{"id":473,"date":"2026-01-11T20:14:48","date_gmt":"2026-01-11T20:14:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/?p=473"},"modified":"2026-01-11T21:53:24","modified_gmt":"2026-01-11T21:53:24","slug":"understanding-my-role","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/2026\/01\/11\/understanding-my-role\/","title":{"rendered":"Understanding my Role"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As the person who came up with this idea and my past experience in Year 2, I will be the Primary Game Designer and Programmer for this project. But what does that entail?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In this project, I\u2019ve taken on a <strong>combined role<\/strong> that reflects both <strong>creative leadership<\/strong> and <strong>technical execution<\/strong>. Research into industry roles shows that these responsibilities are distinct but often closely intertwined, especially in smaller teams or solo development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Primary Game Designer<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As the <strong>Primary Game Designer<\/strong>, I\u2019m responsible for shaping the game\u2019s core experience, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Concept development and core mechanics<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Rules, progression, and player interaction<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Narrative and systems flow<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Communicating ideas to guide implementation<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Industry descriptions emphasise that designers are the <strong>creative architects<\/strong> of a game, defining what the game <em>is<\/em> and how players <em>experience<\/em> it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Programmer \u2014 Technical Implementation<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As the <strong>Programmer<\/strong>, I translate design into a playable experience by:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Writing code to implement mechanics and systems<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Integrating assets into a functioning game<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Optimising performance and fixing bugs<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Building prototypes to test and refine ideas<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the games industry, programmers are essential in making game design functional, allowing creative concepts to become interactive software.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why These roles matter<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Taking on both roles means I\u2019m accountable for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Creative direction<\/strong> (what the game is and how it <em>feels<\/em>)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Technical realisation<\/strong> (how the game <em>actually works<\/em>)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Iteration<\/strong> (testing, evaluating, and improving systems)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This aligns with real industry practice where smaller teams or lead roles often overlap design and programming responsibilities, and programmers must understand design intent as well as technical constraints.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What This Means for My Practice<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This combined role will help me develop:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Communication skills<\/strong> \u2014 Articulating ideas to myself and my teammate<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Critical judgement<\/strong> \u2014 Knowing when to prioritise polish vs. feasibility<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Iterative thinking<\/strong> \u2014 Building and refining prototypes<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These are core skills required in the industry, and documenting them explicitly shows reflective awareness and industry relevance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What This Means for Me<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This project will act as a large portfolio piece, letting me portray a variety of my skills to potential employers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Game Designer skills\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Level design<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Feature design<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>UI\/UX design<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Familiarity with the Unity Game Engine<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Using an object-oriented programming language in C#<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>My ability to work under a deadline<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">SWOT Analysis<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table is-style-stripes\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><tbody><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Strengths<br>Areas I\u2019m doing well in<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Weaknesses<br>Areas need improving<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Passionate about programming and designing the game<br><br>Experience with 2D game creation in Unity<br><br>Experience playing Platformer \/ Puzzle Games<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Not familiar with workflows that import assets into the game engine &#8211; Unity Animator, Tilemaps etc.<br><br>Unfamiliar with Unity\u2019s new input system &#8211; adding controller input, changing inputs in settings etc.<br><br>Only some experience with creating scalable systems and\/or workflows<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Opportunities<br>External Factors that can continue to develop my strengths<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Threats<br>Potential risks\/problems caused by external factors<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Precise deadline keeps me focused and not overly ambitious<br><br>Small team size gives me more tasks to develop my skills<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">Health<br><br>Personal affairs<br><br>Scope may change<br><br>Time management<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-dots\" \/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">References:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Polydin. (2023).&nbsp;<em>Game Design and game Programming | A Creative Partnership<\/em>. [online] Available at: <a href=\"https:\/\/polydin.com\/game-design-and-game-programming\/?utm_source=chatgpt.com\">https:\/\/polydin.com\/game-design-and-game-programming\/?utm_source=chatgpt.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prospects.ac.uk. (2024).&nbsp;<em>Game designer job profile | Prospects.ac.uk<\/em>. [online] Available at: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.prospects.ac.uk\/job-profiles\/game-designer?utm_source=chatgpt.com\">https:\/\/www.prospects.ac.uk\/job-profiles\/game-designer?utm_source=chatgpt.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cgspectrum.com. (2024).&nbsp;<em>Game Programmer Job Description, Salary, Skills &amp; Software<\/em>. [online] Available at: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cgspectrum.com\/career-pathways\/game-programmer?utm_source=chatgpt.com.\">https:\/\/www.cgspectrum.com\/career-pathways\/game-programmer?utm_source=chatgpt.com.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wikipedia Contributors (2025).&nbsp;<em>Video game development<\/em>. Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Video_game_development?utm_source=chatgpt.com\">https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Video_game_development?utm_source=chatgpt.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u200c<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As the person who came up with this idea and my past experience in Year 2, I will be the Primary Game Designer and Programmer for this project. But what does that entail? In this project, I\u2019ve taken on a combined role that reflects both creative leadership and technical execution. Research into industry roles shows [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17,21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-research","category-semester-1"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/473","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=473"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/473\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":495,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/473\/revisions\/495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=473"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=473"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wsagames.com\/et4g23-yr3\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=473"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}