Thomas Y. Sprouse

Aspiring Video Game Designer and Developer

Summary

I am an aspiring video game designer and developer. From experiences with personal projects and school projects, I have developed project-based skills. These skills include (but are not limited to) management, communication, research, and testing. Additionally, I have extensive knowledge of game design ranging from understanding UIs and HUDs to game mechanics to player emotions and responses.

Experience & Education

BS, Cognitive Science
UC San Diego | Expected Sep 2025
  • Specialization in Design and Interaction [in progress]
  • Experience in Computer Science
  • Proficiency in Communication
  • Revelle Student - Extensive writing experience
Design Team
UCSD Video Game Development Club - Mariposa | Jan-Jun 2025
  • Gained an understanding of the work flow of game development within a team of 100+ people.
  • Communicated visions and critiques to programmers, UI designers, artists, and audio engineers.
  • Learned how to use Miro as a tool for visualizing and conveying designs.
  • Employed the iterative design process to create many versions of puzzles and levels for review and critique.
  • Conducted research in order to design an entertaining game in a genre I was unfamiliar with.
Lead Game Designer & Project Manager
Personal Project - Hellscrape | Jul 2023
  • Managed a team of 4 people over a two-week period and successfully created a viable product on time.
  • Utilized remote communication to our advantage and produced a game that surpassed our two-week expectations.
  • Researched and formulated creative solutions to game mechanics problems without compromising the game pillars.
  • Designed a complete video game from beginning to end that was well-received and greatly enjoyed by many people.
  • Gained extensive experience with the entire process of video game development.
Game Designer & Developer
Personal Project - Rune Wrangler | Jul 2024
  • Created a balanced and fun card game through an iterative design process.
  • Learned Notion to stay organized and thoroughly document the creation of the game.
  • Explored methods of prototyping to maximize efficiency during the rapid iteration of the game.
  • Developed an eye for testing and analysis through extensive playtesting to better understand how to reach our goal.
Programming Team
TEAM SPYDER 1622 (robotics team) | Sep 2018 - Mar 2019
  • Successfully programmed the claw mechanism of our team’s robot.
  • Worked collaboratively with other programmers to accomplish a shared goal.
  • Conducted numerous outreach events to spread STEM to my community, earning our team the Chairman’s Award and qualified our team for the national competition.

Projects

Screenshot of the Mariposa video game.
Mariposa
Design Team | Jan-Jun 2025
  • Gained an understanding of the work flow of game development within a team of 100+ people.
  • Communicated visions and critiques to programmers, UI designers, artists, and audio engineers.
  • Learned how to use Miro as a tool for visualizing and conveying designs.
  • Employed the iterative design process to create many versions of puzzles and levels for review and critique.
  • Conducted research in order to design an entertaining game in a genre I was unfamiliar with.
Screenshot of the Hellscrape video game.
Hellscrape
Lead Game Designer & Project Manager | Jul 2023
  • Managed a team of 4 people over a two-week period and successfully created a viable product on time.
  • Utilized remote communication to our advantage and produced a game that surpassed our two-week expectations.
  • Researched and formulated creative solutions to game mechanics problems without compromising the game pillars.
  • Designed a complete video game from beginning to end that was well-received and greatly enjoyed by many people.
  • Gained extensive experience with the entire process of video game development.
Image of the Rune Wrangler card game.
Rune Wrangler
Game Designer & Developer | Jul 2024
  • Created a balanced and fun card game through an iterative design process.
  • Learned Notion to stay organized and thoroughly document the creation of the game.
  • Explored methods of prototyping to maximize efficiency during the rapid iteration of the game.
  • Developed an eye for testing and analysis through extensive playtesting to better understand how to reach our goal.

Skills

Technical & Professional Skills
Proficiency based on project experience.

Get In Touch

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