PERSONAL PROJECTS

What Comes After is a long-running, text-based Forum RPG set in a post-apocalyptic world after a sudden zombie outbreak in Colorado. It’s a persistent, forum-based experience focused on survival, logistics, and relationships between characters. Players manage resources, negotiate with other survivor groups, and deal with the emotional fallout of a collapsed society.

As the creator, I built the setting, created core rules, and wrote long-term story arcs for player characters and NPCs, and I continue to run the game as DM and admin. I design narrative systems (factions, travel, resource), write events and missions, and structure choices so players can meaningfully change the world over time. I also handle the practical side: custom BBCode templates, dice/roll mechanics, documentation, and day-to-day community management for a small (~15) but very active group of players.

This project was made for Global Game Jam 2024, and it was based on my original idea. My role on the team was the design of the game and some art elements.

Currently, I am working on bringing this game to a full release together with my team. Play as two fridge magnets, battling over word magnets on a fridge, trying to make little poems with them! Out of funny stuff to say? Try speaking to the microphone for some extra words every so often…

Before joining Media Molecule, I was an active member of the Dreams Community, where I developed numerous games. Many of these projects received recognition from Media Molecule and were featured on their streams.

You can explore some of my work on my profile at https://indreams.me/opiaa15. One project I’m particularly proud of is “Lonesome Town”, a noir-style detective adventure. I also worked on “Amongst The Stars”, a whacky comedy adventure game. Both titles are playable in Dreams and have walkthroughs on YouTube provided by others.

I have a genuine passion for participating in Hackathons and GameJams and there are several reasons why they hold a special place in my heart. Primarily, they provide an excellent platform to rapidly expand my knowledge across various domains. I really enjoy the opportunity to work with new technologies, creatively adapting them to shape video game concepts. All of our Hackathon projects have been centred around gaming, fostering my ability to generate diverse game ideas and align them with cutting-edge technologies like Leap Motion, VR, or AR.

“StoryboARder” was my dissertation project, which aimed to explore the potential use of Augmented Reality technology in game design as a tool for storyboarding and visualization. This was accomplished by creating a book that incorporates AR technology to assist in the development of storyboards, visually-focused game design documents (GDDs), and other visual aids for game design. The project was developed in Unity, in collaboration with Vuforia.

This project involved creating a 3D visualization of Jukebox Cafe, located at 18-20 Hartley Rd, Nottingham NG7 3AD. The entire project, from the 3D work to lighting and post-processing design, was executed solely by me. Jukebox Cafe primarily serves breakfast. The cafe is stylized to the aesthetics of the ’70s and ’80s. I used industry-standard 3D software, including 3ds Max, Maya, Mudbox, Substance Painter, and Photoshop CS6/CC. The environment was rendered using Unreal Engine 4.21.

I had the opportunity to partner with a Graphic Design student and a Furniture Design student to create an arcade machine capable of running MAME Games. Over a span of two weeks, I took charge of designing the intricate cable system, working closely with the furniture design student who focused on the cabinet’s aesthetics, including vents and openings. In addition to the design work, I was responsible for the installation of all the necessary software and played a pivotal role in the construction phase.

“What Divides Us” is a story-focused adventure game that combines simple choices, engaging dialogues, and puzzles. The game’s story revolves around the year 2050 when humanity has developed advanced AI and is now testing its abilities by integrating it with humans to evaluate their behaviour. The game was developed in Unreal Engine 4.19 during my time at university. I was responsible for prototyping the project, managing a small team, writing the story, and creating all 3D assets, including characters.

“Hopewood: A Sibling Story” is an educational game created for the NHS. The primary goal of the game was to provide education to siblings and friends of individuals affected by mental illnesses through an interactive gaming experience. The main objective of the game was to collect stamps in a stamp book, unlocking links to essential websites and information related to mental health. I was contracted to work on this project during my second year at university, collaborating with fellow students.