Focus on immigration to Ireland and life in Ireland:
Game interface of "Food World"
In March 2012, Jordan Casey posted a photo on his own website.
For the residents of Santa Clara, California, who are accustomed to high-tech companies, the TiEcon annual conference held in mid-May did not pique their interest. However, 13-year-old Jordan Casey, as the youngest entrepreneur in the history of the conference, captured their attention. Casey's age and achievements are not equivalent; he learned programming at the age of 9, founded his own gaming company at 12, and is now a CEO.
Idolizing Steve Jobs
Now 13, Casey was born in Waterford, the fifth largest city in Ireland. This port city on the Atlantic coast not only has a developed industry and import-export trade but is also one of Ireland's oldest historical and cultural cities. However, Casey is not particularly interested in the medieval monuments and artifacts here; instead, he is fascinated by electronics. Like most "post-2000s" kids, his childhood toys were various video game consoles. At the age of 9, he suddenly became obsessed with a game called "Penguin Club." To play the game well, Casey often browsed major gaming forums and interacted with players. He gradually discovered that his interest in programming was even greater than the game itself.
For a child under 10, systematically learning programming courses is almost impossible, but Casey, with his innate interest and talent, learned programming with great enthusiasm. While most of his peers idolized Harry Potter, Casey regarded Steve Jobs as his creative hero, hoping to create fun things like Jobs.
As days passed, Casey read many programming textbooks that even adults found quite dull. Over two years, this elementary school student self-taught himself three programming languages: HTML, ActionScript 2.0, and CSS, and even created his own website. His videos received numerous views and shares on YouTube, and his blog became very popular in Ireland. By the age of 11, Casey had become the youngest iOS programmer in Europe. This surprised his parents, who were ordinary wage earners and had always thought that Casey was just playing games at the computer.
Starting a Company at 12
After learning programming, the idea of creating games first sprouted in Casey's mind. One day, while playing soccer, he suddenly got inspired and thought of the classic game "Space Invaders" that he had played before. He immediately threw away the soccer ball and went home to adapt the game. Thus, his first game, "Alien Wars: Humanity," was born.
In the game designed by Casey, players are no longer the heroes defending Earth but rather aliens invading it. This reverse creative thinking attracted a large number of players. The game quickly caught the attention of operators and was commercially launched for Apple clients in February 2012. Once released, it topped the download charts in the Irish Apple App Store. Casey earned his first pot of gold in business and tasted the sweetness of making money through game development.
After the success of "Alien Wars: Humanity," Casey modified errors in the game based on player feedback, beautified the battle scenes, and enhanced the enemies' combat abilities. The upgraded version, "Alien Wars: Humanity 2: Festival," received rave reviews upon its release.
Casey's outstanding performance in game development attracted attention from all walks of life, and he received various invitations to events. In June 2012, the internationally renowned advertising company J. Walter Thompson invited him to be a guest at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity and participate in interview programs. With a strong Irish accent, Casey answered the host's questions with composure. This event brought him another business opportunity, as an advertising agency from South America approached him, expressing interest in collaborating on game development. Casey developed a web game called "Turning the Tables" based on the client's requirements, which became the official recommended game for Children's Day in Brazil, providing excellent publicity for Casey.
Through repeated business collaborations, the eager learner Casey grasped the management models and operational methods of the gaming industry. In October 2012, he was invited to attend the Dublin Web Summit, and after hearing the entrepreneurial stories of internet giants, he decided to create his own game development company.
Casey shared his idea with his parents, who supported him. Two months later, with their financial assistance, Casey registered and founded a game studio named Casey Games. Since he was only 12 years old at the time and did not meet the legal age to start a company in Ireland, his parents served as company directors while he took on the role of CEO.
Casey understands the business psychology of the gaming field well: games must be tried to know if they are fun, and no one wants to waste time and money on a boring game. Therefore, in the first few weeks after a new game is launched, Casey is not in a hurry to make money back; he allows players to play for free. Once he has accumulated enough popularity and the game has been sufficiently promoted, he then starts charging.
Highly Regarded by Friends
Currently, Casey is fully committed to developing the adventure puzzle game "My Little World": "I have a very good feeling about it, so I have invested a lot of time and energy into its development, hoping it will be perfect." Casey has also creatively combined learning and gaming; one month after the new game is launched, he released a free e-book titled "My Little World," encouraging child players to read while playing the game. Another new project is "Food World," for which Casey hired his first official employee, Aidan Blackett, to serve as the art designer. They have also signed an advertising agreement for this game with a well-known gaming portal. "Food World" is now in the testing phase.
Today, most of the company's business is handled by Casey himself. When he goes to school, his mother helps him check emails. Casey's income now comes not only from games and commercial sponsorships but also from government grant funds due to his outstanding performance.
However, Casey is still a child. Although he appears confident on stage, he can show signs of insecurity when faced with unexpected exams. He does not dare to be lax in subjects he excels in; when attending events, he carries his books with him to review his studies on the go.
Regarding the future, Casey has not thought too much, but his friends have high expectations for him. In a recent interview, Casey said: "They think I will become a very famous person."