Matt Hulse

I build games with intent. My work is rooted in strong systems thinking, honest iteration, and a commitment to delivering player experiences that feel responsive, meaningful, and polished. I am not interested in chasing trends or building noise. I want to create games that respect player time, reward mastery, and carry a sense of identity that stays with people after they walk away. I earned my MS in Game Design and Development from the Rochester Institute of Technology, and my BS in Interactive Media and Game Design with a second BS in Business Marketing from SUNY Polytechnic Institute. I care about making work that feels lived-in, tested, and considered, not just flashy on the surface.

I approach game development as both a designer and a builder. I do not hand off problems. I script. I prototype. I test. I throw things out. I rebuild them. I look at how systems hold up once pressure is applied. I care about being grounded in the craft and not just talking about it. I want the things I make to stand up to real use, real production constraints, and real player expectations. A lot of that mindset comes from growing up around real, physical work—learning early that process, discipline, and follow-through matter just as much as ideas.

My responsibilities across past projects have included level design, environmental design, combat flow, system planning, scripting, production structure, and overall player experience. On Vessyl, I led level and environment design. On STILL, I handled design, programming, art direction, and systems architecture. I enjoy being hands on, and I enjoy wearing multiple hats when it improves the final result. I work well in team environments, and I do not shy away from owning difficult problems.

I care about clarity. In design, clarity is respect. Every mechanic, UI element, and movement cue is an opportunity to build player trust or lose it. I care about readability, pacing, meaningful progression, and giving players room to feel skilled without forcing grind or frustration. I prefer systems that are intuitive enough to pick up, but deep enough to reward commitment. I want players to feel like the game is meeting them halfway—signaling what matters without removing the satisfaction of figuring things out. I spend a lot of time watching how people actually play—where they hesitate, where they experiment, where they break patterns—and I fold those observations back into how I shape spaces, routes, and points of focus.

I also come from a marketing background. That has shaped how I think about player psychology, brand, value, and communication. Great games are not only played, they are communicated clearly. Development is production. It is pipeline discipline, documentation, feature control, and knowing when to say no. I do not build in chaos. I build with intention. I enjoy solving pipeline challenges and improving workflows. I have built internal tools, structured art and export pipelines, and managed technical handoffs across Blender, Unreal, and Unity. I believe strong process creates space for creativity to thrive, and not the other way around.

When I lead, I lead with structure, communication, and steady expectations. At my core, I am someone who enjoys building worlds that feel alive, combat that feels expressive, and systems that reward understanding. I like projects that challenge me and put me around people who want to push forward. I thrive on deadlines, and I respect direct, critical feedback.

I am proud of the work I have done, but I did not get here alone. Every milestone in my career came from working alongside people who challenged me, supported me, and pushed the work forward. I grow faster in a team. I sharpen my skills through collaboration. I believe the best ideas are stress tested by honest discussion, shared standards, and collective ownership. I am excited to find the next group of people I can build with. I want teammates who care about quality, who hold each other accountable, and who push for real craft over shortcuts.