Gabriel Hoefler
Video Game Designer specializing in Systems and Narrative design
Hello, and welcome to my portfolio.
Featured Projects
Somniphobia
[Academic Project] (Creative Director, Designer)
A survival horror game about a man trapped in a recurring nightmare, where he is forced to confront his fears and regrets in order to get to the heart of the dream and stop it, before he wakes up and must repeat the cycle.
Somniphobia blends classic genre features such as fixed camera angles and resource management with rogue like mechanics.
What I did: I was the Systems and Narrative designer for this game. Some of my work included concepting and designing the mechanics and narrative themes, writing detailed and programmer friendly design documentation, working closely with programmers to realize and improve mechanics, and editing Unreal Blueprints to tweak game elements in response to playtest feedback.
Genre: Survival Horror, Rogue-Like
Engine: Unreal Engine
Platform: PC
Team size: 10 (3 designers, 7 programmers) (Full credits on project page)
Production length: ~8 months
Click here to learn more about the game and the work that I contributed, including methodologies and lessons learned.
One, Two, Kickout!
[Academic Project]
One, Two, Kickout! is a tabletop RPG where players are professional wrestlers in a world where pro-wrestling is real. It was designed to be a fast paced, not so serious game that appeals to fans of pro-wrestling while still being engaging and accessible to players who have little to no knowledge of the hobby.
The main system that powers interactions in One, Two, Kickout! is a system called Step-up Modifier Dice. In this system, when a player attempts a challenge, they don’t add static boosts from their stats, they instead roll additional dice and add it to the initial roll. At low levels, this boost could be no dice or just 1d4, but as players level up, the dice can go as high as 4d12.
Genre: Action
Team size: Solo project
Production length: ~13 Weeks
Click here to learn more about the game and my process, and/or to view a PDF of each edition.
