Speaking on writing for game designer Scott Rogers Fundraiser Saturday!

Busy Saturday? You are now! I’ll be speaking about writing along with a bunch of awesome folks in games for the Scott Rogers Fundraiser – A Day of Game Design and Development on Saturday, February 3rd! This game design and development micro-conference will help game designer and author Scott Rogers fight cancer. He literally had a stem cell transplant just last week and is enduring the deleterious effects as I type. He has designed video and board games, written Level Up: The Guide to Great Game Design and Your Turn! The Guide to Great Tabletop Game Design, and is a snappy dresser!

Here’s the link to donate to Scott’s fundraiser, and where to RSVP to grab the Zoom link and add the event to your calendar. Can’t wait for you to join us! Of course, if you can’t make it, feel free to donate to Scott anyway 🙂

Schedule (parts of the schedule may change):

🕰 7:00 AM – 7:30 AM PST
🗣 Patrick Schnorbus (Hochschule der bildenden Künste Essen)
🕹 Opening Session: A Beacon in the Storm

🕰 7:30 – 8:00 AM PST
🗣 Stuart Maine
🕹 Balancing chance versus skill in your games

🕰 8:15 AM – 8:45 AM PST
🗣 Chris Totten (Team Nemo, Inc.)
🕹 Making Indie Games with Public Domain Content

🕰 9:00 AM – 9:30 AM PST
🗣 Paolo Gambardella
🕹 From Books to Games: My Freelance Journey as a Self-Taught Game Designer

🕰 9:30 AM – 10:00 AM PST
🗣 Russell Sng (Inworld AI)
🕹 Bringing AI NPC’s to Life in Your Games

🕰 10:00 AM – 10:45 AM PST
🗣 Floyd Lu (Independent Designer, Self Publisher)
🕹 Managing Multiple Prototypes (Pitch, Publish)

🕰 11:00 – 11:45 AM PST
🗣 Andy Ashcraft (Giantsdance Games)
🕹 Scott, Me, and the Semiotics of Games

🕰 12:00 PM – 12:45 PM PST
🗣 Annie Fox (Electric Eggplant), Patrick Schnorbus (HBK Essen)
🕹 Harnessing the Power of Kids’ Games for Good

🕰 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM PST
🗣 Esteban Enrique M.
🕹 Telling your Development Story

🕰 1:30 PM – 2:00 PM PST
🗣 Anne Toole (The Write Toole)
🕹 Fitting Writers into the Game Development Process

🕰 2:30 PM – 3:00 PM PST
🗣 David Mullich (ArtCenter College of Design)
🕹 Maintaining A Creative Mindset

🕰 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM PST
🗣 Richard Lemarchand (USC Games)
🕹 Fragmented Narrative: Techniques for Design

🕰 3:45 PM – 4:00 PM PST
🗣 Amir Satvat
🕹 Finding Work In Video Games

🕰 4:45 PM – 5:15 PM PST
🗣 Jasmine Kurniawan (xRsion Inc.)
🕹 Starting out in the industry

See you soon!

Horizon Forbidden West nominated for a Nebula Award

I’m thrilled to share that Horizon Forbidden West, the game I worked on as a writer, has been nominated for a Nebula Award for Best Game Writing by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA). I collaborated with a talented team of writers, including Ben McCaw, John Gonzalez, Annie Kitain, Ariadna Martinez, Nick van Someren Brand, Andrew Walsh, Adam Dolin, Arjan Terpstra, Ben Schroder, Dee Warrick, and Giles Armstrong, to craft an immersive storyline, memorable characters, and engaging gameplay.

Horizon Forbidden West takes place in a post-apocalyptic world, where Aloy traverses a dangerous landscape filled with machines and rival factions. Our team explored themes such as environmentalism and the impact of technology on humanity.

It’s an honor to be nominated for this prestigious award, which recognizes excellence in science fiction and fantasy. The Nebula Awards have expanded to include several categories, including Best Game Writing, and we’re thrilled to be in the running alongside other fantastic projects, including Dungeons & Dragons adventure collection Journeys Through the Radiant Citadel, Elden Ring, Stray, Pentiment, and Sins of the Sires.

The winner will be decided by a vote among more than 2000 members and announced during a virtual ceremony on May 14th. I’m excited and grateful for the recognition and hope that our story continues to resonate with players and inspire them.

Previous winners of the Best Game Writing award include Thirsty Sword Lesbians in 2021, Hades in 2020, and The Outer Worlds in 2019, and we’re thrilled to be included in such great company. I wish all the nominees the best of luck and can’t wait to see who takes home the award.

Horizon Zero Dawn: Liberation #1 out today!

The next Horizon Zero Dawn comic book arc begins today with Horizon Zero Dawn Liberation #1! Join Aloy and Erend as they hunt down a criminal with ties to Erend’s sister, Ersa. If you’ve played the Horizon Zero Dawn video game, you’ll hear new tales only previously hinted at. If you haven’t played yet, you’ll get a chance to learn about the world so many players have enjoyed. What have you got to lose? With five awesome covers, you’re sure to find one you like. Or all. I’m thinking all.

