Tim Sweeney

Profession: Programmer

Biography: Tim Sweeney founded Epic Games, a video game and software company best known for creating "Fortnite." He is also the creator of Unreal Engine, a widely used game development system.

Sweeney showed a keen interest in technology even as a child, often taking apart machines to understand how they worked. Subsequently, between ages 11 and 15, he taught himself programming, spending thousands of hours refining his skills in this.

While studying at the University of Maryland, Sweeney started Potomac Computer Systems. He created his first commercial game, "ZZT" (1991), which earned him a modest income. This early success led him to rename his company Epic MegaGames.

In 1998, Sweeney and his team released "Unreal" (1998), a game that demonstrated the Unreal Engine. This technology would go on to power many popular games and become a major source of revenue for Epic Games.

Sweeney moved the company to North Carolina in 1999 and shortened its name to Epic Games. Under his leadership, the company continued to grow, releasing successful games—including further titles in the Unreal series and "Gears of War" (2006), as well as its sequels—and continuing to develop the Unreal Engine for use by other studios.

In 2017, Epic Games launched "Fortnite," an online free-to-play battle royale game that has since become a global phenomenon. The game established Epic Games in the video game industry in their own right.

Born: December 21, 1970
Birthplace: Potomac, Maryland, USA
Age: 53 years old

Generation: Generation X
Chinese Zodiac: Dog
Star Sign: Sagittarius