Radu-Adrian Marcu, Developer in Sibiu, Romania
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Radu-Adrian Marcu

Verified Expert  in Engineering

Game Developer

Location
Sibiu, Romania
Toptal Member Since
April 12, 2021

Radu is a first-class Unity 3D software engineer and game developer with over six years of professional experience from the University of Plymouth. For almost three years, he led the software development of the Daimler Trucks VR project—Deep UX. As for the rest, he has implemented robust and modular core infrastructures for various game studios on which they carry on their development. Now, Radu is searching for more significant challenges to build memorable game experiences.

Portfolio

Online Freelance Agency
Unity3D, C#, Git, User Interface (UI), User Experience (UX), Mobile...
AKKA Benelux
Unity3D, C#, Visual Studio, Extended Reality (XR), Virtual Reality (VR)...

Experience

Availability

Part-time

Preferred Environment

Windows, Git, Unity3D, C#, Unity

The most amazing...

...project I've led is DeepUX by Daimler. Developed the XTAL headset, monster PC, hi-fi audio communication, and a VR truck simulator, all in one mobile van.

Work Experience

Unity3D Software Engineer | Freelance

2020 - PRESENT
Online Freelance Agency
  • Maintained a perfect track record of exclusively 5/5 star reviews with over 40 projects on which I have worked.
  • Adapted to the clients' requirements and delivered upon their expectations.
  • Guided, taught, and advised aspiring developers and technical artists.
  • Developed an extremely wide variety of software applications.
Technologies: Unity3D, C#, Git, User Interface (UI), User Experience (UX), Mobile, Virtual Reality (VR), Unity, .NET

Unity3D Software Engineer

2018 - 2021
AKKA Benelux
  • Estimated project development costs, risks, and duration.
  • Utilized the complete Atlassian toolchain, including Confluence, Jira, Bitbucket, and SourceTree.
  • Oversaw the complete development process, from concept phase to deployment and even maintenance.
  • Consulted a client with possible and viable solutions for his futuristic ideas.
  • Supported and advised a project manager with technical know-how.
  • Onboarded, advised, and supervised a junior developer.
Technologies: Unity3D, C#, Visual Studio, Extended Reality (XR), Virtual Reality (VR), Human-machine Interface (HMI), User Interface (UI), User Experience (UX), Mobile, iOS, Unity, Android, Oculus, XTAL, .NET

Residential Assistance Support Analyst

2016 - 2018
University of Plymouth
  • Served as a part-time support analyst while studying at the University of Plymouth.
  • Won the title Student Employee of the Year as a member of the support analysts team that consisted only of students.
  • Communicated effectively in the team and delivered substantial results without micromanagement or constant supervision.
Technologies: Ticket Systems

DeepUX by Daimler Trucks

https://medium.com/transportation-matters/how-truck-developers-use-vr-for-deep-ux-insights-62b478f53317
PROJECT BRIEF
DeepUX is a mobile Unity3D VR truck simulator with pedals and an actual truck steering wheel, controlled by iOS applications from two iPads, surrounded by hi-fi audio systems, and packed with rechargeable 400Ah truck batteries—all built as replacements for the backseats of a Mercedes van.

REAL-LIFE APPLICATION
The project is currently being used to test various real-time infotainment concepts. The client would drive the van to a well-known rest station for truck drivers and ask the drivers if they would be interested in taking part in their survey.

After the interview, the application exports recordings and data from inside the simulation, later used to conclude the tested concept's viability.

ROLE
I led the software development in three Unity projects and one .NET project. I advised the project manager from a technological perspective, estimated costs and development, and oversaw the testing and deployment process.

Cross-platform Multiplayer Board Games Hub

https://play.friendlypixel.com/
The Friendly Pixel Platform is a hub where communities can play digital board games from different platforms (PC—Steam, Browser, iOS, Android) without joining external communication solutions as video streams and voice-over IP solutions have been integrated.

For the back end, we developed a performant, modular, and scalable server in C#.NET Core with DarkRift to allow multiple games to run concomitantly in various lobbies. The server can handle 2,000 CCUS on an average cloud server CPU.

For the front end, Unity was used to allow building and deploying consistently to all our platforms (WebGL, Steam, iOS, and Google Play). Considering Unity's limitations and client requirements, I built an infrastructure that would allow multiple developers to work on the project concomitantly.

Multiplayer Adaptation for Gambling Fish Game

For an already existing and functional single-player game, I implemented a multiplayer layer on top of it. Even though the mechanics are rather simplistic, the requirement to provide a bug-free experience is absolute because the real currency is involved.

I built a back-end infrastructure based on DarkRift to synchronize player behavior. I implemented lobbies, anti-cheat security measures, and even bots. I also constructed an asynchronous layer to synchronize balances, games, and player statuses with a REST API back end. I adapted the front end in Unity to display players based on their current activity. For fish movement patterns, I refactored procedural generation on Bezier curves/lines/concentric circles.

All of the above are configurable through external files to allow real-time modifications.

Breakin' 24: Rhythm-based Mobile PvP Game

I have been tasked with implementing the core infrastructure of a player-vs-player rhythm-based multiplayer game for mobile devices (Similar to tap-tap, Guitar Hero, and Beat Star).

For the front-end, we have used Unity and various paid assets to shorten development time: Rhythm Timeline, FEEL, DoTween, Odin Inspector and Serializer, Simple In-App-Purchases, Cinemachine, and other visual and 3D packages.

