My background is in software authoring and animation, but a couple of years ago I decided it was time to get into games design, so I went back to school. At the time of writing, I am two years in, and one year away from getting my degree.
The games which interest me are those which weave the strands of gaming (gameplay, narrative, character design, audio) into a cohesive whole. Rather than being actors who take turns at the microphone, the varied elements of gaming should be like the instruments of an orchestra, able to conjure rich and complex harmonies, with themes that resonate in the audience.
Of all the disparate instruments in the game designer's orchestra, the two that are most diffucult to bring together are gameplay and narrative, and these are the two I would most like to see combined, and this is also what my dissertation (and this blog, if I ever get around to writing something) will be focused on.
