Story quality continues to increase as a competitive edge across game genres; as an experienced gamer I want to feel like my time and money were well-spent when I commit to playing a game.

Engagement of the player and character

  • Be accessible and relatable
  • Connect the player to the story via the player character
  • Consistency builds reality
  • Choices feel effective

Stories that are cohesive and compelling

  • Everything is rooted in the game world
  • The story compels the PC
  • Progress that is paced and without gaps

Emotion driven by characters and motivations

  • Empathy is core engagement
  • Characters act appropriately
  • Emotions build stronger memories


What I’d Like to Do for Games

I’ve been designing consumer software for nine years, and now I’m looking to apply my experience and interaction design background to a more challenging kind of software: video games. I haven’t shipped five AAA games or sparked bidding at GDC, but I have shipped engaging consumer software that has made millions of people happy they used it. It’s not easy to break into the industry, however, I know I have the creativity, flexibility, and dedication to contribute to top-notch games.

If I could do something for a great new game or a sequel to one of my favorites…

Build the stories

  • Establish continuity and verisimilitude
  • Create detailed worlds
  • Explore a range of emotion
  • Keep the story and action balanced

Build the characters

  • Give them consistent personalities
  • Create backgrounds to drive their motivations
  • Ensure appropriate dialog and action

Make sure it all works

  • Work with artists & performers to realize the vision
  • Advocate for the player
  • Retain perspective in the midst of development
  • Address story deficiencies despite time or budget restrictions
  • Refine the overall UX


Life Beyond Video Games

BA, Psychology, University of California, Santa Cruz

I clear my head with…


I clutter my head with…

  • News, science, and modern history and ethnography
  • Electronics, including microcontrollers, radios, and high-speed photography
  • Machining and tinkering, like car repair and gunsmithing
  • Sports that are not very popular in the US: hockey, WRC, F1, and WEC

But wait, there’s more!

  • General-class FCC amateur radio license: KI6NVO
  • In college I was a manager at a cooperatively-owned bookstore
  • Trauma medicine is a hobby.  Have you refreshed your medical kits lately?
  • I have developed real film in an actual darkroom
  • I volunteer as a rangemaster and firearm instructor
  • In high school, I had summer internships at NASA Ames and SGI