I'm Steven "Sven" Johnson. It is my job to make:
Good Game[s]
My Impact
14+
YEARS IN GAMES
7 Companies & thousands of awesome coworkers.
34
NUMBER OF GAMES WORKED ON
11 Role Playing, 15 Simulation, 4 Strategy, 1 Puzzle, 1 Idle , 1 Sports
500+
MILLION PLAYERS WORLDWIDE
Games I've worked on have been played for billions of hours.
My Values
While every company and project is unique, I maintain a set of values that create a framework that pushes me to design better games.
FOR THE USERS!
Game designers are responsible for delivering a fun and original game while standing up for the user experience.
CHARACTERS AND STORY ARE POWERFUL
Creating a character, stepping into the shoes of a protagonist, or meeting the vibrant characters in a game can hook users to keep playing or even transform their world views.
DO NOT FEAR
Fear is the mind (and company) killer.
Try, fail, learn, and try again. Be brave. Realize your product's potential or someone else will.
ADAPT INTELLIGENTLY
Circumstances and objectives change. Setting goals, establishing design pillars , and staying open-minded facilitate quick adaptation.
“…A thoughtful mentor, a passionate visionary, and a font of creative energy.”
Corey Willis, Senior Systems Designer
“He's insightful, thoughtful, creative, and really cares about both his team and his player base.”
“Steven walked a very delicate line between serving the business needs, ensuring my engineers were not working late hours, and respecting the player experience.”
Don Bui, Senior Software Engineer
Scott Lin, Director of Product Mangement
“Can spot a risk or potential problem from 1,000 miles away, and presents a solution to the team in a positive, productive manner.”
“A great leader who trusts in his team to perform their roles, and he is there to provide assistance and clarity when needed.”
Michael Liang, Senior Game Designer
Claire Grupe, Senior UX Designer
“Not only did Steven make my life as lead artist a lot easier, but I really believe that without his contributions this game would have not been shipped.”
Carolina Zeleski, Head of Visual Development