For the back-end side of the game, Playfab has proven to be most suited for the given requirements for storing player data. As for player-to-player communication, the client requested as little maintenance as possible, and therefore Photon, along with its Chat plugin, has been integrated.

The unique selling points and features implemented for the game were: 3D customizable characters and animations, real-time competitive player vs. player gameplay, authentication via SMS/e-mail, leaderboards, in-app purchases, economy, and friend systems.

Skrptr | UI Builder

https://assetstore.unity.com/packages/tools/gui/ui-builder-skrptr-179472
Skrptr is an editor extension and package of components that allows Unity developers without programming knowledge to build fast, fully navigational, and animated user interfaces using only the Unity inspector.

Considering that I developed this asset in my own free time, I assumed every role required to ready it up for its first release.

The rationale behind this asset is that it would greatly shorten the development time of Unity projects, as it did for me.

Poseidon by Daimler Trucks

A Unity3D Android application to monitor the real-time electric flows of a Daimler e-truck prototype.

I worked on this project as a front-end and back-end developer as resources were tight. Real-time signals had to be received wirelessly and interpreted accordingly in order to display the correct flow. The client's objective was to draw attention to the project at conventions. Therefore, a keen eye for detail and user experience was required.

Byte2Bike

Byte2Bike is a Unity front-end PC software with a Java and REST back end meant to ease the development process and reduce production cost of an e-bike. The whole software is capable of connecting to an e-bike, identifying components, and inducting new users on how to install component firmware and troubleshoot errors. I served as the lead developer of the front end in Unity, guided designers with technical knowledge, and estimated development and cost.

Cargco

A project that is meant to replace the middle-man in the shipping process of parcels, pallets, and packages in private, public, and industrial sectors, through a website for management and a Unity app for drivers.

I developed the Unity application for iOS and Android. The app allows drivers to log in securely, manage their bookings by scanning codes or manual input, document issues, and confirm deliveries or pickups. The project communicates directly with the Web API server through web requests, keeps track of drivers' position even while the phone is locked or the application is sent to the background, and maintains the application up-to-date in real time.

Top-down Souls-like Mobile Proof of Concept

A small initial development to assess the feasibility and determine technical impediments of building a cross-platform RPG with similar mechanics to Dark Souls Games.

For this scope, a large variety of complex assets from Unity had to be evaluated to discover their possibilities to be extended, such as RPG builder, A* pathfinding, bipedal animation toolkits, behavior designer, ultimate character controllers, and other premade environments.

The journey ended, and we obtained a small demo where the base mechanics could be tested and examined throughout different custom environments.

Immersive Tai Chi Breathing Exercises in VR

A Unity application targeting the mobile Oculus Quest 2 platform, in which the user is set in a relaxed, yet vivid environment to practice specific Tai Chi movements and breathing exercises guided by an AI agent.

Overall, a user can practice guided Tai Chi movements, and based on accuracy, he can soar over a procedurally generated ocean at different speeds. The user can also converse with an AI agent, which, in turn, would react to the user's vocal input with custom AI-driven animations and facial expressions.

Due to the early stage of the development process, my responsibilities were rather vast. They, among others, included UI/UX, 3D animations, 3rd-party software integration (Inworld AI, other Unity Assets), testing, guiding one other junior developer, and consulting the client regarding his latest futuristic idea and how it can be achieved.

Simulation Management Tool

A Unity UI-based application used to synchronize and manage various simulations for CAD engineers. At its core, a modular and robust infrastructure supplies the functionality and communication required to populate the UI via API requests from a remote back end.
For this project my responsibilities included assisting and guiding the entry-level back-end developer to provide appropriate API endpoints, consulting with the client on possible implementations for the UI concept, and estimating, implementing, and testing the provided UI concept from Figma into Unity.

Languages

C#, C++, SQL, Java, C#.NET

Frameworks

Unity, Unity3D, .NET, Photon Unity Networking (PUN), Photon

Tools

Atlassian Suite, Git, 3ds Max, Visual Studio, Android Studio, PlayFab, Doozy, Figma

Paradigms

Agile, Object-oriented Programming (OOP), Test-driven Development (TDD), Cross-platform, Testing, Back-end Architecture

Platforms

iOS, Android, Mobile, Oculus, Windows, PC, MacOS

Other

Virtual Reality (VR), XTAL, Networking, Unity Editor Scripting, 3D Modeling, Ticket Systems, Extended Reality (XR), Human-machine Interface (HMI), User Experience (UX), Mobile UI, Mobile UX, Real-time Data, Animation, UI Animation, CAN to Mqtt, Version Control, Version Control Systems, DarkRift, Multiplayer, Games, APIs, Code Review, Source Code Review, Task Analysis, Interviewing, User Interviews, UI Testing, Game Development, Gameplay Development, User Interface (UI), Live Chat, Voice Chat, Web Video, Video Chat, Unity3D Native Plugin Interface, Augmented Reality (AR), Back-end, Assets, VCS, Cost Estimation, Estimations, Video Games, WebSockets, Photon Chat, Character Animation, Unity Game Assets, Character Rigging, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Team Leadership, Architecture, Modular, Design

Libraries/APIs

WebGL

2015 - 2018

Bachelor's Degree in Computing and Games Development

University of Plymouth - Plymouth, United Kingdom

2010 - 2014

International Baccalaureate in Intensive Mathematics and Informatics

Samuel von Brukenthal National College - Sibiu, Romania

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