GAME DEVELOPMENT
Game development is a discipline that gives designers an instinct to anticipate and guide how players will engage with a game.
I bring that instinct to every project, whether it’s crafting engaging gameplay, bridging artistic vision with commercial goals, or adding playfulness to products. Here are a few examples of my work.
FIELD-1
With Maxim Kolbowski-Frampton, Aaron Freedman, and Shervin Ghazazani
Field-1 reimagines the classic arcade cabinet for modern audiences. Our design goals were: easy to learn, fun to watch & surprising depth.
The game is accessible with a familiar objective—score a goal—and one-button controls. Spectators can follow the action easily, learning by watching as they wait to play. Depth comes from a unique push-your-luck mechanic: move too aggressively on your opponent’s side of the field, and your character becomes a goal.
I contributed to every aspect, from initial prototyping, to level design and even building the cabinet itself.
After two nationwide tours with Death by Audio Arcade and the Brooklyn Brewery, Field-1 has a permanent home in the brewery’s tasting room.
With Maxim Kolbowski-Frampton, Aaron Freedman, and Shervin Ghazazani
Field-1 reimagines the classic arcade cabinet for modern audiences. Our design goals were: easy to learn, fun to watch & surprising depth.
The game is accessible with a familiar objective—score a goal—and one-button controls. Spectators can follow the action easily, learning by watching as they wait to play. Depth comes from a unique push-your-luck mechanic: move too aggressively on your opponent’s side of the field, and your character becomes a goal.
I contributed to every aspect, from initial prototyping, to level design and even building the cabinet itself.
After two nationwide tours with Death by Audio Arcade and the Brooklyn Brewery, Field-1 has a permanent home in the brewery’s tasting room.
SOFT BODY
Soft Body is a meditative action game created by Zeke Virant, funded by Indie Fund, and launched on PS4 and PC.
During Zeke’s time in the NYU Game Center Incubator, I helped him align his artistic vision with commercial goals. This included practical advice, like crafting a gameplay trailer, and nuanced design work, such as fine-tuning difficulty to meet audience expectations of a commercial game.
Zeke’s exceptional talent and clear vision, combined with my development support, led to Soft Body securing Indie Fund backing shipping on PS4 and PC—a major accomplishment for a solo developer.
REWORDABLE
Rewordable is a card game that uses a deck of commonly occurring letter combinations. Players build and steal words of increasing complexity, crafting from their hand or expanding on others' creations. More here.
Created by Allison Parrish, Adam Simon, and Tim Szetela, Rewordable came to the NYU Game Center Incubator as a promising prototype. With my support, the team refined gameplay, visual design, and packaging to address the practicalities of commercial production, like material costs and retail appeal.
After a successful Kickstarter campaign, Rewordable was published by Penguin Random House. Today, it's available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Walmart, and in local shops worldwide.
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