Name: Matthew Murcko
Job title and company: Freelance level designer working with teams at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and solo.
Degree(s): MArch, Wentworth Institute of Technology (WIT), 2014; BS in Architecture, 2013
Professional interests: Level design, real-time architectural visualization, pervasive gaming

Are you working on something right now?
I am currently investigating how real-time visualization could be done professionally. I am also doing level design for a WPI-sponsored video game.

How do you explain your job at parties?
I make virtual worlds.

Where did you find your inspiration today?
Good level design and powerful technology.

What’s your favorite structure in Massachusetts?
Difficult to decide, but the Gropius House and the Artists for Humanity EpiCenter are the first to come to mind.

Undergrad Rendering: A rendering for one of my last projects before graduating. The building is a culinary school and restaurant set in the the South End. On this particular rendering, I experimented with simple textures complemented by a geometric line overlay

Do you prefer collaboration, or are you a lone wolf?
Often I work alone but also enjoy collaboration.

Name your least favorite college class.
Orientation class.

Do you sketch by hand or digitally?
Both.

Any industry buzzword you’d like to “buzz off”?
Natural.

Gropius House Real Time Visualization: This is a demo project for a new method of visualization: real-time architectural walkthroughs.

What should we be reading?
Space Time Play by Friedrich von Borries, Steffen P. Walz, and Matthias Böttger.

Has your career taken you anywhere unexpected?
I wasn’t expecting to be experimenting with heavy use of video-game engines in relation to architecture.

Who or what deserves credit for your success?
I am still a work in progress.

What famous structure represents you best?
Kentuck Knob by Frank Lloyd Wright. I enjoy the way it establishes a rule—in this case, have the plan conform to a hexagonal grid—and follows that rule unapologetically. Literally everything down to the details and the furniture follows the hexagonal geometry.

Where’s the field of architecture headed?
I hope to see better integration of technology both in the design process and actual construction of new buildings.

Unity: This is a screenshot of a game I have been working on for a professor at WPI based in the Unity Engine. The space is a secretive music venue hidden in a gothic dungeon.

Any advice to yourself 10 years ago?
Become [an] expert at something; master a craft.

Can design save the world?
No; but it can surprise, delight, and assist us in myriad ways.

What do you hope your legacy will be?
I hope to introduce video-game technology and methods to the field of architecture.

Whom would you like the BSA to interview next?
Profs. Andrew Ferentinos AIA and Robert Trumbour AIA of WIT.