Design, Code, Iterate
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EMPACT Usurper PDTA:HB Arashi PDTA Horizon Worlds Hunter's Legacy Unity Co-op Codename XPs Game Jams RIT
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me
( Me at Unreal Fest Seattle 2024 )


Paul Avallone

Game Designer | Gameplay Engineer | Software Engineer
I'm a designer and engineer so I speak both disciplines' "languages". I'm excited to create something incredible with an awesome team whether it's a game, VR/XR simulation, or other cool software. Always asks, why settle for good when it can be great?
See what my lovely past co-workers have to say about me.

Skills

Engines
Unreal Engine 5 & 4, Unity
Programming/Visual Scripting
Blueprints, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, HTML, CSS
Documentation & Tools
Perforce, GitHub, Photoshop, Blender, Figma, Miro, Jira, Confluence, Movie Studio Platinum, Microsoft Office

Companies

htxlabslogo
HTX Labs
~70 people | (2025 - 2026)
-- Technical Designer II --
EMPACT
Designed and programmed training procedure interactions.


devhouselogo
The Devhouse Agency
~25 people | (2024 - 2024)
-- Software Engineer --
Hunter's Legacy: Echoes of the Past
Designed and programmed player mechanics, game systems, and UI along with intial level design.
Unity Co-op game
Assembled cutscene cinematics, implemented UI, and debugged gameplay elements.

forwardxplogo
ForwardXP
~50 people | (2021 - 2023)
-- Software Engineer --
Please, Don't Touch Anything: House Broken
Designed and programmed interactions, puzzles, and sequences.
Arashi: Castles of Sin - Final Cut
Contributed to control scheme redesign for port to modern VR consoles.
Please, Don't Touch Anything VR
Debugged and updated player movement, interactions, and UI along with adding accessibility and QoL improvements.
Horizon Worlds
Brainstormed, rapid prototyped, and implemented 4-player mini-games.
XP10, XPJ1, and XP8
Brainstormed, designed, and programmed for internal prototypes while also contributing to pitches.

roguebrainlogo
Rogue Brain Studios
~4 people | (2022 - Present)
-- Game Designer --
Usurper
Designed gameplay, progression, and UI for indie game.
Game Jams
Designed and made art for games in Ludum Dare and GMTK game jams.

Professional Work

Released Projects:


EMPACT - Immersive Training Platform
(2025 - 2026)

A VR, PC, and mobile immersive training simulator made at HTX Labs in Unreal Engine 4/5 for the U.S. Air Force. Created interactive functionality for digital twins of aircraft mechanisms with UE Blueprints. Designed and got approval on pre-production docs for gameplay mechanics and interactive designs from stakeholders and subject matter experts. Migrated legacy training procedures from EMPACT II (UE4) to EMPACT III (UE5). Wrote technical documentation for procedures to improve QA efficiency.

Skills: Programming, Designing, Debugging
Engine: Unreal Engine 4 & 5
Platform: Quest 3S, Quest 3, VIVE Focus 3, PC, Mobile
Employer: HTX Labs, Kaijon LLC
Client: United States Air Force
empact
^ Click for more info ^
usurper
^ Click for more info ^

Usurper
(2022 - 2025)

Full game & demo available to play now! Released on Steam on September 9th, 2024. An indie roguelike deck-building game made with a small team of 4 people. Over 10,000 sales and 35+ positive user reviews from people who played it for 1 hour up to 100+ hours. Designed gameplay and UI/UX. Drew the Steam capsule art and edited the trailers. Created pitch presentations for publishers. Assisted with AI logic. Game was a part of Steam Next Fest June 2024. Game was also a part of Humble Bundle: Checkmate! A Chess Games Collection for 4 weeks in March/April 2026 where $18,355 from sales went to World Central Kitchen charity.

Skills: Designing, UI/UX, Debugging, Art, Video editing, Pitching, Programming
Engine: Unity
Platform: Steam PC
Team: Rogue Brain Studios, LLC.

Please, Don't Touch Anything:
House Broken
(2022 - 2023)

A mixed reality (MR) game made at ForwardXP in Unreal Engine 5. Co-designed and programmed interactions, puzzles, and endings. Wrote documentation on MR platform limitations and performed comparison tests for MR in Unreal vs Unity. Investigated MR titles and compiled best practices. Participated in regular playtest and feedback sessions with the team.

Skills: Programming, Designing, Documentation
Engine: Unreal Engine 5
Platform: Quest 3, Quest Pro, Quest 2
Employer: ForwardXP
pdtamr
^ Click for more info ^
arashi
^ Click for more info ^

Arashi: Castles of Sin - Final Cut
(2022)

A port to modern VR platforms and gameplay upgrade of the original 2021 PSVR exclusive Arashi: Castles of Sin. Contributed to control scheme redesign. Researched similar titles and wrote documentation on potential gameplay improvements.

Skills: Designing, Documentation
Engine: Unity
Platform: PSVR2 , Quest 2, Quest Pro, Quest 3 , and Steam PC
Employer: ForwardXP
Clients: Skydance Interactive & Endeavor One

Please, Don't Touch Anything
(2022)

Worked on major update 2.2 for the Quest 2 version which included updated player interactions, improved game visuals, added accessibility features, bug fixes, and quality of life improvements. First official video game credit.

