Role: Systems Designer
What Was Used: Unity, C#, Google Sheets, Node.JS, CSS, HTML, Git
MARVEL: World of Heroes was a mobile Augmented Reality Location-Based RPG that let players become a Marvel Super Hero in the real world. Though reaching a soft-launch phase in Australia and New Zealand, the project was ultimately shuttered due to budget cuts.
During my time on MARVEL: World of Heroes, I created a suite of spreadsheet-based tooling that allowed for the mass creation and altering of game data. Previously, designers on the project would manually adjust the values of certain game objects in the Unity editor.
This importer/exporter tool reduced time spent editing data by 75% and allowed the design team to operate with increased efficiency. After these efforts I also was the design-side contact for our gameplay engineers as they sought to create more comprehensive in-engine tooling for the team's use.
I also worked on the game's Combat System, working firstly to establish several key gameplay pillars for the system, and then to create rapid-prototypes based off of data-based feedback gathered from our soft-launch players.
In addition, I worked on the game's First Time User Experience design, which ultimately lead to an 8% increase in Daily Active Users.
Role: Game Designer (Sytems / Technical)
What Was Used: C++, Nitrous Game Engine, Visual Studio, Excel, Perforce
Ara: History Untold is an upcoming turn-based grand strategy video game being developed by Oxide Games and published by Xbox Game Studios. The game was announced during Xbox and Bethesda Showcase 2022.
I started at Oxide Games as a humble summer intern back in 2019 and over the course of three years grew in both ability and responsibility. Given the multifaceted nature of my position, I have elected to divide my work into several sections.
Systems Design: I created detailed documentation for new game systems, ensuring comprehensive and accessible resources for the development team. This included outlining mechanics, formulae, and edge cases for easier implementation. I also leveraged my experience with creating formulaic spreadsheets to calculate, update, and format game data.
AI Design and Development: I wrote documentation detailing behaviors for our trait-based AI system and actively participated in its implementation. This involved defining behavior patterns, specifying rule-sets per trait, and collaborating with the team to ensure the AI system aligned with design objectives and player expectations. This also involved a significant amount of research as the personalities we were seeking to emulate were those of highly regarded historical figures.
Gameplay Programming and UI Engineering: I contributed to both the UI engineering and gameplay programming teams, collaborating with them to implement user interface features and enhance player experiences within the game including tooltips, popups, and smaller UI screens. I was also responsible for performing code reviews on certain gameplay programming tasks which featured large equations or other math that design needed to verify.
VFX and Game State Illustration: I collaborated with the VFX team to illustrate game state through visual effects, adding visual cues and enhancing player feedback.
Accessibility and Localization Support: I assisted with localization efforts, ensuring that the game was adapted to different languages and cultures, thereby broadening its accessibility to a global audience.
Role: Lead Designer
What Was Used: Twine, HTML, CSS, Adobe Suite, Audacity
Gamer Girl is a sexual harassment simulation that follows a young college student through an average semester at her university.
Taken from the testimonies and interviews of women majoring in Game Design and Development at the Rochester Institute of Technology, all in-game events are extracted from real life occurences. While specific information has been altered to protect the identities of the interviewees, the stalking, angry outbursts, threats of violence, and manipulation are all taken from actual stories of abuse.
As Lead Designer on Gamer Girl, I was responsible for shaping the overall gameplay experience as well as the game's creative vision and direction. Moreover, I was responsible for delegating tasks to the other four members of our student team and helping balance their expected work against an ever changing amount of other academic requirements.
Gamer Girl has been presented at several different game showcases including IndieCade, Games 4 Change, and GameFest Akron.
Role: Production Coordinator and Lead QA Tester
What Was Used: Unity, C#, Visual Studio, Vuforia, Axure, ARIS, Trello, Microsoft Office, Github, Agile Development, Scrum
What Lies Beneath is a mobile Augmented Reality game based in Dubrovnik, Croatia and developed over the course of five months by a team of nine students. Based in the rich folklore of Dubrovnik's past, the game's purpose is to encourage tourists visiting the city to explore off of the beaten path and discover hidden treasure nestled in historically fascinating locations.
Play as an adventurer sent from the Vatican to the city of Dubrovnik to give aid during their vampire plague. Join forces with the local vampire hunters, or krsnik, as they attempt to wrestle the fate of their future from their monsterous foes.