Publication
Designing VR Games Worth Playing: 6 Key Considerations
https://www.toptal.com/designers/virtual-reality/designing-vr-games
Edward is available for hire
Hire EdwardEdward Moore
Verified Expert in Design
UX Designer
Los Angeles, CA, United States
Toptal member since June 29, 2020
Bio
Ed is a 25+ year veteran UX and cross-disciplinary product leader with a track record of award-winning projects for Microsoft, Google, Sony, Electronic Arts, and Sega on world-class franchises like Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings, Battlefield, and Sonic. In 2014, Ed launched his own consultancy to contribute strategic gamification, research, and product design services to non-gaming companies seeking to leverage VR/AR technology to move their businesses forward.
Portfolio
Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order
Adobe Experience Design (XD)User Experience (UX)UX Prototyping
Battlefield V
User Experience (UX)Video GamesMultiplayerAdobe IllustratorGraphic DesignUX Research
Precision Digital Health - Web/Desktop
Google Material DesignUX DesignWeb UX DesignAdobe Experience Design (XD)HealthcareDashboard Design+ 15 more
Positionmatch.com - HR Matching Platform - Desktop/Mobile
UX DesignAdobe IllustratorAdobe InDesignInformation Architecture (IA)Desktop Web DesignIllustrator CS6+ 13 more
Experience
- UX Strategy - 20 years
- User Experience (UX) - 20 years
- Unreal Engine 4 - 10 years
- Accessibility - 6 years
- Virtual Reality (VR) - 6 years
- Mobile Design - 5 years
- Prototyping - 4 years
- Adobe Experience Design (XD) - 2 years
Tools
- Adobe Experience Design (XD)
Work Experience
Founder, UX Designer, and VR/AR Specialist
2014 - PRESENT
AMPED-UX
- Created a website using the Weebly website building platform.
- Designed personal branding, logos, graphic design elements, icons, business cards, and t-shirts using Adobe Illustrator, leveraging learnings and exposure to digital marketing practices from a previous client.
- Taught myself HTML and CSS3 to adapt the Weebly template to fit the customized brand and visual design guidelines, using Google Chrome's Developer Mode to reverse-engineer UI elements from other sites to craft animated navigation widgets.
- Developed valuable experience with UX design and implementation principles for the emerging VR/AR medium, which I've shared via public presentations at multiple local meetups and regional conferences, such as Startup Week San Diego and SoCal UX Camp.
Technologies: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, JavaScript, CSS3, HTML5, Weebly, User Interface (UI), User Research, Adobe Suite, UX Design, UX Research, Responsive Web Design (RWD)
Lead UX Designer
2021 - 2026
Xbox Game Studios
- Led cross-disciplinary UI/UX development for CLOCKWORK REVOLUTION, a first-person "steampunk" role-playing adventure for Xbox Series S/X and PC.
- Oversaw sprint planning, long-term Objectives and Key Results (OKRs), and prioritized feature roadmaps with a small team of several UI Engineers and visual designers.
- Documented a UI design system using Confluence to promote modularity and consistent, proper usage of common interface widgets and design patterns.
- Expanded my knowledge and application of emerging trends in accessible game UX and forms of user research and heuristic analysis through collaborations with Microsoft User Research (MS-UR).
Technologies: Adobe Experience Design (XD), Sketch, Confluence, Jira, Leadership, Agile, Figma, Adobe Suite, UX Design, Design Systems, Accessibility, Unreal Engine 5
UX Designer
2020 - 2024
M6+
- Provided high-level product/UX direction via Adobe XD storyboards and prototypes for an industrial safety training VR Platform for Meta Quest 2/3, dedicated to reducing injury or death in Guatemala-based industries.
- Oversaw sprint turnaround, standups, retrospectives, and led roadmapping sessions to define Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) using Jira for an international cross-disciplinary team of engineers, animators, and technical artists.
- Conducted remote usability tests with target users, summarizing process, results, and recommendations into a presentation for client review.
- Worked with industrial safety consultants to learn traditional training methods and protocols and adapt them to take advantage of the spatial experience possibilities of VR.
