Hi, I'm Polina Modi.

I started my software career in QA, where I developed a strong foundation in debugging, problem solving, and thinking about how software behaves beyond the expected path. Working with developers to reproduce issues and identify edge cases taught me to approach systems from both the user's perspective and the implementation's perspective.

As I moved into software development, I began applying that same attention to reliability and system behavior to automation and infrastructure. This gave me a stronger understanding of APIs, CI pipelines, large-scale systems, debugging, and collaborative software development.

My interest in game development grew from wanting to apply my software engineering skills to systems that players can directly experience. Through university and project work, I began developing games and interactive systems using C++, C#, Unity, and Unreal Engine.

With Shadowgrove, I worked as one of five programmers on a team-built C++/OpenGL game engine project, contributing to systems including collision, character movement, text rendering, tutorials, pause behavior, and performance-related functionality.

With Digital Defense Force, a working prototype for DigiDefendr by Tech Safe Kids, I served as Lead Programmer on a six-person multidisciplinary team. I contributed to gameplay systems, game state, UI, input, tilemaps, animation, and scene interactions while coordinating technical work with the other programmer and collaborating across disciplines.

My software development internship at Demonware gave me the opportunity to work in the environment surrounding AAA multiplayer games. I worked with Call of Duty multiplayer services, automation, APIs, CI pipelines, and large-scale test infrastructure.

That experience gave me a perspective on the engineering challenges behind large-scale games and reinforced my interest in building game systems myself.

I'm now focused on gameplay programming, with a particular interest in gameplay systems, combat, AI, navigation, and encounters. I'm continuing to strengthen my C++ and Unreal Engine skills through personal development, including CombatSandbox, an in-development gameplay prototype focused on combat, enemy AI, navigation, and encounter systems.

My goal is to combine the engineering discipline I've developed through software development and QA with the creativity and player-facing problem solving of game development.