holistic design: systems, gameplay, narrative, and ui/ux

I spearheaded design and implementation of a variety of world systems, gameplay mechanics, and player verbs, and UX flows, focusing on creating engaging features that would tie together gameplay loops, narrative, and core pillars. I designed and prototyped a wide variety of features including collection and crafting, level transition mechanics, traversal, and gameplay feel.

I worked to design and implement gameplay features to support and expand the game’s narrative and worldbuilding in a way that was small-team friendly, and to create a sense of wonder and mystery for players. I worked with creative leadership to ensure that features upheld design pillars and to attempt to tie disparate systems and ideas together in a more cohesive whole. To that end, I touched many different areas of the game’s design, from traversal mechanics, gameplay loops, crafting, exploration, and unique in-game features to surprise and delight players.

In addition to my other design work, I was responsible for the majority of UI/UX features throughout the game, from bootflow and menu screens to input mapping and HUD. I worked to design and implement UI/UX content throughout the game, listening to feedback and refining interactions to create an intuitive experience for players.

technical design and team mentorship

In addition to my design and technical implementation work, I mentored other designers to improve their technical skills and prototyping abilities, as well as worked with engineering leads to establish best practices for blueprint and level scripting across the project. I worked with other designers 1 on 1 as well as running “blueprint bootcamp” and regular instruction sessions for designers to expand technical knowledge throughout the team, and better establish best practices to ensure project stability.
I also worked to establish metrics for implementation, to ensure consistency throughout the game not only in the technical back end, but to ensure a consistent player experience.

Audio, narrative, and AI

In addition to gameplay, I also worked closely with the Audio Director on the project to build out the audio toolbox and implement new player-focused features involving music and sound effects, as well as design and build both friendly NPCs and hostile enemy AI. I also helped create and implement developer tools used for audio and animation to easily build narrative and other in-game content in a quick and easily scalable way throughout the game. I worked with engineering team to architect and implement features for narrative content delivery, and built narrative-focused features into gameplay and world systems to create a holistic experience throughout the game.