Changing the Game.
Every Monday, I will share a resident of the South Bay contributing to making our community a better place. Today’s #MCM title belongs to Bobby Hubert who manages a nicotine research lab at the Veterans’ Hospital in Long Beach and spending any free time developing games for cellular devices.
Bobby, 31, was born and raised in the South Bay. Growing up, he spent a lot of time at the strip down by the beach as his dad owned a black & white photo lab on Ave I and he would spend a lot of time there. “I loved the South Bay as a kid, always felt safe skateboarding around everywhere,” he says.
Several years later, they moved around the South Bay and Palos Verdes until he at Peninsula high, graduating in 2002. Having absolutely no idea what he wanted to do in life, he decided to go to El Camino college in Torrance where he enrolled in many classes. He says, “I wanted to see what was out there.”
He started off studying music composition, but ended up deciding to go into psychology.
“I still get to dabble in music every so often but my curiosity about people and health got the better of me and so after a few years I transferred to UCLA where I earned my degree in psych,” he says.
Bobby says that he’d definitely recommend community college for young students who might not know what they want to do yet or just to get some exposure and explore different subjects before taking the plunge.
He says that if you ask his friends, they'd probably all say that he’s never not working. Bobby says it’s true, however, he enjoys it. During his “off” time, he runs a small indie game dev. studio out of his apartment with his brother and some friends. So he spends most of his waking hours, and probably a few sleeping ones, working on developing games and other software.
His brother and him grew up on video games. Jokingly he says, “I think our parents must of had some sort of joint custody agreement with Nintendo because we definitely spent a lot of time with those games and so naturally we have a fond appreciation for the classics and I think a big part of what drives us in making games now is trying to capture that same feeling we got from those simple games of the 80's and 90's and bring them into a modern medium,” he says.
Outside of his hobby of developing games, Bobby’s full-time position is managing a nicotine research lab at the Veterans’ Hospital. There, his team does research with the veterans geared towards understanding more about smoking, addiction, and how nicotine, caffeine, and marijuana can affect the brain and how different substances may change the way addiction operates. In addition, they run smoking cessation classes alongside a research program geared towards discovering how to better help veterans with schizophrenia quit smoking.
Bobby says that the most gratifying part of his career thus far is running into a veteran who was in one of their studies months or even years later and having them say they are still cigarette free and how much better they feel. “It's amazing to see someone's life really change for the better and having even a small roll in that is a great reminder of why we do what we do,” he says.
One can learn more about Bobby’s games at www.agog.net or go the AppStore for Agog. Bobby says, “We can't be held responsible if you smash your phone in frustration, just like those old Nintendo games, some of our games are difficult.”
Bobby enjoys paying it forward whenever possible. He says, “I feel like with every little interaction we have with others every day a small part of that should be spent trying to make a person’s day better. Whether that's covering someone who's short on cash, giving someone a ride, or simply saying hi and smiling at the store when checking out, it only takes a second and it's an opportunity to make someone's day just a bit better and hopefully it spreads. So look up from your phone once in a while and smile! It's contagious.”
Bobby can’t imagine living anywhere other than the South Bay He says, “I'm sure it's written somewhere but we probably have the best weather in the world and it's a good thing too because the South Bay is full of things to do and we are so close to all of it; the beach, farmers markets and street fairs, great shopping, quiet parks, beautiful hiking trails and nature, and endless great food. But all that wouldn't even matter without all the awesome people; this area is home to some of the nicest people around and even though it's a pretty big place we make it feel cozy, it's not uncommon to run into friends and neighbors on a daily basis when you are out and about.”
When Bobby isn’t developing games or aiding our veterans, he enjoys working on his truck, a 66 Chevy. He says, “It will probably never be finished but it's a fun way to spend time and not have to think about all the other work I should probably be doing. The last bit of work I did on it was to the bumper, I discovered about 8 layers of paint under the primer and decided to let a little bit of that history show by sanding through the different layers and I'm really happy with the result.”
Thank you, Bobby, for inspiring the community by following your passions of developing games all while attaining a full-time position serving our veterans. You are an asset to the South Bay community.
“Just a note to anyone out there trying to follow a passion or wanting to create something new - It's worth it, don't stop.”
– Bobby
Photo credit: Bobby Hubert
