Patrick Ridout

Trine University - Allen School of Engineering and Computing
BA, Indiana University Southeast; MIS, MLS, Indiana University
260.665.4287 | email
Office Location - SDI 223

I built my first computer when I was 10 years old and have been in the Information Technology field ever since. I’ve worked a variety of jobs all connected to IT, through home computer repair in Louisville to Indiana University’s IT Department, to managing databases and translating systems at global companies.  

I started working at Trine in 2016 and became increasingly more involved over time. I started as the Information Services Librarian (so IT for libraries), which morphed into the Assistant Director of Information Services (still the library). I managed all the systems and databases to keep every resource running and up-to-date. Further afield, I’ve also managed, repaired and digitized archives that date back as far as the 14th century for international organizations.

I’m also one of the founders of the Trine Esports program, and have been connected with it since 2016 (about five months after I started the library position). I’m very proud of the fact I managed to lead the Overwatch team to third place in NACE our very first season in 2017.

I’m a comic and video game scholar, which is a fancy way of saying I made my hobbies my job. I write, design, read and review all sorts of pop culture aspects, and how they can reshape and reflect our cultural views.

I’m a lifelong gamer. I started playing when I was 4 and was introduced to Kung-Fu, Super Mario Bros. and Duck Hunt on the NES, followed quickly by The Legend of Zelda. I’ve been playing ever since. I very much enjoy finding rare systems, and have a few too many retro consoles at this point.

In middle school I was introduced to the Flash Game community and have been on- and off-again helping create games ever since. I specialize now in 2D Unity.

Regarding Game Design itself, I enjoy writing scripts, worldbuilding and designing assets the most, though I’ve been getting more into player controls and enemy AI.

On my days off, find me with a massive cup of coffee (no, no, bigger than the one you’re thinking of), on the couch reading or playing games. Or I’m out in the garden, tending to all the vegetables I grow. Fun fact: I now make my own hot sauces!