Delivered at Casual Connect USA 2016. 18 years is an awfully long time to develop a way of thinking. What's the difference between a junior and a senior designer? What does a systems designer do? What should they do? What are the most common design mistakes? Why do we keep making them even after we know? Answers to these questions and more set in the framework of my own path through the last couple decades designing video games.

1. My Path as a Game
Designer
Working on Making my Story Useful
(Mostly for Myself, Sharing is Selfishness)

2. WHY THIS PRESENTATION?

3. GIVE THE AUDIENCE A SINGLE
SAMPLE OF A DESIGNER’S PATH
THROUGH THE LAST 20 YEARS
WHY THIS PRESENTATION?

4. WHERE ARE THE STORIES ABOUT
THE STEPS WE TAKE TO
IMPROVE?
WHY THIS PRESENTATION?

5. WE KNOW WHAT GAME
DESIGNERS DO.
WHY THIS PRESENTATION?

6. WHY DO DESIGNERS MAKE THEIR
CHOICES?
WHY THIS PRESENTATION?

7. HOW DID MY EXPERIENCES
SHAPE THE DESIGNER I AM
TODAY?
WHY THIS PRESENTATION?

8. WHO AM I?

9. WHO AM I?
TOMO MORIWAKI
18 YEARS OF GAME DESIGN

10. WHO AM I?
13 YEARS CONSOLE
5 YEARS MOBILE, PC

11. WHO AM I?
3 YEARS PUNK UNDERLING

12. WHO AM I?
2 YEARS UNQUALIFIED LEAD

13. WHO AM I?
6 YEARS PROJECT LEADERSHIP

14. WHO AM I?
4 YEARS CONSULTING

15. WHO AM I?
3 YEARS CO-FOUNDER

16. WHAT IS GAME DESIGN?

17. WHAT IS GAME DESIGN?
MANIPULATION

18. What is Game Design?
LEARNING TO SPEAK A
USER SEGMENT’S
LANGUAGE

19. What is Game Design?
CREATING AN
EXPERIENCE

20. What is Game Design?
TRANSLATING IT INTO
THAT USER SEGMENT’S
LANGUAGE

21. STARTING POINT

22. STARTING POINT
A PLAYER OF
GAMES

23. STARTING POINT
A CONSUMER WHO LIKES WHAT
THEY ARE TOLD TO LIKE

24. STARTING POINT
A FANBOY WHO’S
DEVELOPING A SENSE OF
TASTE

25. STARTING POINT
AN EMERGING IMAGINATION
THAT I COULD DO BETTER

26. DIE BY THE SWORD
1999
FIRST GAME DEV
EXPERIENCE

27. THE POWER OF ITERATION
NO FEAR OF COMPLEXITY
NO CONCEPT OF LARGER
EXPERIENCE OF THE GAME
FIRST GAME DEV
EXPERIENCE

28. COMBAT
LEVEL DESIGN
“ANIMATION”
FIRST GAME DEV
EXPERIENCE

29. JUNIOR CREATIVE

30. JUNIOR CREATIVE
I KNOW WHAT I LIKE,
AND I THINK I’M RIGHT

31. JUNIOR CREATIVE
I’M FIXATED ON THE DETAILS

32. JUNIOR CREATIVE
I CAN ONLY REALLY
PERCEIVE THE MOMENT

33. JUNIOR CREATIVE
I STRUGGLE AND RUSH
TO GET TO THAT
MOMENT

34. JUNIOR CREATIVE
I ACQUIRE THE SKILLS BOTH
TECHNICALLY AND CONCEPTUALLY TO
CREATE A GOOD MOMENT

35. JUNIOR CREATIVE
I ONLY CARE ABOUT
WHAT I’M WORKING ON

36. 2000

37. 2001

38. TRYING TO GROW UP
