I strive always for the balance between the creative and the logical; the left and right brain. It’s in that perfect unity of two halves that game design truly flourishes, where technology meets art. It’s not enough to have a strong idea if you don’t have the analytical sense and logical skill to ground it in the processes and data that will make it a reality; just as intense technical skill can’t make a great game without the creativity to find a novel concept to apply it to. And so I pursue both.
I grew up in love with writing. I was writing at a level far beyond my age, even as early as grade school. I wanted nothing more than to create worlds and events in my own mind and to apply them to paper. As I grew older I honed my skills. In high school I was writing novels, poetry, short stories, and news stories (and obviously essays); any form of writing I came upon I tried. My artistic interests widened, as well. I took in interest in drawing, sculpting, and photography. I pursued every creative endeavor I could, given the limitations of my high school’s art department. I was sure that I wanted to become a novelist, but something still didn’t seem quite right. There was a part of my brain that wasn’t getting enough face time. That is, until I took a C++ class my senior year.
I’d say it opened up a new world to me, but it really didn’t. What it did was give form and purpose to the logical, analytical side of my brain that had always been ticking. I’d already always exceeded at the maths and sciences. I was raised with my parents reading me nature books, playing with chemistry sets and building sets, and looking at the sky through telescopes, so I already had a healthy appreciation for thinking about the way things tick. When I began programming, it came to me naturally. I quickly became the go-to guy in my class when someone couldn’t get something to work. Things would largely remain that way through college and even now (though many a programmer are beyond my skill level I’m sure).
When college came, I was primed to make the decision I made. Writing and art alone were too ambiguous and aimless; programming alone didn’t satisfy my creative curiosity. Game design was a perfect fusion of both. Technology-driven media (or art, if you will), requiring a creative mind with an analytical touch. I already was an avid game player and amateur modder and I had little doubt what I wanted to do. I’d spend the next five years honing my development skills and learning to apply logical analysis to my writing.
Which brings me where I am today. I am a game designer. I specialize in engine/level scripting and documentation. I’m experienced with level design and system design and I’ve even spent a little bit of time with narrative design. I’ve developed leadership and teamwork skills; I’ve led and worked on small teams and large teams; I’ve created mods, levels, simulations, and games. I’ve come this far walking the line between creativity and logic, but there’s always much farther to go.