If you’ve connected with me in the last year or haven’t worked with or communicated with me directly, this is a bit of an introduction for you to get a sense of who I am and what I do. If you know me already then you might enjoy reading this.
I’m a creative professional who conceptualizes, designs, and produces graphics, packaging, and manufacturing/material directives for physical products for e-commerce and retail stores.
I’ve done this for 13 years both designing solo and leading a team to do so, finding the most commercial success in creating tabletop games and their supplemental products. If you have passed through a retail location that stocks physical games, you’ve probably seen one of the dozens of products I’ve helped create through graphic design, industrial design, artistic guidance, or the entire skill stack. I intend to keep creating entertainment products as the worldwide market for tabletop gaming is roughly projected to double over the next 6 years to $30 billion. That’s a lot of opportunity.
While I’ve had success in creating physical products that are well-received, I still retain the hard skills a modern designer should have; brand development, illustration, video production, and the ability to create, maintain, and develop websites. I’ve skewed my recent focus toward launching gaming products because I love to bring world-building and narrative elements to life in a physical space. Having a story behind any brand or product is a surefire way to help make emotional connections, while building an engaging system (game) around that story to share with others in person is even more powerful. I’ve been a lifelong gamer since my dad introduced me to DOS-based games, leading me to where I am now creating products that facilitate those memorable experiences.
But Zack, "How did you get here?"
The most frequent question I get is a variation of “how did you end up making games for a living?” To which I would answer it wasn’t my first career and I kind of fell into it. Most people don’t know that in my first career I was literally a rockstar. I’m not pulling your chain, I had a meteoric rise in the mid 2000’s as the front man for a heavy metal band - and of course I’m going to share a little. Yes, I had long luxurious hair, a troupe of likeminded musicians, and a record deal by the age of 20. During this time I was in an undergraduate program for visual communications and I had already seen the writing on the wall for a career in music. I knew the odds of making a comfortable living from it were slim. My income was supplemented during these years by designing merch and album layouts for bands under various record labels so I decided to get a formal education to hedge my bets in life. I gained a ton of audio and video production skills through making demos and recording live shows and jam sessions during this time. Work was good and life was good through my college experience, then in the span of a month the band broke up and I received my BFA. What timing.
If you were curious, here's a link to my current solo musical endeavor.
Post-Grad, Publishing, and eCommerce
After graduation in 2011, I ventured into the world of 9-5 to build my skills and make connections. My first full-time gig designing book covers and laying out interior book manuscripts for Randomhouse, who later merged with Penguin before my exit in 2013. I left to develop packaging for physical products at an ecommerce company called Brybelly during that time. Over the next 8 years I worked my way up to a leadership position, built and launched hundreds of product offerings and product lines in gaming, sporting goods, pet supplies, camping supplies, casino supplies, and many more.
Working in Gaming
In 2021 I left Brybelly to make games with Hunt a Killer as a product designer. These games were murder mysteries told through a box of physical evidence, online documents, and interactive puzzles and ciphers. Think of an escape room meets Clue, but with unique stories, settings, and characters with each game. This exposed me to the game development process more deeply and afforded me the opportunity to work with dozens of other accomplished US-based designers, writers, producers, and talent from industries such as tech, gaming, and experience entertainment. This was the mother-lode. The break I was looking for. My work would be enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of people, if not millions, over time. During my time there I brought 3 projects to fruition with a handful of others that didn’t see the light of day. You can find some of these works on my featured page, but you’ll only see Dead Below Deck on US Target’s shelves.
In 2023 I had the pleasure to work with Incredible Dream Studios as a product designer. This studio is star-studded, and includes and international team of very accomplished and impassioned individuals that have worked on titles you’ve probably played before in video and tabletop gaming. The difference between IDS and HAK is that IDS creates multiple types of games that enrich their IPs, building off of previous lore and their worlds within.
A brief backstory of Kinfire Chronicles
Kinfire, for short, is a dark fantasy setting where an eternal night randomly befalls the world of Atios, beset with cursed wells that have mind-bending realities within. The population has been crammed into an overcrowded city and sheltered from the eternal night by a lighthouse of kinfire - an element that will not allow what it touches to be consumed with the darkness of the eternal night.
I had the pleasure of optimizing Kinfire Chronicles Night’s Fall for a second print run, providing industrial design for the complex elements of Kinfire Council and Boundless Stride: Into the Denlands, and fully developing a refresh of the game A Gentle Rain by Kevin Wilson. During development, I had realized he is the best game designer and one of the kindest souls I have ever met. Of these IDS titles I had worked on, you can easily find A Gentle Rain in US Target stores.
You're now a Design Professor?
This brings us to current day and the moment of this post. I've recently began teaching design and print production at a university. Neat, huh? While this isn’t a complete history, it’s enough for you to get a glimpse into my professional experience. I’d love to engage with those interested in my craft, the services I offer, those wanting to collaborate, or even talk shop.
Go ahead, get in touch.
