Technical leadership
I’ve built and managed teams, including remote teams, and helped Unreal Engine licensees move from early prototypes through certification and submission.
JOSEPH WILCOX / DIGITAL LEPRECHAUN
Experiences.
Design.
Delivered.
I’m Joe Wilcox, a technical leader, AI visionary, and Unreal Engine expert. I build the systems, tools, and teams that take any experience to the next level.
PC · CONSOLE · MOBILE · VR / AR / XR
UNREAL TOURNAMENTGEARS of WAREPIC CITADELBULLETSTORMSTAR WARS: FIRST ASSAULTVOYAGERTAKEDOWNBULLETVILLETINY BRAINSPENGOROYALEESCAPE FROM NEFERTITI’S TOMBDUKE NUKEM: NUCLEAR WINTERDEADLY KISSD!ZONEEXTREME PAINTBRAWLMARTIAN MINERSUICIDE KINGSARRGHCAPTURE THE TREETOWERFALLand more…
01 / TECHNICAL & CREATIVE SKILLS
From engine code
to player experience.
Hands-on development across the stack,
with design and leadership to match.
Agentic game development
I integrate agentic pipelines into 3D engines and toolsets to increase productivity and reduce development time.
Gameplay engineering
I’ve built weapons, game modes, and gameplay subsystems, with experience taking ideas from prototype into production.
UI & online systems
Interfaces and the systems behind them: from Slate and UMG to network layers, multiplayer systems, and master servers.
Game & level design
Prototyping, game systems, weapons, and level design. I work across design and code to turn concepts into playable experiences.
Immersive & cross-platform
Experience shipping on PC, console, mobile, and immersive platforms. Founded the Digital Reality Lab for military simulations and commercial VR experiences.
Creative production
Writing, visual production, audio editing, and filmmaking round out my development background.
02 / PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Teams. Technology. Delivery.
Pickford AI
Principal Unreal Engine EngineerHelped build Whispers, an Emmy finalist detective story guided by humans and generated with AI. Created agentic pipelines that bring content and story elements into Unity and Unreal Engine.
Netflix
Lead Gameplay EngineerWorked with directors on an unannounced AAA project.
NOWWA
CTO & Lead DesignerGuided the project’s direction and transition from UE4 to UE5. The project was subsequently placed on hold.
WisEngineering
Technical Director & Lead ProgrammerFounded the Digital Reality Lab. Led work on immersive military simulations and commercial VR experiences.
Epic Games · UE4
Unreal Tournament developmentSpent more than three years on contract building Unreal Tournament, working across native code, Blueprints, UMG, and Slate.
Unreal Engine licensees
Shipping supportHelped licensees bring games to market, working from early prototyping through certification and submission.
Epic Games
Senior Game ProgrammerContributed to Unreal Tournament and Gears of War, helped build UE3 gameplay systems, and brought Unreal Engine 3 to emerging mobile platforms.
Independent development
Creative Carnage · Simply Silly Software · AssetPack GamesRan independent studios, managed distributed designers and programmers, and developed original games. AssetPack Games continues that independent work.
THE PERSON BEHIND THE WORK
A programmer.
A designer.
A builder.
I like knowing how the whole game works.
My career spans independent studios, AAA teams, and immersive development. I’m comfortable moving between low-level implementation, game design, and the practical work of getting a product out the door.
Beyond programming, I’m a level designer, writer, and occasional filmmaker. That broader creative background informs how I approach both the player experience and the technology behind it.
Explore my independent work at AssetPack Games ↗03 / SHIPPED WORK
Best known shipped work...
A selection of credited titles.
