Mike Booth

Throughout his career, Booth has generally focused on creating cooperative online multiplayer games,{{cite news |last1=Sinclair |first1=Brendan |title=Bad Robot looking to be the rare Hollywood-and-games success story |url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/bad-robot-looking-to-be-the-rare-hollywood-games-success-story |access-date=27 January 2024 |work=GamesIndustry.biz |date=12 February 2021 |language=en}} a genre for which he continues to advocate as recently as 2022.{{cite news |last1=Allen |first1=Jen |title='Left 4 Dead' creator thinks there "just aren't enough" co-op games |url=https://www.nme.com/news/gaming-news/left-4-dead-creator-thinks-there-just-arent-enough-co-op-games-3155436 |access-date=28 January 2024 |work=NME |date=7 February 2022}} One of Booth's earliest projects was Nox, which he created in his apartment. He brought a demo to the Game Developers Conference, and ultimately, Nox was published in 2000 through the Westwood Studios division of Electronic Arts,{{cite news |last1=Aihoshi |first1=Richard |title=Nox Developer Profile: Michael Booth |url=http://rpgvault.ign.com/features/profiles/mbooth.shtml |access-date=2 February 2024 |work=IGN |date=27 May 2000 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000711004634/http://rpgvault.ign.com/features/profiles/mbooth.shtml |archive-date=11 July 2000}} with Booth in the roles of project lead and lead designer. His career at Electronic Arts continued with Booth serving creative roles for 2000's Command & Conquer: Yuri's Revenge{{cite news |last1=Quick |first1=Sonya |title=O.C. developer of game Left 4 Dead bought by Valve Corp. |url=https://www.ocregister.com/2008/01/11/oc-developer-of-game-left-4-dead-bought-by-valve-corp/ |access-date=2 February 2024 |work=Orange County Register |date=11 January 2008}} and 2003's Command & Conquer: Generals.

In 2002, Booth founded Turtle Rock Studios,{{cite web|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/turtle-rock-studios-reforms|title=Turtle Rock Studios reforms|first=Tom|last=Bramwell|work=Eurogamer|date=18 March 2015|access-date=2 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924153020/http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/turtle-rock-studios-reforms|archive-date=24 September 2015|url-status=live}} where he served as CEO and game director.{{cite news |last1=McElroy |first1=Griffin |title=Left 4 Dead co-dev Turtle Rock Studios reanimated |url=https://www.engadget.com/2010-03-17-left-4-dead-co-developer-turtle-rock-studios-reanimated.html |access-date=28 January 2024 |work=Engadget |date=17 March 2010}} In 2003, Booth programmed an official bot that enabled offline multiplayer play in Counter-Strike.{{cite news |last1=Callaham |first1=John |title=Official Counter-Strike Bot Interview |url=http://www.homelanfed.com/index.php?id=13555 |access-date=28 January 2024 |work=HomeLan Fed |date=17 April 2003 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030426043612/http://www.homelanfed.com/index.php?id=13555 |archive-date=26 April 2003}} He was project lead and lead designer for Counter-Strike: Condition Zero, released in 2004. In 2004 he began creating cooperative online game Left 4 Dead,{{cite news |title=The Making Of... Left 4 Dead |url=https://www.gamesradar.com/making-left-4-dead/ |access-date=28 January 2024 |work=GamesRadar |date=27 April 2015 |language=en}} for which he was also lead designer. Booth created the AI Director in Left 4 Dead that dynamically adjusted a player's experience of the game during each playthrough.{{cite news |last1=Champandard |first1=Alex J. |title=11 Secrets about LEFT 4 DEAD's AI 11 Secrets about LEFT 4 DEAD's AI Director and its Procedural Zombie Director and its Procedural Zombie Population Population |url=http://aigamedev.com/premium/articles/procedural-director/ |access-date=28 January 2024 |work=AIGameDev.com |date=7 October 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171030005234/http://aigamedev.com/premium/articles/procedural-director/ |archive-date=30 October 2017 |url-status=bot: unknown }}

Booth also was part of the creative teams for other Counter-Strike games and Team Fortress 2. After Valve acquired Turtle Rock Studios in 2008,{{cite news |title=Mike Booth, the Architect of Left 4 Dead's AI Director, Explains Why It's So Bloody Good |url=https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/11/mike-booth-the-architect-of-left-4-deads-ai-director-explains-why-its-so-bloody-good/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181121025156/https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/11/mike-booth-the-architect-of-left-4-deads-ai-director-explains-why-its-so-bloody-good/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 21, 2018 |access-date=28 January 2024 |work=Kotaku Australia |date=20 November 2018 |language=en-AU}} Booth stayed on with the company until 2012.

