Don Grout

Unity Developer

Games, Apps & VR Simulations

Montreal, QC, Canada
403-660-5542
dongrout@yahoo.com
linkedin.com/in/dongrout
digitalriftgames.itch.io
digitalriftgames-labs.itch.io
teammathiasgames.itch.io
dgsoftware.itch.io

Summary

Unity developer with 8+ years building games, apps, WebGL tools, and VR training simulations. Expert in modular systems, interaction design, and cross-platform optimization. Shipped medical and industrial training simulations, home-design tools, and polished indie games. Strong in scalable architecture, UI systems, and collaborative remote workflows.

Technical Skills

  • Programming: C#, .NET, LINQ, Unity APIs
  • Game Engines: Unity
  • Development: VR sims, 2D/3D games & apps
  • Platforms: PC, Mobile, WebGL, Quest 2/3
  • Architecture: modular, MV, data-driven
  • UI/UX: Screen/world-space UI, URP workflows
  • Simulation: real-time systems, physics
  • Networking: Photon Fusion, Unity Netcode
  • Performance: Profiling & optimization
  • Version Control: Git, GitHub

Professional Experience

Senior Unity VR Developer — Immersive Medical Simulation Training

Unity VR Developer — Mining Equipment Training Simulations

Unity Apps Developer — 3D Home Design Platform

Unity Games Developer — Indie Projects & Systems

Expanded Experience

Unity VR Developer

Nursing Simulation Training Software

  • Developed a wide range of VR simulation features for nursing education, covering medical procedures (e.g., IV insertion, auscultation, NG tube suctioning) and patient interactions across adult and pediatric scenarios.
  • Built modular Unity systems using the Model/View design pattern, applied to control panels, wrist menus, EHR interface, Hook UIs, and supply cart interactions.
  • Implemented dynamic VR UI components such as tooltips, wrist-mounted menus, floating labels, and checklist systems to guide users through clinical workflows.
  • Engineered complex medical equipment mechanics, including IV infusion pumps, blood culture sampling, NG tube attachment systems, and suction regulators with real-time physics behaviors.
  • Integrated hardware feedback and sensors to synchronize physical object manipulation (e.g., IV bags, blood pumps) with virtual interactions and animations.
  • Diagnosed and resolved critical VR multiplayer synchronization issues, cross-platform exceptions (Meta Quest VR and PC VR), and real-time state desynchronizations.
  • Collaborated closely with medical experts and instructional designers to align scenario designs with real-world nursing protocols and best practices.

Industrial Training Simulations

  • Developed a VR training simulation for electrical circuit breaker maintenance, requiring users to select proper PPE, perform hazard checks, coordinate with a switchman, and complete a full racking procedure.
  • Designed a progressive learning system with three training modes: fully guided, semi-guided, and open-world, where task sequence errors resulted in failure, reinforcing real-world safety protocols.
  • Integrated real-world physical equipment with VR via sensors, allowing users to see and control live equipment movement within the simulation.
  • Built a VR inspection experience for large mining equipment, enabling users to teleport around machinery, inspect components, identify hazards, and interact with moving parts like doors.
  • Enhanced user navigation with guided visual cues and an animated robot demonstrating inspection procedures.
  • Optimized performance for both Oculus Rift, Oculus Quest and Oculus Go VR hardware, tailoring controls and visuals for platform capabilities.

Unity Apps Developer

Home Design Visualization Software

  • Developed 3D home modeling software where individual rooms were created as modular, standalone components and assembled like a puzzle to form complete house layouts.
  • Built a wall generation system with intuitive drag-and-stretch controls, enabling users to place, modify, and resize walls in real time, with dynamic dimensions displayed.
  • Engineered smart corner handling to automatically align walls at varying angles and thicknesses, including support for sloped and curved wall designs.
  • Improved the placement and duplication of windows and doors with real-time snapping and dragging mechanics for a smoother user workflow.
  • Designed and implemented complex triangulation algorithms to handle wall surface faceting, curved geometry, and clean joins between internal and external wall layers.
  • Customized a generic 2D triangulation library for 3D use cases, including extending end lengths for seamless corners and adjusting wall thicknesses to prevent rendering conflicts.

Unity Games Developer

Published Indie Games (digitalriftgames.itch.io)

  • Shipped multiple polished titles on itch.io, including Reversi 2 Dash 4, Mathscape, Tank vs Tank, and Shooting Gallery, each with distinct mechanics, UI flows, and platform-specific tuning.
  • Built customizable board-game logic for Reversi 2 Dash 4 with variable board sizes, bot AI, and speed-based dash modes.
  • Created educational and family-friendly games such as Mathscape and Tank vs Tank, blending procedural content with intuitive controls.

Experimental Systems & Prototypes (digitalriftgames-labs.itch.io)

  • Developed GUTS - Bullet Heaven Survivors, demonstrating scalable spawning, upgrade systems, and performance-aware object management.
  • Built GUTS - Tic Tac Toe, a modular architecture demo featuring reusable turn-based logic and data-driven board generation.
  • Designed reusable gameplay frameworks supporting turn-based logic, AI decision-making, board generation, and UI state management to accelerate prototyping across genres.

Children's & Casual Games (teammathiasgames.itch.io)

  • Produced touch-friendly titles including Marvel Memory Match, Unblock Pic, Spelling Bee, Kitchen Chaos, and Fired Up Birds, focusing on accessible UX and simple, responsive interactions.
  • Created cozy and idle-style experiences like Train Town Tycoon with smooth camera systems and relaxing progression loops.

Simulation & Training (dgsoftware.itch.io)

  • Built the Excavator Inspection & Operation Trainer, implementing inspection workflows, cab-based controls, and scenario-driven training logic.

Career Timeline

Senior Unity VR Developer
UbiSim
Dec 2020 - May 2025
Montreal, QC (remote)
Unity & Unreal Engine VR Developer
ICOM Productions
May 2018 - Apr 2020
Calgary, AB
Unity Developer
Picturethis3D
Apr 2017 - Aug 2019
Victoria, BC (remote)
AutoCAD Software Developer
Integrated Geomatics
Jan 2017 - Jun 2018
Calgary, AB
AutoCAD Software Developer
Longhorn Geomatics Limited
Nov 2015
Calgary, AB
AutoCAD Systems Management & Support
Vista-Mustang JV Corporation
Nov 2009 - Nov 2015
Calgary, AB
AutoCAD Systems Management & Support
Wood Group Mustang / IMV Projects Inc.
Dec 2007 - May 2009
Calgary, AB
AutoCAD Systems Management & Support
Upside Engineering
Feb 2006 - Dec 2007
Calgary, AB

Education

Unity Certified Professional: Programmer
Unity Technologies

Oct 2020

Calgary, AB

Android Developer
Udacity

Dec 2016 to Feb 2017

Online

Software Product Management
Coursera

Feb 2016 to May 2016

Online

Ongoing self-directed learning
Game Dev Guide, Sasquatch B Studios, git-amend & Code Monkey

Ongoing

Online