A FORTNITE producer has qualified for the World Darts Championship after making a dramatic career change.
Alex Spellmen made his debut at Ally Pally in 2023 but was knocked out by Ryan Joyce.
Spellmen, 37, will have another chance to impress at the biggest stage in darts.
He qualified for the World Championships after winning his second CDC Continental Cup crown on Saturday.
But he has not spent his whole life at the oche and once worked for Epic Games – the company that produced video game Fortnite.
He told MODUS’ Tungsten Talk: “I went to college for computer information systems.
“I worked in IT for a hardware company called Lowe’s — not sure if you have that over here — and I hated everything about it.
“My wife and I had always talked about making a change, so we bought a house two hours away, which forced me to find a new job.
‘I got lucky and landed a contract role at Epic Games — the producer of Fortnite, Gears of War, and Unreal Tournament.
“I started as a contractor, became full-time after a year, and I got there about three months before Fortnite was released.
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‘I did IT work and some programming — not on the game itself, more on the infrastructure side — but I loved every second of it.
“I was there for about six years.”
The American took up darts seriously back in 2008 and realised he had some ability after playing in a bar tournament.
He added: “I didn’t really start playing until 2008. I had a board growing up — I think most Americans do — but we’re just throwing at it.
“We don’t necessarily know the rules or anything like that.
“We used to have what’s called blind draw or blind pairs — you just get a random partner.
“I happened to be in the bar with my dad and uncle one night, and they needed an extra person.
“I was the only one willing to do it, and I did pretty decent.
“I actually made more money in that two-hour span than I did working eight hours at a grocery store for minimum wage in college!
“So initially, I stuck with it for the big money — the big $200 (£152) I made that night.”