Technologies: Virtual Reality (VR), Unity, Unity3D, User Experience (UX), User Experience Design, Adobe Experience Design (XD), Edtech Design, Learning
UX Designer
2023 - 2023
Math Talk PBC
- Organized and conducted user journey workshops to help the client better understand how the current onboarding for educational apps is potentially perceived by children and their caregivers or parents.
- Conducted user research for the client, including remote, unmoderated usability tests and competitive/comparative analysis of multiple augmented reality and educational mobile games. This informed features to include in the app and pitfalls to avoid.
- Used Figma to prototype new screens and flows for a math-centric exploration mobile game leveraging augmented reality. This allowed the client to iterate quickly to clarify the moment-to-moment UX of the app before committing to development.
Technologies: UX Design, User Journeys, UX Prototyping, Augmented Reality (AR), User Experience (UX), UX Research, Prototyping, Rapid Prototyping, Wireframing, Product Design, Unmoderated Remote Usability Testing, Mobile App Design, Edtech Design, Learning
Experience Designer
2018 - 2021
Electronic Arts | DICE Los Angeles
- Provided UX designs and mockups for online shooters on Battlefield V and Battlefield 2042, as well as the critically acclaimed Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, while leading the adoption of Adobe XD for interactive, animated prototyping, and mockups.
- Designed initial accessibility options and controller configuration screens for Star Wars so users with impairments could more readily enjoy the game.
- Redesigned Battlefield's non-verbal in-game, player-to-player communication features to improve usability and reduce toxicity, using online telemetry data and analytics to guide design choices.
- Fixed the UI bugs and implemented the UI widgets using visual scripting tools in Unreal 4 and EA’s proprietary “Frostbite” engines.
- Persuaded studio leadership and mentored teammates to launch various UX-related initiatives and practices, like card sorting, journey mapping, and how to conduct “guerilla-style” usability testing and research.
Technologies: Unreal Engine, Game Engine Programming, Jira, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Experience Design (XD), User Interface (UI), Agile, Adobe Suite, UX Design, User Research, UX Research, Accessibility
Contract UI/UX Developer
2019 - 2020
Proticom, LLC (Contractor)
- Led a usability and UX overhaul on desktop and web-based dashboards for Precision Digital Health, a healthcare startup providing complex big data analysis tools for hospitals and pharmaceutical companies conducting clinical research trials.
- Conducted competitive and comparative analysis on other web-based dashboarding and visualization tools to inform and inspire design features.
- Used Google’s Material Design component library and guidelines in conjunction with Adobe XD to propose, prototype, and export revised layouts and animated, interactive interface designs.
- Built experience with writing SQL database query code to understand relevant technical constraints. Based on this, a "query builder" interface concept was generated to make database querying and filtering more accessible for non-technical users.
- Helped the client's startup obtain additional investment and secure deals and renewals from major healthcare and pharmaceutical clients valued over one million dollars with these UX redesign efforts.
Technologies: Google Drive, Evernote, Angular, Adobe Experience Design (XD), Material Design, User Interface (UI), Adobe Suite, UX Design, Design Systems, Learning
UX Design Consultant
2018 - 2018
Seewin Technologies
- Created interactive UX mockups and prototypes in Adobe XD to redesign and rebrand Stacks!, a live-streamed two-way “70s TV game show” iOS mobile app.
- Evaluated and sourced UI/visual designers and audio vendors.
- Recommended back-end technology solutions to support in-app purchasing and gamification/monetization strategies.
- Worked with remote stakeholders on the live studio production team and engineering to accommodate the unique constraints posed by a two-way video streaming technology platform with custom live-studio "control room" software.
- Evolved a gamification/monetization strategy to accommodate legal constraints while providing an engaging and entertaining user experience.
Technologies: Google Sheets, Adobe Experience Design (XD), Adobe Suite, UX Design, Mobile App Design
Lead Unity Developer
2017 - 2018
Inhance Digital/Google
- Served as the lead unity developer on Fire Escape, a narrative VR experience published by Google.
- Programmed the majority of motion controls, UI elements, onboarding systems, and integrated assets from artists, animators, and audio designers using Unity, C#, and Visual Studio.
- Trained teammates in the use of Android build and deployment pipelines and how to use Unity's performance profiler to maintain a high performing framerate on mobile GPUs and to prevent motion sickness.
