Feel free to email me at - [email protected]SUMMARYHaving spent several years as a freelancer I have worked on many different projects, in several different roles, ranging from F2P mobile games through to RPG’s. I like to think of myself as a dedicated game maker, whatever the role I’m in, and I strive to expand my skill set whenever time allows me. In the past I have self-taught myself how to use Photoshop and various document/asset sharing applications to suit the needs of whoever I’m currently working for.
I’m currently in the process of teaching myself how to use Blender for 3D asset creation.
SKILLS● Experience designing card games, board games, and video games.
● Established artist with credited work.
● Keen writer with background in lore building and flavour text
● Participated in many expos and events around the country where my work was showcased to the public.
● Experience with presenting projects to the press both in person and via social media.
● Experienced in running solo and group play tests.
● Lifelong gamer with an interest in both AAA titles and indie games alike
● Background in Maths and Statistics
EXPERIENCESGame Designer, Pixel Artist, Writer - Freelance - February 2012 - presentWhilst I initially started working freelance on a part-time basis I have since built up a network of returning clients and a positive reputation, which has allowed me to now work-full time in a career that I love.
Having spent several years working from home on many different projects, I am now hoping to take the next step and commit to a more established and structured working environment
Whilst it would be impossible to list all the projects that I had a hand in, I have listed some of the more notable projects (not currently protected by an NDA) below
Content Creator - Kwalee - July 2015 – April 2016 (www.kwalee.com)I was hired to design and implement quiz questions for a F2P community based quiz game, where users could create their own quizzes using photos they had taken.
I was tasked with creating content that was polished, fun and unique, but also demonstrate how easy the in game editor was to use to help inspire users to create their own quizzes.
Pixel Artist/Designer – Poncho – April 2013 – November 2015 (http://store.steampowered.com/app/332620/)Initially I was hired as an artist for this project but due to the small nature of the team (3 people) I often had to take on several other roles, such as assistant designer, play tester and showing the game at expos.
During these events I would observe and discuss the game with members of the public, press and other Game Dev’s in order to improve and perfect the balancing and pacing of the game using direct player feedback. These sessions became an invaluable source of information not just for this game but also for future projects.
The game was published by Rising Star Games and featured at PAX 2015 in Seattle and EGX Rezzed 2015 in Birmingham; both times it was part of Nintendo’s Nindies collection.
It is currently available on PC, Mac and PS4 with PSVita and WiiU versions coming in the near future.
Since release it has gained positive reviews.
Lead Game Designer - MachiaVillain - July 2015 - December 2015
I was commissioned by a client to turn a concept into a functional game design document within a few months. The concept for the game was a construction sim where the player has to build and maintain a mansion full of monsters and traps in order to lure and kill various visitors. The design had a strong leaning towards the humorous side of the genre with players being rewarded for following typical horror clichés.
Working with a second designer I was tasked with leading the creation of a Game Design Document, providing the programmer with details, stats and figures to give life and purpose to the gameplay. This would involve tasks such as…
• Creating in game formulas to calculate stats for anything from combat to construction
• Designing upgrade trees to provide the player with clear but multiple paths to levelling up
• Detailing the strengths/weaknesses of each in game unit, along with its personality and A.I. traits
• Listing the gameplay goals of a sandbox game, providing the player with some kind of structure to their play through.
This game also featured at EGX Rezzed 2015 and ran a successful Kickstater campaign in March 2016
Environmental Artist – Freedom Planet - January 2013 - July 2014
When I started working on this project much of the basic design ground work was already done. I was tasked with taking the original art assets and improving them to the standard that they are now.
One major challenge I faced was absorbing as much information about the project as I could, whilst maintaining a high level of quality work. As a newcomer to the team everyone else was familiar with the project and the target goals, so it was crucial that I kept up to date with tasks and objectives outside of my assigned role in order to maintain a high level of understanding for the whole project.
After release the game received a majority of positive reviews from critics and was a financial success, with enough public interest to spawn a sequel that started development early this year.
Smaller Ongoing Projects - Free timeIn between doing freelance work for other people’s games I often spend my time designing prototype games and working on smaller projects of my own. Many of these ideas don’t make it off the drawing board but a select few often end up evolving into fully fledged projects.
I love to use these opportunities to work on games that are unique and different.
Examples of smaller upcoming games that I have designed include…
• A mobile friendly card collecting/battling gameWith gameplay that’s simple to play but tricky to master, this project is designed to appeal to casual players but reward people who put the time in to learn the unique traits of various complex tactics. A devlog for the ongoing project can be found here…
https://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=57614.0• Addictive arcade style mobile gameA tiny one month project that produced a fun and addictive arcade style game. You can pick up a free copy here…
www.rootllama.com/kuiper• Experimental text adventureA short chose your own style adventure where players explore an open world through the eyes of a recently restored robot with limited ability to feel emotions. Each time you replay the game you ‘learn’ a different combination of emotions that effect how you view the world each time you visit the same location. Unique emotional responses to familiar situations often send the story veering off a completely different path. A devlog for the ongoing project can be found here…
https://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=58146.0Examples of upcoming games that I have had a hand in can also be found here…
• Huge Swords and Tentacle MonstersA pixel art platformer where you battle varying degrees of huge tentacle monsters with a laser grappling hook sword.
https://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=52589.0• Streets of RougeA rogue-lite about player choice, freedom, and anarchic fun. The game takes inspiration from fast-paced top-down rogue-lites like Binding of Isaac and Nuclear Throne, and adds free-form, experimentation-driven, emergent gameplay elements of RPGs like Deus Ex. The project has recently been picked up by the Publishers TinyBuild Games
https://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=51579.0Feel free to email me at - [email protected]
Jobs
