FREELANCE GAME DESIGNER - VIDEO GAMES INDUSTRY

Buzz Monkey Software - Eugene, OR

September 2008 - January 2010

• Designed new IP including the world, story and characters
• Designed gameplay mechanics for customizable weapons
• Collaborated with programmers to create and refine customizable weapon functionality
• Prototyped new multiplayer game mode using UT3's Kismet visual scripting
• Collaborated with artists and programmers to create weapon customization UI
• Researched and shared tutorials to help level design learn the new tools

• Contributed to Game Design Document (GDD)
• Wrote game accessibility features for the GDD
• Experimented with tools and game engine technology, first to create a custom level and documented the process.
• Implemented gameplay using custom XSI gameplay tools
• Created "greybox" environment and gameplay geometry using XSI
• Frequently shared tips and tricks while using XSI and how to create gameplay objects
• Worked closely with artists to optimze X360/PS3 level geometry for the Nintendo Wii

LucasArts - San Francisco, CA

February 2006 - June 2008

• Provided written and oral feedback to various prototype strike teams
• Wrote game accessibility features for the Game Design Overview
• Contributed to documentation describing the purpose of our prototype, its goals and lessons learned
• Designed gameplay systems
• Implemented scripted events triggered by the player using proprietary scripting tools
• Created "greybox" environment geometry using proprietary Maya-like modeling tools
• Taught other team members how to use LucasArts' proprietary tools
• Created and modified LUA gameplay scripts

• Led Scrum team to complete all our tasks during multiple sprints
• Collaborated with lead to spearhead design and implementation of a multi-staged multiplayer mode that resembled the epic battles from the Star Wars movies
• Created multiplayer levels utilizing Euphoria and Pixelux technologies
• Implemented gameplay and scripting on multiplayer and singleplayer
• Provided LUA scripting support for one other multiplayer designer on level specific scripts and multiplayer mode specific scripts
• Implemented gameplay and scripting on multiplayer and singleplayer
• Gave demonstrations of work in progress during team meetings with an audience of 100+
• Implemented gameplay and scripting on multiplayer and singleplayer
• Initiated early design of the portaling and sectoring tool in our proprietary level editor which is used to prioritize the rendering of in game geometry

Ritual Entertainment - Dallas, TX

May 2003 – November 2005

• Created paper top-down view designs for single player missions
• Implemented gameplay and scripting
• Wrote dialog for selected missions
• Created particle effects

• Created paper top-down view designs for single and multiplayer levels
• Implemented gameplay and scripting
• Worked with artists to art-up the levels to acceptable standards

• Created paper top-down view designs for singleplayer levels
• Implemented gameplay

• Created paper top-down view designs for singleplayer levels
• Implemented gameplay and scripting with a focus on physics interaction

• Created paper top-down view designs for singleplayer levels
• Implemented gameplay and scripting

• Created areas of gameplay and architecture
• Implemented scripted sequences
• Optimized levels for console memory constraints

• Created areas of gameplay and architecture
• Implemented scripted sequences

• Reported bugs to the developers and made suggestions to improve game play
• Created gameplay events with proprietary scripting language

Games[CC] - San Francisco, CA

Sept 2004 - June 2005

• Designed “Dynamic Closed Captioning” system
• Managed international team of programmers and captioners via the Internet
• Acted as the customer of the mod, providing feedback and suggestions for improvement
• Captioned dialog and sound events

Rewolf, INC - Flagstaff, AZ

Sept 1995 – July 2000

• Worked with a team of game developers via the Internet using the Half-Life engine
• Design the 3D environments and gameplay for singleplayer levels

Moxill Interactive - USA

June 1997 – August 1997

• Created the start level “Wake Up Call” for Your Path of Destruction DOOM TC for Quake

• Gave presentation, “Closed Captioning in Video games” at Ohlone College (2007)
• Featured in Official Playstation 2 magazine “Disabled Gaming: How Technology Can Help” (September, 2007)
• Gave PBS KQED TV and radio interviews about game accessibility
  KQED TV
  KQED Radio
• Doom3[CC] mod nominated as “Best Doom3 Mod for 2005” at the IGF Choice Awards during the Game Developers Conference 2006
• Gave presentation, “Closed Captioning in Video games” at Game Developers Conference, San Jose, CA (2006)
• In 2004/2005 lead a team of captioners and programmers to develop a closed captioning system for Doom3

• Titles worked on/shipped/mods completed: 10/7/3
• Software: Adobe Photoshop, XSI, 3DS Max, Maya, Word, Excel
• Scripting Languages: LUA, Studio Developed Languages
• Development Tools: Hammer Editor (Source Engine), QeRadiant (Doom3/Quake4 Engine), Adventure Game Studio, Proprietary Level Editors

• Research and develop solutions for closed captioning in games for hard of hearing and deaf
• Playing a wide variety of games (indie, serious and AAA)

Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY
BS Information Technology, November 2002