About

Hello!

I’m Ethan, and I’m a game designer.

I’ve spent 7+ years shaping and refining the player experience across multiple games and platforms for Fortune 1000 companies, the EPA, and PBS Kids. I strive to create gameplay that’s unique, engaging, and makes players want to keep coming back. I take a big-picture approach, thinking about the entire player journey and making sure every detail fits together.

Most recently, I worked at STRIVR as a Senior Build Designer where I designed and launched 40+ VR live-service learning and development (L&D) projects for Fortune 1000 companies, reducing build times by 30% and contributed to an 80% increase in user engagement. I had a hand in everything from asset pipelines, prototyping features in Unity and Unreal, and using data and feedback to drive content updates.

When I was a Game Designer and Unity Developer at RTI International, I led a team of 4 to ship 4 games for the EPA in 16 months, and solo developed an MR firefighter trainer for NIST in 12 months. Game Design is a truly collaborative process and I’ve worked with incredibly talented Artists, Engineers, and Designers who inspire me to this day.

I’m passionate about putting the player first in every step of the design process, from the initial concept to the final touches after launch. My focus is always on improving the player’s experience, finding the sweet spot between creative ideas and practical solutions.

Outside of work you can catch me performing Longform Improv, building Legos, walking my dogs, and drawing.

I’ve also spoken at the East Coast Games Conference in 2018, gave three webinars on gamification and game based learning for the Department of Veterans Affairs, and was published in-proceedings of Chi Play 2015 and 2016 for my work on Remembrance and Echo Chamber.