Meet the Boot Campers: OniMobi

As we get closer to the first ever Chartboost University: Boot Camp, which kicks off next Tuesday, March 12, we thought it?d be a good idea to fill everyone in on exactly who will be attending. While we already posted a quick peek at the participants, we thought it was only fair to profile each of the seven developers. So, in the six days left until we?re joined by our international comrades, you?ll be treated to one interview per day. We hope you enjoy them!We?re posting these in reverse alphabetical order, which makes OniMobi next up on the chopping block. Wish them luck!

Chartboost: How and when did you know you wanted to be a game developer?Mitch, Game Designer/Developer, Onimobi: I?ve always wanted to make games ever since I had my Sega Megadrive but I never went through life thinking I would eventually be a game developer. It was always a dream. It wasn?t until leaving college and taking a leap of faith, that I landed my first programming job and that led into working on games. Now I run my own game studio and life is great!Simon, Game Designer/Developer, Onimobi: I first started programming in AMOS on the Amiga when I was 12, and I enjoyed tinkering around with code so much that from then on I always had a keen interest in games development.An in-game shot from Onimobi?s title Leaf RiderChartboost: How did your team first meet each other?Simon actually applied for a job at Onimobi about 2?1/2 years ago!How did you come up with your company name?Like most, I wanted something unique and different but it took a long time to come up with the name. The ?Mobi? part kind of came from ?Mobile? and adding ?Oni? to the front just clicked.What is your favorite aspect of building games?Mitch: I love story telling and this is something I really want to drive deeper into our games in the future.Simon: The creative aspect of dreaming up new ideas and then actually seeing them come to life once your idea has been transformed into something tangible.An in-game shot from OniMobi?s Leaf Rider prototypeWhat is your favorite mobile game right now?Mitch: My favourite mobile game right now is Slamjet Stadium by Alistair Aitcheson which I?m helping beta test and is coming out in March. It?s a really fun shared-screen multiplayer iPad ball game that encourages you to cheat and play dirty by grabbing your opponents players etc. I?m looking forward to it?s release so everyone can have a go.Simon: Tiny Wings for me is the perfect mobile game - small and perfectly formed.What is your favorite classic game?Mitch: Impossible to pick just one, there are so many! Broken Sword & Final Fantasy are two gaming franchises that I?m fond off.Simon: Mario 64. The sense of ?wow? when I first saw it running is something that I don?t think I?ll ever experience again. It was truly a revolutionary game.What do you think the future of gaming will entail?Mitch: Holographic dancers and thought control.What do you hope to gain from our Boot Camp?Mitch: Listening and learning, meeting some great people, getting good feedback to help us refine and polish Leaf Rider and hopefully give us a spring board to launch the game in the very near future.Check back tomorrow for our next Boot Camp developer profile. In the meantime, be sure to hit us up on Twitter @Chartboost.