In Spring 2016, I took Andy Nealen’s Game Design course. I worked on a team to make Circum, a one-button atmospheric game for Windows. You can download it here.

On a related note, here are my brief thoughts/criticism of games I have recently played:

  • Deathloop is fun and exciting. I just wish there had been more of a reason to keep the loop alive. There isn’t much in the way of internal conflict which would have made for a more interesting Colt. As it stands, he is but a gun.

  • AI: The Somnium Files has great ideas, but I think it would have been improved by cutting the fat and making the protagonist less, well, distractable. Those who know, know.

  • Returnal lacks a memorable soundtrack, which made it hard to power through the loops. There’s only so much the Dualsense can do to draw me in.

  • Demon’s Souls is great, but I can’t get Boldwin’s voice out of my head now: “I can forge weapons for you, for a fair price.”

  • Hitman 3 is the quintessential slapstick puzzle comedy game.

  • Bloodborne is wild fun, but I must say I enjoyed exploring the world far more than fighting bosses (the Shadows of Yharnam are a real pain in the ass)

  • Tell Me Why has, in Alyson Ronan, an all-time-great protagonist. I can’t say I loved her brother Tyler as much.