INTRODUCING MALCOLM SMITH
ABOUT ME
My name is Malcolm Smith, and I am a Full Sail graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Game Design. I was born and raised in League City, Texas. Ever since I was a child, it has always been my dream to make great video games that bring people together through the good times and fond memories that they can create. During my time at Full Sail, I realized that I had a passion for designing and developing enemy AI and for many Full Sail projects, I was in charge of making a majority if not all of the enemy AI. I hope to find a job in the game industry focused on making enemy AI or as a combat or system designer, but I'm open to any game design opportunities.
Skills
-
Unreal Engine 4&5
-
Unreal Blueprint
-
Level Design
-
System Design
-
Enemy Design
-
Narrative Design
-
Microsoft Office & Google Docs
-
Jira & Confluence
-
Perforce
-
Team Communication
-
Game Balancing
-
Playtest & Iteration
Core Values
Player First: I believe that player enjoyment and happiness should come first when designing a game. If most players who play a game I make don't feel that the time they invested into a game I made was worthwhile, then I feel that I have failed as a designer.
Teamwork: I believe that through teamwork and communication, greatness can be achieved. I feel that for game design, teamwork is a must. Speaking from past experiences working with others can grant you access to new ideas and solutions that can make you stronger as a designer.
Hard work: Making games is my dream job so working long hours to research and implement features is something I'm prepared to do. I want to make great games, and you can't do that unless you are willing to give it your all while working. I enjoy spending hours working inside of game engines and designing mechanics because it feels like what I was meant to do.
Always Improve: I believe that improving yourself and your work is essential. When I've worked on projects in the past and present, I have always felt that the end product could be better. I know that you only have so much time to work on a project, but I still felt the need to improve something. I want to learn new skills to constantly improve and make my work better. I want to finish a project and say that it was better than the last one, but I still want to strive for something even better. I'm new to the gaming industry and still have a lot to learn so I want to keep learning and improving so that I'm seen as a valuable asset to any team.
Strive for Greatness: I want to make great games, not mediocre ones. Even if I only have a couple of weeks to work on a project, I want to go above and beyond and make something great. When players play a game I worked on, I want them to see the passion and dedication that went into making it. I never want the player or myself to feel that a game was phoned in.
A Good Game System
In my opinion, a satisfying game system would feel natural and fun to the player, and if the system were removed, it would negatively affect the game. What I mean by that is that if a player's immersion in the game is ruined because the player is questioning the system's reason for existing, something is most likely wrong with the system. A game system should make sense to the player, and the player should work with the system because it's fun. A system I enjoy is the elemental damage system found in the Borderlands series. I feel the system is good because of how well it works for the overall design of Borderlands. It works well with combat because certain enemies are resistant and weak to certain damage types, so the player is encouraged to use and keep multiple types of guns to get through combat, especially in the late game. It works well with the loot aspect of the game because many of the legendary or unique weapons in the game can come in different damage types encouraging players to farm bosses and loot spots to get that weapon with a certain damage type. It works well with the player character because some vault hunters have skills related to elemental damage. Elemental damage is such a good game system in borderlands because it affects the other systems in the game. It feels natural to the game, and if you remove that system, the other aspects of the game will be weakened or pointless. A good game system should be essential to the core design of a game if it is a system that is fun for the player.
Favorite Games
