Tristan Jacobs
Glowmade
Senior gameplay designer at Glowmade. Previous game design experience at Upstream Arcade and 22cans. Before game dev, I worked in academia (as a lecturer and then head of department) as well as live performance (as an actor and artistic director of a small theatre company). The M.A.in contemporary performance has come a long way. My go-to role to play is Support. Give me a Bard or a Cleric any day. But I’m usually on the other side of the Dungeon Master screen.
Tristan Jacobs is speaking at the following session/s
The Machete and the Broom: Two Roles of a Game Designer
There are two types of game designers when it comes to daily practice, the Machete or the Broom. We are either acting as the “visionary” - cutting a swath through the jungle, leading the way to our fully-fleshed-out game; or we are the “collator” - sweeping up behind this, clarifying where the path is through each decision.
This talk unpacks the concept of these two roles by way of demonstrating how to contribute to, and amplify, core design principles on any new project.
Session Takeaway
Learn when a game designer is being a machete or a broom, and what the relationship between these roles is
Knowing when to push forward and when to take a short left on design decisions
Applying this lens helps designers at any level contribute to clear and concise designs
Session speakers