LEARNING TO PLAY BY
THE RULES

39. TRYING TO GROW UP
SEEING THE WHOLE
GAME

40. TRYING TO GROW UP
HELPING THE
TEAM

41. SPIDERMAN
THE MOVIE
2002
FIRST LEAD POSITION

42. WORKING ON BEING
A DECENT LEAD
FIRST LEAD POSITION

43. UNQUALIFIED LEAD

44. UNQUALIFIED LEAD
TACTICS!
GET THE STUFF YOU LIKE
DONE

45. UNQUALIFIED LEAD
RESPONSIBLE FOR
SCOPE

46. UNQUALIFIED LEAD
NOW YOU HAVE TO
CUT

47. UNQUALIFIED LEAD
BAD AT SEEING THE BIG
PICTURE

48. UNQUALIFIED LEAD
CLOSING AS A LEAD IS A
WHOLE NEW WORLD OF
FOLLOW THROUGH

49. SPIDERMAN 2
2004
CREATIVE
DIRECTOR

50. DIRECTION
THE GAME AS A
PRODUCT

51. DIRECTION
WHAT DOES THE PLAYER
WANT?

52. DIRECTION
WAIT, WHO IS THE
PLAYER ANYWAY?

53. DIRECTION
COORDINATING
DEPARTMENTS

54. DIRECTION
STRATEGY?
LESSON ONE:
UNIMPORTANT THINGS CAN
SUCK

55. DIRECTION
TAKE WHAT YOU DO
WELL AND DO IT BETTER

56. DIRECTION
MAKE SACRIFICES FOR
THE HIGHEST PRIORITY

57. DIRECTION
YOU WILL BE JUDGED BY THE
HEIGHT OF YOUR HIGHS

58. DIRECTION
COST TO EFFECT RATIOS DON’T
SOUND SEXY, BUT THEY LEAD TO
GOOD STUFF

59. 2004: HAVING CHILDREN!

60. 2004: HAVING CHILDREN!
GREAT DEVICE TO EDUCATE
YOURSELF ON HOW TO BE A
BETTER DESIGNER

61. 2004: HAVING CHILDREN!
CARING ABOUT THE NEEDS AND
WANTS OF THE USER

62. BOOM BLOX
2008
LEAD
DESIGNER

63. MEDAL OF
HONOR
2010
PRODUCER

64. MATURING PERSPECTIVE
“THAT’S NOT A GAME”

65. MATURING PERSPECTIVE
“ONLY AN IDIOT WOULD SPEND
MONEY ON THAT”

66. MATURING PERSPECTIVE
WHAT PREJUDICED JERK I WAS

67. MATURING PERSPECTIVE
PLAY IT UNTIL...

68. MATURING PERSPECTIVE
LIKE IT!

69. MATURING PERSPECTIVE
OUR ABILITY TO LIKE IS MORE
NUANCED THAN OUR ABILITY TO
DISLIKE

70. MATURING PERSPECTIVE
“BUT I PLAYED IT, AND I GET IT.”

71. MATURING PERSPECTIVE
NOT AS MUCH AS SOMEONE
WHO LOVED IT

72. 2011 CONSULTING
BEING ALONE IS SCARY AND
DIFFICULT

73. 2011 CONSULTING
PRACTICE IS EVERYTHING

74. 2011 CONSULTING
IT’S WEIRD NOT KNOWING WHAT
YOU KNOW

75. 2014 HYPERKINETIC
THAT MOMENT WHEN YOU AND
COUPLE OLD FRIENDS REALIZE
YOU COULD START A COMPANY

76. 2014 HYPERKINETIC
EVERYTHING IS THE
SAME!

77. 2014 HYPERKINETIC
THE DEGREE TO WHICH
EVERYTHING IS DIFFERENT IS
OUTSIDE OF YOUR PERCEPTION

78. 2014 HYPERKINETIC
THE DEGREE TO WHICH
EVERYTHING IS DIFFERENT IS
OUTSIDE OF YOUR PERCEPTION

79. 2014 HYPERKINETIC
AT FIRST

80. 2014 HYPERKINETIC
COMFORT ZONE… NOT

81. EPIC TAVERN
2016?

82. EPIC TAVERN
2016?
DESIGN
DIRECTOR

83. WHAT IS A GAME?
BLOCK OF COMPRESSED DATA

84. WHAT IS A GAME?
TO BE DECOMPRESSED BY A
PLAYER