I enjoyed this opportunity to write and develop the story with Ben McCaw and the Guerrilla team. Our new artist, Elmer Damaso (Robotech), brought it all to life, with a host of other amazing artists adding their magic to the covers.

Artist: Elmer Damaso
Cover Artists: Peach Momoko (CVR A), Game Art (CVR B), Harvey Tolibao (CVR C), Ann Maulina (CVR D), Adrian Wilkins (CVR E), Blank Sketch (CVR F), Momoko Virgin Cover (CVR G)

Hunt down your copy of Horizon Zero Dawn: Liberation #1 at your local comic book shop, or on your digital device.

Signing comics and talking games at San Diego Comic Con!

It’s happening! In a week, nerds of the world will unite at Comic-con for another fun-filled extravaganza. I’ll be doing a comic book signing at Kymera Press of a limited edition PET NOIR #5. Git yours as it’s not yet available on their site! I’ll also be speaking on video game writing along with a panel of illustrious greats! Like the villain in every movie, I say “Join usssss!”

Here be the schedule:

Crafting Story for Video Games
Thursday July 19, 2018 4:45pm – 5:45pm
Room 6BCF
Video game veterans from Telltale, Riot, Xbox, and other companies share tips and techniques they use for making successful game narrative. They’ll share real-life examples and behind-the-scenes anecdotes about the origins of some of the most popular video game characters, worlds, and stories.

Signing Pet Noir
Sunday, July 22 2pm
Kymera Press, Booth #2003
Pet Noir is an adaptation of Pati Nagle’s series of linked short stories, “Pet Noir.” In “Pet Noir” feline investigator Leon, with opposable thumbs and the ability to talk, is possibly the most dangerous cat in the galaxy. The comic is drawn by Anna Giovannini, inked by Laurie Foster, colored by Liezl Buenaventura and written by Anne Toole.

Video Game Writing panel at Comic-con

Comic-con International starts today, and tomorrow I’ll join a panel of video game writers to discuss video game writing. If you’re at SDCC, you’ll want to check this panel out!

Writing for the Computer Gaming Industry

Thursday July 20, 2017 6:00pm – 7:00pm
Room 25ABC

Some of the most talented storytellers today create worlds for the computer gaming industry. This panel of industry vets share insights gleaned from creating some of the best reviewed narrative-driven titles in gaming history. The panel includes Neal Hallford (Lily Bard Online), Anne Toole (Horizon Zero Dawn), John Zuur Platten (Ingress), Kimberly Unger (Dexter: Slice), and Erin Knowles, moderated by Jana Hallford (Swords & Circuitry: A Designer’s Guide to Computer Role-Playing Games).

See you in San Diego!

SDCC: Writing for the Computer Gaming Industry

It’s baaack! This year at Comic-con International in San Diego, we’ll be gathering together to discuss writing for gamez! Come join the usual suspects and some new faces as we discuss writing for games and answer all your burning questions.

Writing for the Computer Gaming Industry
Storytelling is entering a new golden age in the computer gaming industry. This panel of insiders share their experiences in creating some of the best-reviewed narrative-driven titles in gaming history. Neal Hallford (Betrayal at Krondor: Remastered),Chris Avellone (Divinity: Original Sin II), Anne Toole (Horizon Zero Dawn), John Zuur Platten (Ingress), Geoffrey Thorne (The Librarians), Jean Leggett (Betwixt), and Blair Leggett (StoryStylus) promise an entertaining and informative hour. Moderated by Jana Hallford (Swords & Circuitry: A Designer’s Guide to Computer Role-Playing Games).

When: Friday July 22, 2016 5:00pm – 6:00pm
Where: Room 9

Join us! You can add it to your schedule here.

Writing LOST GIRL: THE GAME

The hit Syfy series LOST GIRL recently launched their first mobile game for iOS and Android, called, plainly enough, LOST GIRL: THE GAME.  If you’re reading this, you’ve already figured out the second part: I was the writer.  Even better, I wrote it with one of the show’s writers.  A TV series that actually cares about a game being in the show’s canon?  True transmedia? Madness! Next thing you know, it’ll be all the rage! At least on Syfy.

Here’s a brief description of the game story:

Something is not right in the City: While the Light and Dark Fae continue to focus on their bitter rivalry, an ancient power is stirring, a great evil that will stop at nothing to step foot again and wreak havoc on the earth, and only you can help stop it!

Lost Girl: The Game is a completely free mystery-style hidden object game based on the hit TV series Lost Girl. Making your way to the famed Dal Riata, a neutral ground and waystation for the supernatural creatures known as the Fae, you are drawn into a tale of intrigue and power.

LOST GIRL is not the first Canadian Syfy series I’ve written a game for. I acted as the first head writer for STARGATE WORLDS, the ill-fated MMOG based on the long-running Syfy series STARGATE SG-1. The Lost Girl game was a lot of fun to work on, because I got to read all the scripts, just like I did working on STARGATE WORLDS.

With STARGATE, DEFIANCE, and now LOST GIRL, which series do you think is next for a game adaptation?