My name is Malachi Choi. I am a Junior at Oregon State University studying Digital Communication Arts and working to become a 3D Environment Artist in games.
Video games were a large part of my early childhood; gaming was my absolute favorite hobby. It started when my stepbrother got an Xbox 360; I would go to my mom’s on the weekends and sit in our shared brother's room watching him play, eagerly waiting my turn. He introduced me to the core games of my childhood: Minecraft, Skyrim, and Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 (which I probably shouldn’t have been playing).
My favorite game at the time was Minecraft, and I remember that when I wasn’t at my mom's, I would watch a bunch of Minecraft videos on YouTube to satiate that hunger. When I watched people on YouTube, I thought it would be so cool to make videos like these, so I spent a lot of time screen-recording what I was doing and learning how to edit and create my own gaming videos.
Doing gaming videos was very influential and special to me as a kid. It gave me a creative voice through something I loved, and I learned I loved making stuff others could consume or enjoy. It felt good being able to make something for others, something that could help them or maybe make a bit of difference in their life, whether that was through a tutorial or entertainment; it made me happy.
Eventually, after playing them so much, I wanted to learn how to make games, so I made a bunch of board and card games using spare printer paper and flashcards, and I also made Minecraft adventure maps. My dad eventually enrolled me in a camp to learn video game development in Scratch and bought me a Python book. The stuff I made was never substantial, though, and my brain just didn’t understand coding. Eventually, I lost the spark for creating games at a young age as I was often confused and believed I’d never be smart enough to do it.
Fast forward to my sophomore year of high school: I had decided that once I graduated, I'd study engineering in college, since it was a “real career.” In my 11th-grade summer, I applied for an engineering internship, which rejected me; however, they recommended I try applying to a video editing internship instead- one door closes, another opens type deal. At the time, I still occasionally made YouTube videos, like Overwatch Doomfist clip compilations and documentaries for class projects.
When I applied to this video editing internship, I didn't really think I would get it, but I did. Suddenly, the skills I built as a little kid led to a monumental moment in my life: my first-ever internship, doing creative video work I genuinely enjoyed (and getting paid more than I ever did working fast food, which was nice).
I realized if I continued to put in the work, there was a chance I could have a career in the creative media industry, doing things like video editing. I researched which degrees include video editing and landed on marketing, since some of that field involves video editing. I figured it could be less risky because it was a business career. In September of 2024, I started my first year of college studying Marketing at Oregon State University.
However, in Fall of 2025, I realized that a year into college, I didn't feel much passion for what I was studying. I did well in my classes, but business didn’t interest or inspire me. Along with my communications jobs, I started to realize that while I enjoyed marketing, I wanted to explore other careers that I felt I could connect with more.
I went through a long period of soul-searching, researching, and reaching out to people to learn about different careers I was interested in. Ultimately, I decided to take up the game development journey once more.
So at the start of 2026, I switched my degree to Digital Media and dedicated most of my free time to learning and exploring game development. I joined my school's game development club, worked on a variety of game jams, and made a bunch of solo projects to learn Unreal Engine 5. Through all of this, I found that I really enjoyed the art side of game development, and I decided I want to become a 3D Environment Artist.
Since then, I’ve been learning to model in Maya, create textures in Substance Painter/Designer, assemble scenes in UE5, and learn 3D game essentials like modular kits, baking, tileables, trim sheets, atlases, foliage cards, and more. Even though it’s been a huge learning process and difficult at times, I’ve been making progress, and it’s something I genuinely love to do.
Video games have been a core pillar in my life from my childhood to now. Gaming changed my life; it gave me stories to learn from, moments that made me emotional, ways to connect with my greatest friends, and worlds to get lost in. No matter what, it’s something I can fall back on when I feel alone or sad.
I want to be able to contribute to the creation of those same experiences for others, something that can influence their life for the better, something someone can enjoy, and something that can be there for them.
What motivates me to contribute is similar to what motivated me to do video editing on my YouTube channel. I could do something creative related to what I love, and I could give back to the world through what I make.
Currently, I work as a Lab Technician at the OSU NMC Game Lab. I also work at SEEOSU as a Digital Communications Specialist. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, cooking, listening to music, reading comics, collecting, and, of course, playing video games (I paused my game to write this).
