Robin Hunicke Explained

Robin Hunicke
Birth Date:15 March 1973
Birth Place:Albany, New York, U.S.

Robin Hunicke (; born March 15, 1973) is an American video game designer and producer. She is a professor of game design at UC Santa Cruz and the co-founder of Funomena.

Hunicke began her career at Electronic Arts where she worked on multiple games including MySims as Lead Designer and Boom Blox and its sequel as a Producer. After leaving EA, she was hired by thatgamecompany where she produced Journey, an online cooperative game for the PlayStation 3. After its completion, Hunicke joined Tiny Speck to develop the social MMORPG Glitch, teaming with Katamari Damacy creator and personal friend Keita Takahashi. Prior to the release of Glitch, Hunicke left Tiny Speck to co-found Funomena together with Martin Middleton, former teammate and engineer at thatgamecompany. In October 2012, Funomena announced their first project: "to build a game that takes data from a pedometer and does something fun with it."[1] They announced two new games, Wattam (directed by Keita Takahashi) and Luna, "a tactile puzzle game set in a vibrant and sculptural story-book world", both of which have been released with Hunicke credited as executive producer.[2]

Hunicke is recognized in the industry for her support of indie games, experimentation in game design, research in dynamic difficulty adjustment, and the advocacy of women within the games industry.[3] She has been accused of emotionally abusing Funomena employees.[4] [5]

Early life and education

Hunicke was born on March 15, 1973, in Albany, New York.[6] She holds a B.A. degree from the University of Chicago and is finishing a PhD in Artificial Intelligence with a focus on Games and Game Design from Northwestern University.[7]

Career

Electronic Arts

Hunicke began her work with Electronic Arts at Maxis, where she became a designer for after meeting famed game designer and Sims director Will Wright. Following her work on The Sims 2, Hunicke went on to become the lead designer for MySims on the Nintendo Wii, and later, was a producer for Boom Blox and its sequel, .[8] [9] [10]

thatgamecompany

Following her work at Electronic Arts, Hunicke joined thatgamecompany as producer.[11] She joined the team in the early conceptual stages for the studio's third project Journey, a multiplayer cooperative adventure game released in early 2012.[12] [13]

Tiny Speck

After the release of Journey, Hunicke left thatgamecompany to join Tiny Speck to continue development of their social MMORPG Glitch.[14]

Funomena

Prior to the release of Glitch, Hunicke left Tiny Speck to co-found Funomena together with Martin Middleton. They announced their first project in October 2012: "to build a game that takes data from a pedometer and does something fun with it."[1] Their first video game is Luna, a VR-focused art game[15] which is described as "a tactile puzzle game set in a vibrant and sculptural story-book world". They then developed Wattam, a spiritual successor of Bandai Namco's Katamari series directed by its creator, Keita Takahashi.[16] It was released on PlayStation 4 and PC (via Epic Games Store) on December 17, 2019.

Emotional abuse allegations

In March 2022, allegations were made by anonymous former employees in a YouTube video released by People Make Games that Hunicke had emotionally abused Funomena staff, bringing up sensitive information about their personal lives during workplace discussions regarding performance. Hunicke later acknowledged this in a now-deleted series of tweets stating that she was sorry that people were hurt by her mistakes and was taking a break but did not respond to any specific contents of the report. Two weeks following the release of the report it was reported that Funomena was shutting down.[17] In May 2022 a report by Fanbyte uncovered additional details including employees stating that they were unsure if the studio is closing down or secured outside funding and that the studio attempted to gain funds by attempting to becoming a work-for-hire company for companies that made content in Roblox. The report also stated that two days after Hunicke posted her Twitter apology, Hunicke and Funomena co-founder Martin Middleton told staff that there would be layoffs at the studio, and that Funomena would likely close due to People Make Games' video and its impact on the studio's ability to secure outside funding.[18] [19] [20]

Conferences and events

Hunicke contributes to various video game industry conferences and events throughout the year. She is an organizer of the annual Game Design Workshop at the Game Developer's Conference, where she helps organize the event and teaches with designers Doug Church, Marc LeBlanc, Frank Lantz, Stone Librande, Clint Hocking and others.[21] Hunicke is also an organizer of the Experimental Gameplay Sessions at GDC with Jonathan Blow, Doug Church, and Chris Hecker.[22] Many successful games have made their first public appearance at the session, including Jonathan Blow's Braid and Valve's Portal.[23] Hunicke is also an organizer of IndieCade, an annual festival dedicated to independent game development.[24]