Booth departed Valve and joined Blizzard Entertainment as game director{{cite news |last1=Calvin |first1=Alex |title=Valve and Facebook vet Booth joins Resolution Games board |url=https://www.pcgamesinsider.biz/job-news/70724/valve-and-facebook-vet-booth-joins-resolution-games-board/ |access-date=2 February 2024 |work=PCGamesInsider |date=18 March 2020}} on an unannounced project.{{cite news |last1=Cook |first1=JR |title=The Unsolved Mystery of Mike Booth |url=https://blizzpro.com/2015/07/31/the-unsolved-mystery-of-mike-booth/ |access-date=2 February 2024 |work=BlizzPro |date=31 July 2015}}

From December 2015{{cite news |last1=Robertson |first1=Adi |title=Facebook founds team to help people 'connect and share' in virtual reality |url=https://www.theverge.com/2016/2/21/11078994/facebook-virtual-reality-team-streaming-video-gear-vr |access-date=28 January 2024 |work=The Verge |date=21 February 2016 |language=en}} until December 2019, he was director of social virtual reality (VR) at Facebook,{{cite news |last1=Denzer |first1=TJ |title=Mike Booth leaves Facebook VR to return to game development |url=https://www.shacknews.com/article/115271/mike-booth-leaves-facebook-vr-to-return-to-game-development |access-date=28 January 2024 |work=Shacknews |date=3 December 2019 |language=en}} working with CEO Mark Zuckerberg and chief technology officer Mike Schroepfer.{{cite news |last1=Terdiman |first1=Daniel |title=How Facebook's Social VR Could Be the Killer App for Virtual Reality |url=https://www.fastcompany.com/3058914/how-facebooks-social-vr-could-be-the-killer-app-for-virtual-reality |access-date=2 February 2024 |work=Fast Company |date=13 April 2016}} In April 2017, Booth led the beta rollout of Facebook Spaces, a social VR product created for Oculus Rift.{{cite news |last1=Statt |first1=Nick |title=Facebook's bold and bizarre VR hangout app is now available for the Oculus Rift |url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/4/18/15332658/facebook-spaces-virtual-reality-oculus-rift-f8-conference-2017 |access-date=28 January 2024 |work=The Verge |date=18 April 2017 |language=en}} Prior to the launch, Booth appeared in live VR demonstrations of the product in April and October 2016.{{cite news |last1=Machkovech |first1=Sam |title=Facebook's first VR experience demonstrated by Mark Zuckerberg [Updated] |url=https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2016/10/facebooks-first-vr-experience-demonstrated-by-mark-zuckerberg/ |access-date=2 February 2024 |work=Ars Technica |date=6 October 2016 |language=en-us}}

Booth joined the board of directors of Resolution Games in March 2020.{{cite news |last1=Forde |first1=Matthew |title=Resolution Games adds Left 4 Dead creator Mike Booth to board of directors |url=https://www.pocketgamer.biz/job-news/72861/resolution-games-mike-booth-board-of-directors/ |access-date=28 January 2024 |work=PocketGamer.biz |date=18 March 2020}} He worked with Resolution on Demeo, a 2021 tabletop role-playing game originally created for VR.

Booth joined Bad Robot Games in December 2020, managing the company's newly created in-house development studio. He reports to Anna Sweet, CEO of Bad Robot Games.{{cite news |last1=Takahashi |first1=Dean |title=JJ Abrams' Bad Robot launches internal game studio headed by Left 4 Dead creator |url=https://venturebeat.com/business/jj-abrams-bad-robot-launches-internal-game-studio-headed-by-left-4-dead-creator/ |access-date=28 January 2024 |work=VentureBeat |date=10 December 2020}} By February 2022, he had taken on the role of chief creative officer.

• Booth's game Left 4 Dead received eight nominations at the 12th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, winning Outstanding Achievement in Online Game Play and Computer Game of the Year.{{cite news |last1=Thorsen |first1=Tor |last2=Sinclair |first2=Brendan |title=Little Big Planet wins big at D.I.C.E. |url=https://www.gamespot.com/articles/little-big-planet-wins-big-at-dice/1100-6204956/ |access-date=6 February 2024 |work=GameSpot |date=23 February 2009}}
• Booth, along with Left 4 Dead creatives Gabe Newell and Chet Faliszek, won the British Academy Games Award for Multiplayer in 2009.{{cite web |title=2009 Games Multiplayer |url=https://awards.bafta.org/award/2009/games/multiplayer |website=BAFTA Awards |access-date=28 January 2024}}
• Demeo, which Booth creative directed, was nominated for the D.I.C.E. Award for Immersive Reality Game of the Year.{{cite web |title=D.I.C.E. Awards By Video Game Details |url=https://www.interactive.org/games/video_game_details.asp?idAward=2022&idGame=1802 |website=D.I.C.E. Awards |access-date=2 February 2024}}

{{reflist}}

• {{MobyGames developer |id=8092 |name=Mike Booth's profile}}

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Category:21st-century American businesspeople

Category:Living people

Category:American video game businesspeople

Category:American video game designers

Category:Valve Corporation people

Category:Year of birth missing (living people)