SOFIA ROMUALDO

GAME DESIGNER

I am a game designer with several years of experience designing and producing videogames and real world games. My work is defined by a belief in the power of game mechanics to reframe stories into experiences that are simultaneously magical and real. It is my goal as a game designer to apply new and existing game technologies to develop a sense of wonder, fun and connection through my games.

[email protected] EXPERIENCE

Linkedin.com/sofiaromualdo GAME DESIGNER - FREELANCE London, UK | March 2020 - Present SofiaRomualdo.com

Since Fire Hazard Games closed in March, I have been working on several projects as a freelance game and narrative designer, participating in various

K E Y S K I L L S game jams, taking part in the Limit Break and IGDA Mentorship programs, and consulting on R&D projects to support the design of gameful stories in online theatre productions. GAME & NARRATIVE DESIGN

Systems Design GAME DESIGNER Real World Game Design FIRE HAZARD GAMES Multidisciplinary Design Documentation Visual Scripting London, UK | 2018 – March 2020

Narrative Scripting Languages Game designer for real-world multiplayer games created by FHG (owned by (Twine, Ink) Punchdrunk), which combine mobile games with interactive theatre. Content Management Systems (lore,

worldbuilding, cataloguing) Achievements include: Unity C#  Led the design of real-world mobile-based games from concept to launch.

 Helped create a narrative design framework for non-linear, location-based PRODUCTION games, combining game mechanics, mobile tech and interactive theatre. Team & Relationship Management  Organised and ran hundreds of real-world events across London. In total, we Task Management Systems ran more than 1200 real-world games, played by over 38K players.

OTHER Responsibilities included: Photo & Film Editing  Writing scripts, puzzles, quests and dialogue, and organizing them into content management systems Public Speaking & Writing (industry, public & academic audiences)  Writing game design documents, pitches, guidance docs for technical development, schedules, budgets, and project plans  Hiring and directing actors to bring characters to life LANGUAGES  Conducting historical and brand research to support the stories and settings English & Portuguese (proficient)  Building and maintaining strong working relationships with external clients French & Spanish (basic) and partners.

PHD RESEARCHER – GAME DESIGN

S O C I A L MEDIA UNIVERSITY OF EXETER / RAMM Exeter, UK | 2015 – 2019

Twitter.com/auralisofia Fully-funded PhD in Location-Based Game Design, during which I designed and Instagram.com/auralisofia produced 3 multimedia gaming experiences for museums, in collaboration with Youtube.com/auralisofia other creatives, with budgets of up to £25K. My academic background has allowed me to develop my research, writing and CMS skills to a high standard.

SELECTED GAMES EDUCATION

PHD IN GAME DESIGN THE ALMOND TREE - 2018 University of Exeter, UK GAME & LEVEL DESIGNER @ FIRE HAZARD GAMES 2015-2019 Narrative Game / In development MASTER’S IN MUSEUM STUDIES A single-player first-person game about three generations of immigrant women University of Porto, Portugal and love lost in translation. The game mechanics are based on language and 2010-2013 communication, and the challenge of expressing thoughts and emotions across different barriers. BACHELOR IN PHOTOGRAPHY ESAP, Portugal 2006-2009 DRACO LUDENS - 2020 GAME & NARRATIVE DESIGNER

INTERESTS Visual Novel / In development A visual novel that takes the humorous storytelling style found in Terry Videogames Pratchett’s Discworld novels and combines it with the curiosity of self- Board games knowledge of a Buzzfeed personality test. I designed and implemented the Live action roleplaying games decisions feature, collaboratively designed the narrative elements, and programmed the game. Photography

Film & TV ONEIROI - 2020 Books GAME & NARRATIVE DESIGNER / WRITER / ARTIST Running Narrative Game / PC + Mac Play as an insomniac traveling through dream worlds in which dwell the Oneiroi,

children of the night and messengers of the gods. Features richly illustrated S E L E C T E D dream worlds and a branching narrative with several possible endings. The TALKS narrative design subtly communicates the feeling of increasingly severe insomnia through the removal of agency, increasing paranoia and mounting intensity. ERIC – ESCAPE ROOM

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE JEKYLL & HYDE - 2020 Game Design with Videogames, PUZZLE DESIGNER / PRODUCER @ FIRE HAZARD GAMES Theatre & Escape Rooms Real World /

London | 2019 Inspired by the classic story, Jekyll & Hyde is a mobile game produced in partnership with VAULT Festival, played in the streets around Waterloo. It OXFORD & LONDON plunges players into a dark Victorian world where their memories can’t be trusted. As puzzle designer, I was in charge of devising ways to tell self-contained mini- MEETING stories in a puzzle format, researching the setting and contributing to the story. Narrative in Live Games London | 2019

THE SPITFIRE ACADEMY - 2019

MUSEUMS ASSOCIATION GAME & NARRATIVE DESIGNER @ FIRE HAZARD GAMES CONFERENCE Real World / Mobile Game

Operation Survival A mobile game with escape room puzzles, The Spitfire Academy was produced in partnership with the RAF Museum. This game gives players the chance to sit in Brighton | 2019 the pilot seat, decode enemy intelligence, and ultimately earn their wings. Supported by the museum, I engaged in considerable research to assure that the MINDTREK story, characters and puzzles I built were on brand and historically accurate. An Analysis of Blast Theory’s

Operation Black Antler THE EXTRAORDINARY VOYAGE - 2019 Tampere, Finland | 2016 GAME & NARRATIVE DESIGNER @ FIRE HAZARD GAMES Real World / Mobile Game INDIECADE EAST A nautical adventure at the National Maritime Museum that sent players on a Videogame Art and the Artistic seafaring journey around the world. We pioneered a new narrative design Legitimation of Videogames framework that applied the format of storylets (championed by Emily Short) to New York | 2015 non-linear, location-based games with intermedia storytelling.