- Created UX artifacts and architecture charts to illustrate the episodic structure and in-app purchasing UX flows.
- Created the foundation for the first episode that enabled Google and partner studios Ink Stories and Frima to put out additional episodes and to showcase Fire Escape at exhibitions such as the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival and Indiecade E3 2018.
- Provided some initial R&D and Blueprint/Unreal 4 scripting for Hero, an HTC Vive VR experience focusing on rescue workers in the Syrian Conflict.
Technologies: Unreal Engine 4, Google Daydream, HTC Vive, Perforce, Visual Studio, C#, Unity3D
VR/AR UX Instructor
2017 - 2017
UXOffer, LLC
- Co-developed and taught the curriculum for an 8-week long online workshop to teach UX professionals how to adapt their practices to VR/AR. The curriculum took the form of a series of PowerPoints, which I presented to a cohort of eight students.
- Included topics like the history of VR and AR, UX research principles, an overview of the current VR/AR hardware landscape, explanations of VR-specific concepts and terminology, and thorough explanations of VR and AR interaction design techniques.
- Paired the students in the class into project groups and, as part of the final for the course, presented their results and research. Some of the students leveraged cardboard-based dioramas to illustrate spatial VR-UX interface concepts.
- Obtained the YouTube transcripts of the lectures to edit and revise into an e-book on VR/AR UX Design.
Technologies: Google Slides, Learning
Unity Developer
2016 - 2016
Underminer Studios
- Co-developed a Gear VR-based prototype called Dream VR Homes to pitch interactive virtual property walkthroughs and visualization services.
- Created UI elements and Gear VR-touchpad input mechanisms in Unity/C#, as well as created icons and branding elements in Adobe Illustrator.
- Demonstrated the Dream VR Homes prototype to professional architecture firms and to attendees on the show floor of the VRLA 2016 convention.
- Created a physical carrying case to ship the Dream VR Homes prototype preloaded on a Gear VR headset to architectural firms on the East Coast. Designed an included print manual using Illustrator to onboard potential customers on how to run the demo.
- Collaborated with spherical VR video startup Vrideo to implement back-end and front-end code using C# and Unity3D.
Technologies: Adobe Illustrator, C#, Unity3D
UX Design Consultant
2016 - 2016
Vyndica, LLC
- Generated a mobile UX design strategy for a gamified mobile trading app targeting fans of the Warhammer 40K tabletop game,.
- Prototyped a unique "spider-web" interface concept with Illustrator and Pixate that would be individually generated based on "wants" (aka what miniatures a user wanted) in combination with "haves" (miniatures a user was willing to trade away).
- Created a complete set of mockups and flows with Illustrator for initiating and executing trades, browsing for items, onboarding, mananging profiles, and more.
- Designed a gamification strategy including user-progression schemes, power-ups, and achievements, and also mobile pop-up notifications use-cases to illustrate habit formation and interaction loops.
- Pivoted from user-to-user trading to helping Warhammer 40K miniature painters connect with fans and advertise their services, using a desktop client despite never fully developing or launching the mobile client UX.
Technologies: Pixate, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Suite, UX Design, Mobile App Design
UX Design Consultant
2016 - 2016
The Virtual Reality Company
- Generated mobile onboarding mockups, flows, and defined architecture and requirements for RAISING A RUKUS, a Gear-VR based branching video adventure for children.
- Orchestrated a holistic UX research study to gather data around VR-UX for motion safety and comfort factors, tabulating results and analysis for client review.
- Included a dynamic, motion-triggered vignette-framing option as a result of this study in Raising a Rukus to improve comfort for adults and other users sensitive to high motion entertainment.
- Ran feature ideation and prioritization exercises with stakeholders to define a roadmap for Big Bang, an ambitious spatial VR content "destination." Inspired by theme park design, this platform would act as a gateway linking multiple VR experiences.
- Built a Google Cardboard-based devkit to prototype motion controller-based VR interactions and evaluate virtual typography using the Google Daydream SDK in Unity/C#.
