Tools: Unity / Duration: 10 months / Team size: 5 / Primary role: Game designer 

The Data Protection Game was made to build awareness around the complex practice of “data brokering” (ie; the collection of personal information from consumers and subsequent resale of data between 3rd parties). The game communicates the nuances of how personal information enters the market and how this information can be exploited by data brokers and other 3rd parties for monetary gain, often to the detriment of the individual.

My Responsibilities

Task Lead:

·         Assigned tasks to broader development team and managed sprints for the game’s many iterative builds

·         Presented deliverables (both documentation and builds) at the client site. Walked through features sets, collected feedback and disseminated to the broader development team.

Game Designer:

·         Led initial day-long ideation/workshop with the client to do a data gather on the desired game content. Day consisted of demoing team’s capabilities to level set expectations, as well as aligning industry examples to content concepts. Captured notes and ended day with a high level understanding of the game’s scope and complexity.

·         Led a team of 3 other designers to conduct research into the practice of “data brokering”, distilling articles, FTC and senate reports into templates to come up with 50+ scenarios to be used in the game.

·         Created initial design document based off of the outcomes of the ideation session and research phase. Aligned game mechanics to desired player behaviors. Developed systems to reinforce key learning points.

·         Wrote all narrative text for quest givers, dataset descriptions, upgrade descriptions. 

Visual Scripting (Playmaker):

·         Built rough versions of features during the pre-alpha phase of development (first iteration of the dialogue panel, first iteration of the data collectors). Worked closely with lead engineer to refine/optimize these features in subsequent versions of the game.

·         Programmed the tutorial. Scripted ability to dismiss/resume. Scripted triggers at critical moments (ie; when new mechanics were introduced)

·         Scripted character creation feature (ability to set individual features of the avatar: clothes, body type, hair, accessories, etc. and then re-instantiate the custom avatar upon saving/loading the game)

·         Scripted the “griffin University” feature (functions as a mini page turner/ quiz embedded in the game)

·         Scripted small visual effects: particle explosions upon gaining points, UI panels animating in/out

Visuals:

·         Supplemental character creation and animations.