Echolight

As part of the six-person game design team, my main responsibilities included developing concepts for the basic gameplay experience and specific mechanics, regularly documenting new decisions within the game design document, and especially conveying our vision to other teams. The latter quickly proved to be the most significant task. Working initially in isolation from the other teams and being able to provide clear content only based on our own slow progress, we encountered early challenges in aligning our ideas with those of others.

To facilitate better connection and communication between the different departments (Art, Engine, Event Management, Game Design, Tech), feature teams were introduced in the second half of the project, each responsible for overseeing a single aspect of the game from start to finish across departments. At this time, I took on the role of Lead Combat Designer, which I would carry until the end of the project. With the combat system as the central element of the game, my primary goal was to achieve a smooth and fluid feeling for the players. Extensive testing and tweaks to the individual mechanics, previously existing in isolation, were crucial to achieving a unified game flow where all components work together seamlessly. This required a high level of communication not only within my own team but also across features, with regular discussions about introducing, changing, or removing elements.

After completing the game concept and the subsequent decrease in required game design decisions, we transitioned to other departments. Drawing on my past experience in programming and with the Unity engine in general, I began working as part of the Tech department, where I would contribute to the tasks of my feature team. In this role, I also served as a point of contact for others on the game design team, facilitating the quick and resource-efficient implementation of new ideas into the game for testing purposes. Additionally, this position between both departments allowed me to quickly and easily test received feedback from beta tests in the game environment and develop solutions.

• Making and justifying decisions based on the essence of the game
• Structured documentation and dissemination of work results
• Recognizing, understanding, and considering requirements from other areas of work
• Engaging in reasoned discussions of ideas and subsequently revising and finding compromises
• Guiding a team with prioritization and distribution of open tasks
• Advanced Game development within the Unity engine