Technologies: Google Daydream, C#, Unity3D, Adobe Photoshop, Sketch, Adobe Illustrator, User Research, Adobe Suite, UX Design, Mobile App Design
UX and Systems Design Consultant
2015 - 2015
Reload Studios
- Created flows and diegetic interface mockups for WORLD WAR TOONS, an Unreal4-based, “WW2 meets Looney Toons” free-to-play (F2P) online competitive VR game for Oculus Rift and PlayStation VR.
- Built a holodeck “HQ” level in Unreal4 to prototype and establish geometric/spatial UX standards for diegetic interfaces, such as interaction distances and font style/size choices.
- Collaborated with monetization consultants and systems designers to refine a roadmap and strategy for how in-app-purchasing might behave in a virtual/spatial context, both for launch and longer-term during the live-service phase of the project.
- Created surveys using SurveyMonkey on iPad to gather usability data at industry exhibitions like TwitchCon and VRLA. This data-informed internal pivots on control scheme designs.
- World War Toons was released as a free downloadable beta version with the PlayStation VR launch in October 2016. The beta continued until September 2017, when Reload discontinued live services for failing to attract a sustainable online community.
Technologies: Unreal Engine 4, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Suite, UX Design, User Research
UX Design Consultant
2015 - 2015
White Moon Dreams/Sony Playstation
- Generated mockups and flows in Illustrator for Starblood Arena, an Unreal4-based, 360-degree, small-scale 4v4 online shooter game published by Sony for PlayStation VR.
- Designed features included heads-up displays (HUD), user progression systems, and 3D matchmaking lobbies, as well as undeveloped eSports-centered video editing and broadcast interfaces.
- Conducted usability testing, observation sessions, and surveys to assess the game for motion issues and comfort.
- Provided research and modular interface designs to help alleviate roadblocks that the 3D cockpit asset production team was facing, saving development time and promoting UX consistency.
- Contributed to Starblood Arena that was released in April 2017 as a live-service, online multiplayer title, running successfully for over two years until Sony terminated live services in July 2019.
Technologies: Unreal Engine 4, SurveyMonkey, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Suite, UX Design, User Research
UX/Unity Consultant
2014 - 2015
BackCode, LLC
- Designed flows, architecture charts, and CMS dashboard mockups to define the web and mobile UX for job-seekers, HR staff at companies using the PositionMatch service, and internal PositionMatch admins with Illustrator and InDesign.
- Researched and developed personas for a tablet app for Literacy Design Collaborative (LDC), a non-profit coaching K-12 teachers to design more effective curriculums with SurveyMonkey.
- Contributed to UX design mockups and in-app purchasing flows for Anatomy4D, an early iOS-based augmented reality (AR) educational app.
- Implemented Unity3D-based VR interfaces for M-GO ADVANCED, one of the first 3D video content apps for the Gear VR headset.
- Contributed Unity3D programming and debugging services for Codecraft, a PC/desktop educational game designed to help teenagers learn concepts related to AI programming.
Technologies: Adobe InDesign, Adobe Illustrator, Google Docs, Unity3D, UX Design, User Research, Mobile App Design, Learning
UX Research and Gamification Consultant
2014 - 2015
Mind Over Media
- Collaborated with teammates in digital marketing and branding to develop a gamification strategy for the Staples Quick Wins, a personal learning web/mobile app targeted at small business owners.
- Contributed research and copywriting services to Staples Quick Wins, generating articles and topical content relevant to small business owners, such as managing finances, social media marketing, and securing investment.
- Used an Amazon Web Services (AWS)-based content management system (CMS) to modify researched content into interactive quizzes and exercises for Staples Quick Wins. Also helped generate bugs when reviewing the content in the mobile app.
- Drove content strategy audits for Kaiser Permanente’s Youtube channel and competitive analysis of educational non-profit websites for The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
- Engaged research vendor SSI to source data about millennials applying to Fortune 500 companies to inform personas, branding treatments, and wireframes for Positionmatch.com, a video-based HR/personality assessment service platform.
Technologies: Google Docs, Google Sheets, UX Design, User Research, UX Research, Gamification
Senior UX/Systems Designer
2013 - 2014
Sega / Big Red Button Entertainment
- Used Visio to mockup all front-end screens and flows for Sonic Boom, a Nintendo Wii U touchscreen-enabled game starring Sega’s legendary mascot. Ensured an intuitive, playful, and approachable interface designs suited for younger audiences.
