like woodworking, gardening, cooking and sourdough baking.

I also like to play chess. Feel free to challenge me on Lichess

Website

The source code of this website is made available on my Github profile under AGPL3.0 license.

This website was developed using the static website generator Hugo (written in Golang).