Steve Haßenpflug

GameDevGems is about game development that aims to help game developers to get better at making games through gamedev concepts, tutorials, techniques and everything inbetween – things you could call game development gems.

Design Lead on an unannounced AAA free2play mobile game in an established IP with a major publisher. From concept to production to launch, I've been leading internal creative decisions according to vision & product goals. I'm mentoring a team of 6+ designers in the creation of hit-driven systems and mechanics for said unannounced game, being ultimately accountable for all things design - from meta systems and the economy to the action phase.

Fang Runner is a Web3 hyper-casual endless runner game that's connected to the Ethereum Blockchain Network. Players can connect their cryptocurrency wallet (e.g. MetaMask) to the game - if they own NFTs (ERC-721 Token) from the Fang Gang NFT Collection, players could compete in a tournament with five weekly competitions and leaderboards – the best players got various prizes such as special NFTs by reaching crazy high scores. Released a full game in 2 weeks, in time for the release of the NFT Collection.

TreasureHunt as a studio was acquired by Huuuge Games in early 2020 and the whole team was fully incorporated as a game team into the Huuuge infrastructure - including all existing responsibilities and titles within the team. My main focus at Huuuge was to launch our flagship AAA mobile f2p game Dreamworks Trolls Pop and helping onboard and transition former and new members to set up the design department for success in LiveOps. I got brief but impactful insights into the social-casino style of design.

I was in charge of the design team to plan, execute and monitor the design processes. Mentored and enabled designers as well as supervision in conceptualization, prototyping, design, live-care and iteration of games being developed. Drove the design processes, managed resource allocation (people, hardware, software) for the development of all our projects. Worked closely with other Directors to ensure that the design teams have the tools and guidance they need to deliver in a concise and efficient manner.

Game Lead & Lead Designer with Universal Studios on Dreamworks Trolls Pop, a AAA match-3 mobile game set in the popular Trolls universe. • Conceptualized, pitched and developed Trolls Pop from concept to launch. Creative vision keeping. • Closely worked with NBCUniversal in Los Angeles via regular calls and business trips to ensure the game is delivered to the high quality standards expected from an AAA mobile title. • Lead and enabled the 5-people strong design team by supervising on design initiatives.

Lead Game Designer on Angry Birds: Evolution, the biggest mid-core RPG installment in the eponymous franchise. Published by Rovio. • Resposible for all things design (system-, feature-, economy-, UX- and level-design) of the project • Designed and spearheaded multiple f2p features in accordance to wishes of the publisher • Established and balanced the game-economy & meta-game in a KPI-driven approach • Live operations in a iterative design process focused on key-metrics and customer feedback

Guest lecture over several days about Game Design. Gave a broad overview about games, the industry and game design as a discipline for students at the HFF. Provided feedback and guidance, ensuring the students successfully completed their task of pitching a game concept to a potential publisher. Skills: Game Design

Lead game designer on a new free-to-play mobile game. Responsibilities included: • Conveyed an aligned vision with the team, ensuring consistent feature design and development. • Shared design efforts among fellow designers for concurrent feature implementation. • Concise documentation of game systems and mechanics in the internal project wiki. • Worked closely with monetization to define key-metrics for post-launch analysis. Design work for an unannounced strategy game.

Responsible for design efforts on Infinite Void and Ocean Tower (iOS/Android). Designed and balanced features and live game content on a biweekly sprint basis in collaboration with the Creative Director. Design of multiple mobile free-to-play games in different genres. Iterative content development, player progression and pacing, UI/UX wireframe designs, play-testing and more. flaregames understands the Game Designer as the architect of the game being fully responsible for its quality.

I was the designer in this five-person, independent team. We built “Call of Carlos”, a free-to-play 2D platformer game for Windows Phone 7 with the XNA framework. Call of Carlos was downloaded 1 million times in just under 8 months after launch - it currently has been downloaded around 3.5 million times worldwide, with an average rating of 4.5/5 stars. Skills: Game Design · Game Development

My job as a volunteer at the GDC Europe 2011 involved monitoring conference sessions (eg. handing out evaluation forms, setting up/clearing up, checking badges at the door), assisting speakers in their sessions, and generally offering friendly help/answering questions to/from attendees.

In the beginning of 2010 I started developing tiny digital prototypes and games to work on my gamedev skills, mostly released in obscure forums and websites. The games I did back then have since been lost - for better or worse.In the beginning of 2010 I started seriously developing tiny digital prototypes and games to work on my gamedev skills, mostly released in obscure forums and websites. The games I did back then have since been lost - for better or worse. Skills: Game Design · Game Development

Customer Service. Responding to and treating our customers needs and queries in person or via Phone/E-Mail in a professional manner. Troubleshooting and Analysis. Working personally or via Phone/E-Mail with customers on a daily basis to eliminate all kinds of technical problems as well as general support in their IT environment. Project Leadership. Coordination of production, execution and distribution for a project of more than 400 computer systems for an international Aerospace and Security company.

Graphics design & conception, typography and serigraphy

I've received training as a Game Designer (Game Design) for two semesters. With focus on game theory, game business, business law, marketing, project planning, and game design. The program placed particular emphasis on “proof of fun” and focused on the production of electronic games across all platforms and in all genres, with a view to a target group. Skills: Game Studies · Game Programming · Game Design · Game Development