Real-Time Rendering · Graphics Engineering · Simulation Systems

Alexander Rybak

I'm a technical artist and graphics engineer with 8+ years of shipping real-time 3D software across AAA games, real-time simulation for military training, and AR/VR. I specialize in rendering pipeline architecture, HLSL and DX12 shaders, large-scale procedural systems, and GPU performance. I design systems that remove redundant work at scale, and I ship them on production schedules.

EnvironmentalWizard@gmail.com Print / save as PDF X · @AnalogDreamDev

Technical skills

Rendering: DirectX 12, HLSL, PBR, forward/deferred pipelines, ray tracing (R&D), Nanite, Lumen, nDisplay, HDR, frame rate optimization
Engines: Unreal Engine 5 (C++ & Blueprint), Unity (C#), RetroEngine (custom DX12, solo-authored)
Languages: C++, C#, Python, HLSL, MaxScript, Windows Batch
Engine systems: ECS, scene serialization, terrain streaming, shared texture cache, GPU memory profiling, performance budgeting, deterministic simulation
DCC / tools: Houdini, 3ds Max, Maya, Substance Painter/Designer, Photoshop, ImGui, Git, Perforce
Profiling: PIX, RenderDoc, Unreal Insights, custom GPU debug tooling, low-end hardware validation
Domains: Real-time simulation, AR/VR, procedural world-building, Niagara VFX, asset pipeline tooling

Independent engine development

RetroEngine · Solo author · retrogameengine.com

Oct 2025 – present

Custom DirectX 12 renderer: I built the full DX12 pipeline from scratch: command queues, descriptor heaps, resource barriers, root signatures, PSO management, and the HDR signal path. There's no engine abstraction layer, and the only third-party dependency is Dear ImGui.
Physical CRT simulation: Simulates from first principles, per pixel: beam scanning, phosphor emission and decay, persistence, and glass diffusion. Energy-conserving temporal feedback means persistence never adds energy to the scene. It isn't a post-process filter.
Performance on constrained hardware: Holds a stable 60 FPS on an AMD Radeon 660M, a 6-CU RDNA2 integrated GPU in the bottom 10–15% of gaming hardware. That's with the full CRT pipeline, terrain streaming, procedural generation, HDR rendering, and the editor all running, before GPU instancing, frustum culling, or LODs.
Shared-ownership texture cache: I redesigned texture ownership from per-chunk allocation to a global shared cache with deterministic key normalization. A 4096×4096 terrain texture is no longer duplicated across every chunk, so memory stays flat no matter how many chunks are loaded.
ECS architecture: A component-based entity system with strict GPU resource ownership, deterministic lifetimes, multi-scene loading, safe entity deletion, and serialization to parameter-only scene files.
Terrain streaming: Chunks stream in around the camera on procedural terrain. Entire worlds regenerate deterministically from a seed and a small set of parameters.
Deterministic simulation time: Pause, rewind, and replay at the engine level. Inputs and scene state scrub along a timeline for debugging and experiments.
Editor tooling: A dockable ImGui scene editor with AABB object picking, snapping viewport gizmos, a chunk palette, thumbnails, a construction grid, and live material authoring. A GPU memory debug panel shows live texture memory, SRV usage, and instance counts.
Lighting: Directional shadow maps, point lights, volumetric light shafts with depth-based color gradients, atmospheric fog in a single fullscreen-triangle pass, and a separate directional and ambient color model for predictable artistic control.
Coverage: Featured on 80.lv and GenerationAmiga, and documented in a series of public dev logs.

Professional experience

Expert Technical Artist · Firaxis Games · Sparks, MD (remote)

Apr 2026 – present

Region variant system: I designed and built a system that lets artists author one world map with per-region content mappings, then bakes out every region variant automatically. Authoring went from 4× (one full map per region) to 1.5×, a 62% cut in map production effort, with no runtime randomness.
Building kit pipeline: I redesigned how building kits are generated, cutting authoring time by 95%, from hours to minutes per kit.
Rendering pipeline: I own and maintain the full UE5 material and rendering pipeline, including the parent material systems, the HLSL shader libraries, and the rendering standards for a team of up to 6 technical artists.
UE5 C++ systems: Custom world-building and gameplay systems in C++ that extend UE5's rendering and simulation beyond what Blueprint supports.
Procedural systems: I architected Houdini and UE5 PCG pipelines for large-scale environment production.
AI governance: I worked with the Firaxis AI Governance board on ethical, non-generative AI-assisted workflows for real-time rendering.
Shipped: Civilization VII (2025) and an unannounced title.

Senior Technical Artist · Firaxis Games · Sparks, MD (remote)

Aug 2022 – Apr 2026

Established the Technical Art department's scope and responsibilities for the project.
Shipped: Marvel's Midnight Suns (2022).

Senior Technical Artist · Conflict Kinetics Corporation · Remote

Jan 2022 – Sep 2022

Simulation development: I led UE4/UE5 development of a large real-time training simulation. I was responsible for the animation Blueprints, the effects systems, and the visual fidelity of the simulation environment.
Pipeline: I designed and maintained the 3D content pipeline and set delivery standards across the art, engineering, and client teams.

Principal Technical Artist · Conflict Kinetics Corporation · Remote

Aug 2019 – Feb 2022

Systems built: Animation system architecture, a modular avatar and clothing system, vehicle systems and physics, a dynamic weather system, destructible assets and interactions, Niagara VFX, nDisplay integration, the UI system, and the audio system.
nDisplay: I used nDisplay early in production, which included talking with Epic's engineers and helping shape its documentation.
R&D: I researched and prototyped mixed reality, ray tracing, and motion capture integration for future simulation features.
Documentation: I wrote the full technical documentation: pipeline design, particle systems, lighting standards, and testing protocols.

VR/AR Technical Artist · Quantified Design Solutions · Orlando, FL

Oct 2017 – Dec 2018

I built 3D environments and interfaces for VR/AR training applications, and wrote the asset management pipeline and the documentation standards.

Associate Game Designer · Goblin Bashing Studios LLC · Remote

Aug 2018 – Apr 2019

I co-wrote the game design document and developed game mechanics for Perdition, an upcoming PC title.

3D Artist · Smart Information Flow Technologies (SIFT) · Remote

Dec 2016 – Oct 2017

I created 3D assets for NASA simulation projects to strict visual fidelity and performance specifications, and did on-site photogrammetry to capture real-world content.

Shipped products

Marvel's Midnight Suns (Firaxis, 2022)
Civilization VII (Firaxis, 2025)
The Quantum Conflict (Steam, FlashPoint Games, 2024): co-developer on a two-person team · shader breakdowns
Cozy Holes (Steam, FlashPoint Games, 2026): co-developer on a two-person team