LTHS Student Creates Commercial Video Games

LA GRANGE, IL — A Lyons Township High School junior is already doing the work he wants to do when he leaves school — creating commercial video games.

Last February, the 16-year-old Abbott released his first such game, "Lucid: Parables of the Ubermensch." And he's prepared to release his next one, "RD Mars," next Wednesday for $5 on Steam.

He has been interested in game design since he was 10.

"It's always been a passion for me. It's a form of artistic expression," the Brookfield resident said. "I think a lot of people of a creative nature can relate to this."

On weekdays, Abbott said he spends two to four hours on weekdays on his video game projects and four to six hours daily on weekends. He said he has hundreds of ideas for new video games and that he focuses on narrative.

"Game designers throughout history have been able to deliver certain kinds of experiences," Abbott said. "I think they have struggled to deliver narrative. When they do deliver narrative, it's similar to film. I don't think that's the best way to do it."

He said he has taught friends about game design, but he said he remains the most "fervent" among them about the process.

After he graduates from high school, Abbott said he would like to get a computer science degree, perhaps at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

In November, Abbott's AP Computer Science teacher, Natalie Carlson, praised his game design process.

"His programming skills are very advanced for a teenager," Carlson told the Lion Online student newspaper. "He continues to impress me on his knowledge of the game development life cycle and what it takes to develop a marketable game."