Skills: Programming, Designing, Debugging, UI/UX
Engine: Unity
Platform: Quest 2
Employer: ForwardXP
pdta
^ Click for more info ^
horizongames
^ Click for more info ^

Horizon Worlds: World Hop
(2021 - 2022)

Conceptualized, designed, and implemented multiple 2-4 player VR mini-games in a beta visual scripting language. Created to be played by both veteran and brand new VR users.

Skills: Programming, Designing, Rapid prototyping, Client collaboration/communication
Engine: Unity
Platform: Quest 2
Employer: ForwardXP
Client: Meta

Shelved Projects (Also Important):


Hunter's Legacy: Echoes of the Past
(2024)

A FPS/VR game prototype made at The Devhouse Agency in Unreal Engine 5 for a client. Programmed player mechanics and game features to work as both a normal First Person Shooter and a VR game. Made game function with mouse & keyboard, controller, and VR controllers. Worked on level design and gameplay flow. Implemented menus and closed captions. Assisted with NPC AI logic.

Skills: Programming, Designing, Debugging, UI/UX
Engine: Unreal Engine 5
Platform: TBD
Employer: The Devhouse Agency
Client: TBA
hunterslegacy
^ Click for more info ^
unity

Unity Co-op game
(2024)

A co-op game made at The Devhouse Agency in Unity 6 for a client. Implemented UI/UX and cutscene cinematics. Debugged and tweaked gameplay features. Participated in regular playtests.

Skills: Programming, Designing, Debugging, UI/UX, Cinematics
Engine: Unity
Platform: TBD
Employer: The Devhouse Agency
Client: TBA

Codename XP10 - UE4 VR Game
(2022 - 2023)

A VR game made at ForwardXP in Unreal Engine 4. Co-designed and implemented player movement, inventory, and interaction mechanics. Designed control/instruction diagrams using Photoshop. Playtesting, debugging, and balancing gameplay. Filmed and edited gameplay trailer for use by leadership for external pitches to publishers.

Skills: Programming, Designing, Debugging, UI/UX, Rapid prototyping, Video editing
Engine: Unreal Engine 4
Platform: TBD
Employer: ForwardXP
unreal
^ Click for more info ^
unreal

Codename XPJ1 - UE4 Multiplayer Prototype & Pitch
(2022 - 2023)

Internal game jam prototype at ForwardXP in Unreal Engine 4. While in-between projects, four of us came together as a team to make a game with the intention of pitching it internally. We conceptualized, designed, and programmed it in 2 weeks. It caught the eye of the Design Director who got us an opportunity to showcase it to the rest of leadership. We then made a presentation and pitched the game to leadership. After we also had them play it themselves. It was warmly received and seriously considered for development but ultimately didn't go forward.

Skills: Programming, Designing, Rapid prototyping, Pitching/Presenting
Engine: Unreal Engine 4
Platform: TBD
Employer: ForwardXP

Codename XP8 - UE4 Multiplayer Game
(2022 - 2023)

A multiplayer game made at ForwardXP in Unreal Engine 4. Occationally brainstormed designs with the Design Director and other designers. I was one a couple of people used as practice by leadership for their pitch presentation to a big publisher. I gave feedback and suggestions to improve their pitch. I used this knowledge when assembling the pitch for XPJ1 to present to leadership themselves.

Skills: Designing, Pitching/Presenting
Engine: Unreal Engine 4
Platform: TBD
Employer: ForwardXP
unreal


Game Jams


Game Jams and Post-Jam Updates
(2018 - 2026)

Semi-regularly participate in Ludum Dare and GMTK game jams. Created games with a small team size of 4-7 people. Games are made based on a selected theme and created entirely in 2-4 days depending on the Jam. 5 of 6 projects have been ranked in the top 1-10% in at least one category from thousands of entries. One ranked 17th in humor.
gamejams
^ Click for more info ^


School Projects


RIT Class Projects
(2016 - 2020)

Comprised of video games, board games, level designs, and 3D models I created while I was enrolled at Rochester Institute of Technology 2016-2020.
school
^ Click for more info ^


Resume

Click here for full PDF
me

About Paul Avallone
( That's me )

Originally from Smithtown, Long Island, I went to the other side of New York state to attend Rochester Institute of Technology in 2016. In May of 2020, I graduated Magna Cum Laude with a B.S. in Game Design and Development and a minor in Computer Science.

After graduating, I got a job at Netsmart as a Software Engineer. About a year later, I left after getting a job in the games industry at ForwardXP and moved down to Dallas, Texas. There I worked for two years on a variety of game projects including entries in the beloved Please, Don't Touch Anything franchise. After that, I worked at The Devhouse Agency on a prototype FPS/VR narrative, open world, hunting game called Hunter's Legacy.

Most recently, now back in New York, I worked remotely for Kaijon LLC/HTX Labs for over a year on their Unreal Engine 5 VR immersive training simulator, EMPACT, for the U.S. Air Force. My side project, Usurper, released on Steam and has sold 10,000+ copies. It was just in a Humble Bundle that raised $18,355 for charity.

Currently looking for work as a Gameplay Engineer, Game Designer, or Software Engineer. I'm a creatively driven individual who loves collaborating with people of all disciplines. I have professional experience designing and programming in Unreal and Unity. Always asks, why settle for good when it can be great?

See what my lovely past co-workers have to say about me.

Outside of work, I enjoy riding my bike (when it's warm), going to the movies, playing AAA and indie video games of a wild variety of genres, visting museums, trying new foods, getting too competitive at board games, and causing much silliness in my D&D party.

My favorite games of all time are The Last of Us, Super Mario Sunshine, inFAMOUS, Pikmin, and BioShock Infinite.