This page features some of my best work as a game designer and writer. In addition to descriptions of the works, this page also includes important details about their development and context. Feel free to click through to the individual posts to see more images, full posts, and links to itch.io pages.
More work can also be found in the Writing and Games categories in the site header.
GAME
Apricot and Fern
In Apricot and Fern, have a relaxing evening exploring this cute cafe nestled deep in the woods. Talk to the patrons, who love to spend their time lounging, playing games, and chit-chatting the night away.
This was developed in about 5 months in Unity 3D as a birthday present. The assets mostly come from the Unity Asset store and I used Unity settings and post-processing effects to make the textures and models more coherent.
GAME
Frog’s Birthday Adventure
A little Twine game about Frog’s adventure on her birthday to find all her friends and have the best birthday possible.
This game features an interactive picturebook look, with illustrations for every “page”, and a structure that lets the player see the entire world and meet all the characters. All of the writing and art in this game was done by me.
GAME
Stirring of the Soul Beneath
Play as the sailor Strauss as he charts the waters on a stormy night to deliver oil to lighthouses in desperate need of extra supplies. Keep your ship afloat and your stomach full as you explore the world, traveling from lighthouse to lighthouse, learning about the world, the sea, and the people who watch it.
This was made with a team in Unity and I worked as a narrative designer and audio designer.
ARTICLE
Capturing Randy
Capturing Randy: Finding American myth by drawing Randy Johnson is an article about hall of fame Mariners and Diamondback pitcher Randy Johnson. In the essay, I attempt to draw three different pictures from his career and examine my experiences doing so.
In this exercise, I wanted to use Johnson’s iconic figure to examine what makes him such a timeless icon in baseball and how his physical play helped to create a mythology around baseball that revealed its inner workings.
ESSAY/SHORT STORY
The Pythagoras Parable
A second-person narrative essay that explores the story of the discovery of irrational numbers, using the square root of two. It combines a narrative structure with the proof and analytic writing to explore the implications of the proof, specifically focusing on spiritual and artistic themes.
James Martini 