Hunicke is a founding member of the IGDA Education SIG, has participated in the Indie Game Jam, helps with the Global Game Jam, teaches at UCSC, is a judge for the Independent Games Festival and a co-head of the Experimental Gameplay Workshop.[25] [26]

Research

In her studies, Hunicke researches dynamic difficulty adjustment. She is also interested in how "the notions of fate, meaning, and consequence can be communicated via video games".[27]

MDA framework

From 2001 to 2004,[28] Hunicke, Marc LeBlanc, and Robert Zubek created the Mechanics-Dynamics-Aesthetics framework to focus and improve game analysis. The framework categorizes the many aspects of a game as Mechanics, Dynamics, or Aesthetics, and outlines the inverse perspectives of designer and player. From the perspective of the designer, the Mechanics generate Dynamics which generate Aesthetics. From the perspective of the player, the player experiences the game through the Aesthetics, which are provided by Dynamics that emerge from the game Mechanics.

Awards and recognition

On May 21, 2008, Hunicke was chosen for Gamasutra's "Gamasutra 20", "honoring the Top 20 women working in the video game industry". In 2009, Microsoft awarded Hunicke the Women in Gaming Award for Design. She also earned a spot on the Hot 100 Game Developers of 2009 list by Edge Magazine.[25] [29] [30]

To date, the various titles Hunicke has worked on have garnered awards, such as the "Online Innovation Award" for Journey at the Game Developers Choice Online Awards[31] and a BAFTA award for "Best Casual Game of 2008" for Boom Blox.[32]

