Jagex

SENIOR WRITER ¦ 2019-2025

I started at Jagex in 2019 as a freelance editor, and went on to contribute narrative design and writing to RuneScape, Old School RuneScape, Melvor Idle and RuneScape: Dragonwilds.Specific projects included setting and quest design for Varlamore and the Sailing expansion, and communications management for the Old School RuneScape pride events 2022-2024.

COLLECTABLE LORE AND CONDITIONAL DIALOGUE

• Tales of Pride

This piece was written for the Tales of Pride event in RuneScape. Players interact with the event by speaking to NPCs around the world and discovering small, contained narratives on the theme of 'queer joy'.I challenged myself to convey queer joy in as few words as possible, and drew on my own experience to create a simple list of new names Angof is considering. The player can show the list to Angof for further context, if needed.“The care and dedication put into the writing shines through... It's a great example of how a short piece of storytelling can convey a lot of emotional weight, gaining more impact if you know your RuneScape lore. And Welsh.”
_{Lottie Lynn, Eurogamer}

QUEST DESIGN

• SPIRIT OF ADVENTURE

During an internal game jam, I led a multidisciplinary team to create some 'bottle quests' using existing resources.In Spirit of Adventure, the player helps a hapless mountaineer, Bernard, fulfil his mother's last wish. The key challenge here was to use existing assets and mechanics to translate a heartfelt, emotional story into gameplay.

TRAILER

• THE RISING DARKNESS

For the second part of our Varlamore area expansion, Marketing asked me to write a narrative-driven trailer which could showcase the new gameplay in the update while reminding players of the bigger narrative stakes.I chose to write the trailer as an emotive plea from Queen Zyanyi, the ruler of Varlamore, to her hot-headed son, Prince Itzla, asking him to take responsibility as a ruler and warning him of danger ahead. In Old School RuneScape, one of our narrative pillars is that the player is not the most important character in the world. By addressing them indirectly through Itzla, I was able to preserve that careful balance.As part of this project I also created a character bio for our fantastic voice actress, and was on-hand during recording to provide direction and script amendments.

OUT-OF-GAME CONTENT

• ARCHAEOLOGY JOURNAL

To accompany the release of the Archaeology skilling update, I created five 'journal' entries, designed to inform the player about the different Dig Sites they could visit in the voice of Archaeology's main NPC, Professor Tony. (Yes, like that Tony - we're big fans of Time Team!)In this one, Tony has enlisted the services of an unusually knowledgeable local guide. Little does he know that Dr Nabanik is in fact Azzanadra, an ancient lich-like being who has just escaped the pyramid he was confined in for centuries.This was my favourite of the set because it let me lean into a bit of horror. I love a good "doom journal"!The Archaeology Journals were a fun challenge, as they were all much longer than the in-game text I usually write. It was fun to flex those forgotten prose muscles!

Bete Epoque

NARRATIVE DESIGNER ¦ Themed Horror Game Jam #17

Take to the streets of 1890s Paris in this narrative card game based on the King in Yellow mythos.#3 Overall

EVENT TEXT

• Bete Epoque

Bête Epoque was a game jam project I worked on with some friends - the theme was ‘cosmic horror’ and I immediately saw an opportunity to force all my mates to read The King in Yellow and listen to me yap about the Belle Epoque. In the game, you play as a detective on the trail of a group of anarchists - but the investigation soon takes a bizarre turn.The game has a tabletop-like mechanic where the player must roll on their stats to succeed (or fail) events. The link above is the event text for one of my favourites.(And while I'm here, I really must recommend The King in Yellow. You'll love at least half of it.)

Bridgerton:
The Real Lady Whistledown

Money Heist:
Bella ciao

Netflix

I worked with Netflix on their "Netflix and Think" series of video essays, which looked at the historical background of two major Netflix series."The Real Lady Whistledown" is about the real-life gossipmongers who inspired the character of Lady Whistledown in the Bridgerton series."Bella Ciao" is about the historical and cultural context of Bella Ciao, the protest song which plays in the show's opening credits.I researched and wrote the script for both essays, and voiced "Bella Ciao".

You Will Die In This Place

Shrike Studio ¦ EDITOR

A nihilistic survival-horror tabletop dungeon crawl RPG about exile, decay, and the inevitable failure of the self.

KUEI-JIN: The Hungry Ghosts

EDITOR

An updated version of the Kindred of the East splatbook for Vampire: The Masquerade.

Brains in Games
(With Susi Bauer)

Authentic Queer representation in games
(With Gavin Spoors)