Designing a unified WYSIWYG editor in Frostbite that lets teams stay in context while working across complex game domains.
Lead designer of the Editor, responsible for setting the product vision, collaborating with multiple domains and studios, and guiding implementation so the editor served diverse workflows in a single tool.
Double diamond design; design studios; prototyping and wireframing; usability studies; ethnographic field studies; focus groups; telemetry; agile methodologies.
Figma; Miro; PowerBI; Jira; Confluence; Frostbite; online survey and collaboration tools.
At Frostbite we set out to design a new World Editor from the ground up as a modern WYSIWYG tool that unified workflows across all game-creation domains and applied a coherent design language.
A multi-stage process that moves from discovery and framing through concept design, planning, development, and measurement — grounded in research and tight collaboration with game teams.
Assessed the current editor and workflows, identified that multiple disconnected editors caused users to lose context, and collected insights through telemetry, user interviews, surveys, design studios, competitor analysis, and market trend research.
Framed a new problem statement around context loss, explored concepts for a unified editor experience, and sketched how a "what you see is what you get" workflow could simplify navigation and reduce editor-switching.
Mapped out the editor structure and key tools, explored how existing technology could support a single editor with multiple modes, and iterated on layouts that kept users in one place while swapping toolsets around them.
Defined the product roadmap, prioritized user journeys and features, and planned how to deliver value without blocking teams during the transition; also designed onboarding, tutorials, and test plans for each implementation step.
Partnered with teams to implement editor modes and multi-viewport capabilities, ensuring domains like materials, VFX, and gameplay could build specialized modes while keeping users in a single, consistent editor experience.
Defined metrics such as time to load levels or assets, user adoption of the new editor, task completion length, and bug counts; validated changes through A/B tests, desirability studies, ethnographic field studies, and targeted usability sessions.
Working on the World Editor provided a holistic view of AAA game development and highlighted how many moving parts and roles are involved; seeing the full picture improved understanding of what different disciplines need and when.
Reinforced the importance of a strong design system in large organizations; showed how clear communication helps stakeholders understand direction; demonstrated how observing users directly reveals frustrations; and highlighted the value of design operations and leadership.
Designed tools for 10 major game titles across studios such as Bioware, EA Sports, DICE, and Criterion; set a five-year design plan for EA's Frostbite workflow and supported its initial adoption across multiple organizations and studios.