In addition to awards received, she is also a contest judge for Will Wright's Proxi art challenge.[33]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Funomena – Awesome Day . October 10, 2012 . . September 5, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140905122640/http://www.funomena.com/?p=224 . live .
  2. Web site: Luna. Funomena. September 13, 2015. December 10, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151210213116/http://www.funomena.com/luna/. live.
  3. Web site: GDC Vault – Indie Gamemaker Rant . March 13, 2011 . GDCVault . September 21, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120921213156/http://www.gdcvault.com/play/1012312/Indie-Gamemaker-Rant . live .
  4. News: Chalk . Andy . 2022-03-18 . Two reports paint a troubling picture of workplace abuses at acclaimed indie studios . en . PC Gamer . 2022-03-20 . March 18, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220318224554/https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/two-reports-paint-a-troubling-picture-of-workplace-abuses-at-acclaimed-indie-studios/ . live .
  5. Web site: Bryant Francis . 2022-03-18 . Funomena co-founder Robin Hunicke accused of workplace emotional abuse . 2022-03-20 . Game Developer . en . March 19, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220319182441/https://www.gamedeveloper.com/culture/funomena-co-founder-robin-hunicke-accused-of-workplace-emotional-abuse . live .
  6. Web site: Robin Hunicke – Photos. Robin Hunicke. October 2, 2011. June 20, 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20100620141311/http://www.cs.northwestern.edu/~hunicke/photos/hotr/index.html. live.
  7. Web site: Robin Hunicke – Bio. March 13, 2011. Robin Hunicke. May 14, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170514220435/http://www.cs.northwestern.edu/~hunicke/bio.html. live.
  8. Web site: Moby Games – Sims 2 . March 13, 2011 . Moby Games . October 24, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121024001037/http://www.mobygames.com/game/sims-2-open-for-business . live .
  9. Web site: Moby Games – MySims . March 13, 2011 . Moby Games . October 24, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121024184736/http://www.mobygames.com/game/mysims . live .
  10. Web site: Moby Games – Boom Blox . March 13, 2011 . Moby Games . November 13, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121113051001/http://www.mobygames.com/game/wii/boom-blox . live .
  11. Web site: thatgamecompany – People – Robin Hunicke . March 13, 2011 . thatgamecompany . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110324034826/http://thatgamecompany.com/about/robin-hunicke/ . March 24, 2011 .
  12. Web site: thatgamecompany – Games – Journey . March 13, 2011 . thatgamecompany . January 16, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130116030356/http://thatgamecompany.com/games/journey/ . live .
  13. Web site: thatgamecompany – Robin Hunicke Joins TGC . March 13, 2011 . thatgamecompany . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110520194115/http://thatgamecompany.com/general/robin-hunicke-joins-tgc/ . May 20, 2011 .
  14. Web site: Bigger, Better, Brighter . . March 31, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120331204328/http://www.glitch.com/blog/2012/03/29/bigger-better-brighter/ . March 31, 2012 . March 29, 2012 . dead.
  15. The Woman Who Gave You Journey Returns With a VR Fairy Tale. WIRED. August 23, 2017. en-US. August 23, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170823161211/https://www.wired.com/story/robin-hunicke-vr-game-luna/. live.
  16. Web site: McCarthy . Caty . Keita Takahashi on Wattam and the Superfluousness of Video Games . . September 21, 2018 . en . September 23, 2018 . September 23, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180923235100/https://www.usgamer.net/articles/keita-takahashi-wattam-video-games-feature-interview-pax-west . live .
  17. News: Andy Chalk published . 2022-03-29 . Two weeks after workplace abuse allegations, Funomena is reportedly closing . en . PC Gamer . 2022-03-30 . March 30, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220330011029/https://www.pcgamer.com/two-weeks-after-workplace-abuse-allegations-funomena-is-reportedly-closing/ . live .
  18. News: People Make Games is taking on "Roblox" and abusive indie developers - the Washington Post. June 8, 2022. June 22, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220622220322/https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2022/06/07/people-make-games-roblox-indie-devs/. live.
  19. Web site: 2022-05-06 . The Hopeful Beginning and Abrupt Shuttering of Funomena . 2022-05-13 . Fanbyte . en-US . May 13, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220513161957/https://www.fanbyte.com/features/the-hopeful-beginning-and-abrupt-shuttering-of-funomena/ . live .
  20. News: Smith . Graham . 2022-05-07 . New Funomena report charts downfall amid abuse allegations . en . Rock, Paper, Shotgun . 2022-05-13 . May 10, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220510183849/https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/new-funomena-report-charts-downfall-amid-abuse-allegations . live .
  21. Web site: Game Developers Conference – Tutorials . May 31, 2011 . GDC . May 16, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110516064258/http://www.gdconf.com/conference/tutorials.html . live .
  22. Web site: GDC 2011: The Experimental Gameplay Sessions Highlights . May 31, 2011 . IndieGames . timw . March 4, 2011 . October 23, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111023071215/http://www.indiegames.com/2011/03/gdc_2011_highlights_from_the_e.html . live .
  23. Web site: EGW – History . March 13, 2011 . www.experimental-gameplay.org . February 17, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110217185317/http://www.experimental-gameplay.org/blog/?p=230 . live .
  24. Web site: IndieCade – About . March 13, 2011 . IndieCade . March 24, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110324200208/http://www.indiecade.com/index.php/about/ . live .
  25. Web site: Gamasutra 20 – Women in Games . March 13, 2011 . Gamasutra . February 13, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110213140642/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/3589/women_in_games_the_gamasutra_20.php?page=7 . live .
  26. Web site: IGF Judges Announced . March 13, 2011 . Independent Game Festival . September 2, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160902115018/http://igf.com/2010/12/2011_independent_games_festiva_8.html . live .
  27. Web site: Robin Hunicke – Homepage . March 13, 2011 . Robin Hunicke . November 21, 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20101121010701/http://www.cs.northwestern.edu/~hunicke/research.html . live .
  28. http://www.zubek.net/robert//publications/MDA.pdf
  29. Web site: Women in Games Awards . March 13, 2011 . IGDA . April 30, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110430032741/http://archives.igda.org/women/archives/2010/03/nominees_for_mi.html . live .
  30. Web site: The Hot 100 Game Developers. Edge. https://web.archive.org/web/20120820031542/http://www.edge-online.com/features/hot-100-game-developers-2009?page=2. August 20, 2012. dead. March 13, 2011.
  31. Web site: GDCOnline Innovation Award . October 19, 2012 . UBM . October 17, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121017220814/http://gdconlineawards.com/archive/innovation.html . live .
  32. Web site: 2009 BAFTA Awards . March 13, 2011 . BAFTA . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110219071725/http://www.bafta.org/awards/video-games/nominations,664,BA.html#overlay=hidden . February 19, 2011 .
  33. Web site: Will Wright's Proxi Art Challenge – Unity Connect. April 14, 2018. April 14, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180414091911/https://connect.unity.com/challenges/proxi. live.

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