- Implemented animated UI for single-player "story" and multi-player "party" modes with Flash and Actionscript.
- Headed up Agile-style story writing and backlog sessions using Jira and coordinated UX design and implementation with external studios Sanzaru and Illfonic.
- Resolved disparate narrative and level production threads that helped crystalize the structure of the game and get scope/production issues under control through the application of gamification/progression systems design techniques.
- Served as a localization producer, testing and integrating text assets to make sure the game made it's world-wide ship date and could be enjoyed by children all over the world.
Technologies: Game Development, Jira, Google Sheets, Microsoft Visio, Adobe Flash, ActionScript 3, UX Design
Other Experience
Education
1993 - 1997
Bachelor of Arts Degree in Computer Science, English
Hofstra University - Hempstead, NY
Certifications
APRIL 2009 - PRESENT
Scrum Master
Agile Alliance
Skills
Tools
Adobe Experience Design (XD), Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe CC, Sketch, Microsoft Visual Studio, Visual Studio, Perforce, Google Sheets, Google Slides, Google Docs, Adobe InDesign, Evernote, Jira, Unreal Engine, Adobe Flash, Microsoft Visio, Illustrator CS6, InDesign CS6, Confluence, Google Forms, Claude
Platforms
PlayStation, Adobe Suite, Android, PC, Xbox, Web, Desktop, Mobile, MacOS, iOS, Oculus Rift, Figma
Languages
C#, C++, ActionScript 3, HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, SQL
Industry Expertise
Healthcare, Human Resources (HR)
Other
UX Flows, UX Design, Interaction Design (IxD), VR Interfaces, Virtual Reality (VR), Unity3D, Unity3D GUI Development, Wireframing, Prototyping, Writing & Editing, Agile, Product Design, UX Audits, UX Strategy, User Experience (UX), Gamification, 3D Games, Leadership, Accessibility Consulting, Accessibility, Edtech Design, Learning, Unreal Engine 4, Consulting, Conference Speaking, Public Speaking, Mobile UI, Mobile Design, Mobile UX, UX Research, Web Design, User Interface (UI), UI Design, User Research, Design Systems, Unreal Engine 5, Mobile App Design, Augmented Reality (AR), Unity, Windows 10, Google Drive, HTC Vive, Google Daydream, Pixate, SurveyMonkey, Angular, Game Engine Programming, Game Development, Weebly, Data Visualization, Mobile Streaming, Rapid Prototyping, Mobile Prototypes, iOS Video, Video Livestreaming, In-app Purchases, Monetization, Multiplayer, Rapid Interactive Prototyping, Animated Prototypes, Google Material Design, Web UX Design, Dashboard Design, Desktop Web Design, Scientific Data Analysis, Agile Data Science, Pharmacology, Interactive Prototypes, UX Prototyping, Big Data, Clinical Trials, Information Architecture (IA), HR Tools, Human Resource Management Systems (HRMS), Mobile UX Design, Videos, Startup Consulting, Website CMS, Recruiting, Fortune Global 500, User Flows, UX Architecture, Video Game Consoles, Online Games, Video Games, Gaming Platforms, Morpheus VR, Trading Applications, Mobile Apps, Trading, Algorithmic Trading, Checkout, Trading Systems, eCommerce UX, Online Gaming, Screen Flows, Spatial Design, Material Design, Graphic Design, Responsive Web Design (RWD), User Journeys, Unmoderated Remote Usability Testing, Objectives & Key Results (OKRs), User Experience Design, Computer Science
Collaboration That Works
How to Work with Toptal
Toptal matches you directly with global industry experts from our network in hours—not weeks or months.
1
Share your needs
Discuss your requirements and refine your scope in a call with a Toptal domain expert.
2
Choose your talent
Get a short list of expertly matched talent within 24 hours to review, interview, and choose from.
3
Start your risk-free talent trial
Work with your chosen talent on a trial basis for up to two weeks. Pay only if you decide to hire them.
Top talent is in high demand.
Start hiring