Games
God of War Ragnarok
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God of War Ragnarok is a third-person action adventure game and a sequel to the 2018 God of War. In this game, Kratos and Atreus must journey to each of the Nine Realms in search of answers as they prepare for the prophesied battle that will end the world.
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I was a Technical Level Designer on this game from August 2021 to August 2022. I was also a QA Analyst on this game for about a year from October 2020 to September 2021.
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Some of my responsibilities as a designer were -
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Extended existing code to add accessibility and level readability improvements
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Worked with level designers to implement and modify mechanics for the specific level
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Took ownership of the map system, fixing related bugs, and assisting other designers using it
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Built a reusable gameplay module for level designers using the studio’s visual scripting too
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Some of the tasks I did as a QA Analyst were -
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Logged and regressed bugs found in the level using Jira along with debug tools
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Coordinated and tasked testers assigned to assist me in my areas of ownership
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Worked with proprietary software to inspect scripts to find potential logic bugs
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Ran performance checks and test plans to ensure levels were ready for playtests
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Assisted the tech design team by fixing impactful bugs
Below is a trailer of the game revealed during State of Play in 2021.
The game is set to release in 2022.
The Last of Us Part II
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The Last of Us Part II is a third-person action adventure game set 5 years after the first game. The game primarily takes place in Seattle and has a heavy emphasis on traversal and combat mechanics.
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I was a QA Analyst / Dev Support on this game for about 1.5 years from April 2019 to September 2020. My primary responsibilities included owning the quality of three major levels as well as collaborating with design and combat QA to do junior level design work.
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In terms of ownership of quality, I had to play the level multiple times a week to -
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Ensure the level had no progression blockers prior to focus tests and follow up with departments if fixes were needed
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Test the new gameplay features or level art being added and log related bugs
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Capture footage to ensure performance was maintained throughout the level and identify hotspots where performance dips were likely to occur
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In terms of design work, I helped balance combat scenarios, adjust AI pathing routes, and was asked to give feedback on various gameplay systems (like hints).
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I also got to add to the game in other ways like getting my face scanned to be an NPC. writing an in-game note, doing a drawing for the school area, and writing the concept for one of the superhero cards.
Below is a video highlighting a couple sections/features I was responsible in helping bringing up to Naughty Dog quality
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SPOILERS!
In-Game^2​
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In-Game^2 (read: In-game squared) is a 3D platformer made in Unity that I completed working on in April 2020. This was an old project that I decided to revisit using the game design and programming experience I had gathered in the time between now and my last attempt (Fall 2016).
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The story of the game is that you play as a designer who was working on his level until you (the player) pressed the "Play" button. This caused him to get sucked into the level that he was making and now you need to guide him to the end so that he can return to his reality and continue working.
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It was very interesting to design a level that, due to the nature of the setting, needed to feel like a work in progress. A lot of it was achieved through a mix of the blockmesh look of the level, a running commentary by the player's character, and certain solutions requiring a different use of the mechanics than the game was suggesting.
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A small clip of the game is on the left. To read more about the game, and to see the full playthrough, click here
Click here or the image below
to play the game online
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Words
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Made during Inktober 2018. Prompt: Poisonous.
The prompt 'Poisonous' got me to think about stealth games or something of the like but I wanted to think more outside the box for this 24hr game jam. The following is what I came up with -
"Words can be endearing but they can also be hurtful and it's up to us to choose the words that affect our behaviour."
I didn't have any experience making a typing game so, I looked up a tutorial and then used that as a base to make the game I wanted, where I categorize words into positives or negatives and then the varying behaviour that happens when you type them. The project took about 8 hours to complete.
Overall, I'm really happy with how the project turned out and especially proud of the concept I came up with for the given prompt.
Darkness
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Darkness was a level I made in Unreal Engine 4 during Spring 2016. It was originally meant to just be a maze but I got invested in it and built a platformer(ish) in an unsettling and constricted environment.
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While the story is meant to be ambiguous the idea is that your character is trapped on a ship that’s malfunctioned (and seemingly abandoned). It’s mainly there to create the tense atmosphere. Considering that I got a few screams out of it (even though it isn't a scary game) I’d say it worked out well.
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A small clip of the game is on the left. To read more about the game, and to see the full playthrough, click here
Inaudible
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Inaudible is a game made in Unreal for PC VR with a team of five. The aim was to get a working concept and have it be as polished as possible.
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I had to design an area with consideration to giving the player as much info as they’d need in their environment to complete the level. I also implemented the highlight mechanic where interactables turn green if you look at them while standing at a particular distance.
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Once we had a prototype running, I helped run weekly playtests and addressed feedback received - For example, the recorder used to be a box that players would attempt to throw at the monster in an attempt to hurt it (which isn't possible). Based on that we iterated with a couple objects before settling on the recorder as the distraction device
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In addition to that I made sure our assets were being produced on time and made the call to cut something if it wasn’t going to make it before the deadline. It was a tight couple weeks but we persevered and created a polished project.