About Me
My name is Sean McNamara and I'm the Lead Content Designer at Wonderstorm working on The Dragon Prince game.
Prior to working in game development, I graduated with a BS from the Art Institute of California - LA where I worked on the Art Institute's mod team. On this team we developed on 3 different Unreal Engine 3 mods, with me acting as an environment artist, game designer and project lead. One of these mods, a 2.5D sci-fi shooter called Killing Time, went on to win 2nd place for non-fps game mod in the Make Something Unreal Competition Phase 2.
After graduation, I was hired on as lead game designer at F84 Games, an indie studio producing both independent and client projects. Over the past 13 years in the industry I have had the pleasure of working on a variety of platforms and genres from creating a new super hero universe on mobile with Stan Lee, to gamifying the adventures of Bear Grylls on console and much more. At Cryptic I helped ship Magic: Legends and now I’m at Wonderstorm working on The Dragon Prince game.
I'm always looking for new and exciting ways to challenge myself and produce exceptional game content.
Some of My Favorite Games
The Game: Rocket League
The Why: With about 1,200 hours into Rocket League I can say I find this franchise truly fun and engaging. The game is easy to pick up but allows for great depth and mastery by giving players the opportunity to exploit its unique game physics and play style. The way the ranking system is designed really encourages players to challenge themselves and be competitive with their friends. Aesthetic-focused IAPs using keys and crate opening gives players a fun way to pay that doesn't throw off game balance or leave players feeling like they need to pay to win.
The Game: Half-Life 2
The Why: Like many I have a strong attachment and love for this franchise. For example, my favorite part of Half-Life 2 was the gravity gun. It felt like a really fresh take on combat in a 1st person shooter. I also love how the story was presented to the player. Keeping the player a faceless hero really kept me immersed in the game. The games visually beautiful style and exciting play makes it a strong source of inspiration for me when I design.
The Game: World of Warcraft
The Why: WoW was the first MMO I ever played and it truly opened me up to the joy of MMOs. Playing a paladin, leveling from 1-60 while questing and completing dungeons with my friends is one of my all time favorite gaming experiences. I also loved conquering the 40 man raids. Defeating boss for the first time in Molten Core and looting the first Lawbringer boots in my guild are some of my fondest gaming memories. And the design practices used in WOW and Hearthstone are something I refer to frequently when navigating my own game projects. I easily logged over 1,000 hours into this game.
The Game: Counter - Strike 1.6
The Why: Competitive shooters have always been some of my favorite games but Counterstrike has been by far the most enthralling for me. The dynamic of CT's vs. T's on bomb maps really created tension that made the game exhilarating to play. The game tuning was top notch and the gear purchasing system I felt really created a strategy that other shooters were lacking. I spent more than 300+ hours playing this game.