BaLLoon
Lead Designer
SEP, 2025 - Jan, 2026
Unreal Engine 5
An investor-backed title currently in development, with a targeted release in May 2026.
The publicly available demo represents only a small, focused slice of the game’s overall design space.
Play as a red balloon—light, fragile, and never fully in control.
Guided by wind, you drift through spaces and encounters that ask you to release agency.
Through each act of release, Balloon transforms play from control into a gift. You bring fleeting moments of happiness and hope to those you encounter.
Balloon is an experience-driven adventure game centered around the core imagery of a balloon.
The project focuses on conveying deep emotional themes through innovative 3C (Character, Controls, Camera) interactions and immersive environmental storytelling.
Key Contributions
Design Leadership
NPC Design
Oversaw the full-cycle design of 8 unique NPCs, managing the process from conceptualization to final in-engine implementation.
My work includes:
NPC Positioning & Narrative: Defined the strategic role and backstory of the NPC.
Gameplay Interaction: Designed character unique interaction mechanics that align with the game’s non-verbal narrative.
Level Design (POI): Designed Points of Interest specifically tailored to NPC encounters to ensure natural flow and player discovery.
Cross-Functional Delivery: Work with Art and Animation teams to define the visual identity and movement language of each character.
Gameplay System Iteration
Experience Design
As the Lead Game Designer, I joined during the critical transition from a student prototype to a commercial product.
My primary mission was to preserve the project's poetic, experience-driven core while architecting the systems necessary for market-ready playability and long-term engagement.
Key Achievement: Directly contributing to the successful delivery of two major playable builds within 6 months, and the secure of the project’s seed round of investment.
Team Leadership: Managed a 6-person design team, ensuring that all creative output aligned with the High-Level Vision. Acted as the bridge between the Director’s vision and the actual design.
Interdisciplinary Collaboration: Acted as the point of contact between Design, Programming, and Art departments to maintain design consistency and pipeline efficiency in Unreal Engine 5.
Feature Brainstorming: Facilitated design workshops to discover new gameplay possibilities that expanded the balloon's utility. Served as the problem-solver for the game’s core mechanics, bridging the gap between artistic vision and player satisfaction.
Data-Driven Iteration: Helped QA Lead to coordinate rapid playtesting cycles. Translated raw player feedback into actionable design pivots to optimize game feel and mechanical clarity.
Helped the Director to shift the game from a linear student piece to a feature-rich adventure by introducing modular exploration elements and a robust progression system. Implemented systems that rewarded curiosity, ensuring players felt a sense of growth and discovery throughout the experience.