Game Design
Education ->
In December of 2020 I received my Bachelor’s Degree in Arts and Technology from the University of Texas at Dallas. There I took a unilateral approach to game design, where I learned as many areas of the craft as I could…
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One of the most valuable classes I took was Game Design I. Here, we were split into groups each week so that by the end of it, we would have a solid game design document and an attractive and playable beta for the class. It was a tough and engaging class with a professor who truly cared about the medium he was teaching. We all ended the semester with more than a few card-based or board-based game we could be proud of. My favorite, Claustrophobia, is detailed below.
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A number of classes taken in my degree path dealt with coding at various degrees, as my education is inherently in the realm of computer science. I took courses ranging from working with a small Java window to full on C# scripting and integration in Unity 3D. I consider coding and programming one of my skills as an artist, but I wouldn’t call it love.
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At the UT Dallas, we had a hell of a setup when it came to the sound labs. Students with courses related to sound design were able to rent out private sound booths for free, as well as any equipment we could possibly need. From Zoom recorders to pop filters, we had everything we needed to make the most of our time in the labs. One of my favorite memories was getting to do foley work in the large sound studio, where we broke stalks of celery in order to get the classic Hollywood-style bone breaking sounds.
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In a few courses, I needed to establish some base knowledge of level design. Like many other aspects of game design, the principles are intersectional. In one course, I was using existing jumping, sliding, and moving mechanics to build a white box level that felt satisfying to play. In another, I created a simple side scroller with custom sprites to relate to a narrative pitch that I gave to the class. In every case, level design overlaps with other areas of design. In the end, my perspective of all things that go into games is more complete.
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Like I mentioned in the previous section, many areas of game design are intersectional. When narrative becomes an element of the project, the rest of the game must support it. The discussions about narrative bleed into discussions about level design, music, as well as ethics, accessibility, and representation. It’s up to us designers to live up to the responsibility storytellers hold.
Programs and Tools Experience
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Unity 3D / Unreal
I’m competent in the use of both Unreal and Unity in regards to implementing assets and scripting components for games. UTD gave me a chance to learn the fundamentals of both, and I’ve begun using Unreal 5 for personal projects. I have experience using script editors to write custom script behavior and understand the basics of packaging game projects for testing.
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Coding / Scripting
I have a moderate amount of experience with scripting languages like Java, C# and C++, and BluePrint scripting. I’ve used Unity to implement assets made in peripheral programs.
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Procreate
This application is my number one design tool for anything 2D. From character commissions to organizational and personal branding logo designs, this is my go-to app.
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Creation Kit
I spent a month learning the Bethesda Creation Kit so that I could make a mod I thought fulfilled a role-playing need in a simple and lore-friendly way. The mod used assets from the original content package and allowed people on any platform to enjoy it natively to Fallout 4. Each of the mods in the series has overwhelmingly positive reviews.
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Pro Tools
In my courses related to sound design in games, I used the incredible industry standard Pro Tools. The program is essential to anyone working in games who captures sounds, voice lines, or music. I learned so much about sound design in this program and yet I feel as though I’ve only touched the surface.
Claustrophobia
(Beta)
Game Design I was, pound-for-pound, the most valuable class I took while working towards my bachelor’s. The class’s structure was simply to divide us into randomized groups to work on creating a game design doc, making assets, and presenting a playable beta for the professor and class to play. In one of the last groups of the semester, I took the lead in our game, Claustrophobia. It was a simple game loosely based on my fondness for some of the classic Mario Party games that require you to remain on a platform longer than anyone else, as well as the grandfather of all games: Snake II on the Nokia Brick. The colored coins act as tails for the player, who moves two spaces at a time, taking the two pieces at the end of the tail and putting it where the player cube moves from. By jumping over the tail or main piece of another, the player’s tail grows longer, and the opponent’s grows shorter. Each player moves two times before an outer ring of the board is removed. Once a player’s tail is depleted and their main piece is jumped, they are removed from the board. If a player’s main piece happens to be on the outer ring when the the turn ends, they are also removed. Last one standing wins!
Game Modding
Supply & Demand ->
The thing I love about the Bethesda games like Fallout and The Elder Scrolls, is the studio’s embracing of the modding community. The games are fun on their own, but what the players themselves have gone out of their way to create is extraordinary.
Back in 2015, when Fallout 4 came out, I had yet to play any BGS games, and decided this was going to be my first. It launched on PlayStation 4 without mod support, but later added it (with some caveats). The game astonished me with its world design. It offered a massive sandbox full of story to uncover and unfold.
In the last few years, I made the jump to PC gaming, after having built my first system. After playing Fallout for a second time, this time having access to the full range of PC mods. After more time in the game, I saw a need for a mod I hadn’t seen before. So I created the “Move-In Ready” mod series. The series aims to renovate some of the nicer homes found in the game’s world and repair the massive holes in the roofs and walls.
Since it is a simple series of mods that use only the Creation Kit and existing game files to repair the damage, it is accessible to every player regardless of platform.
Check them out!
Just click on the images above to be taken to the Bethesda.net mod page for each. Or just click through the images below to see some of the settlements.
