Game Designer with 6 years of experience bridging animation and design. I specialize in narrative systems design and hands-on implementation, having shipped three commercial titles - and the fourth just announced. I excel at translating complex ideas into clear documentation and working features.
Jade Jauquet
Game Systems & Implementation
I prove my design thinking through detailed project breakdowns. See how I solve problems, iterate on systems, and ship games.
Life is Strange: Reunion
Gameplay Designer | 2026
Narrative adventure featuring rewind mechanics and branching dialogue systems
Scene implementation: Imported and processed 40+ scenes from script to playable state, ensuring narrative logic and variable tracking functioned correctly across rewind complexity and branching dialogue paths
Pipeline advocacy: Partnered with engineering to streamline scene import workflow from 50+ manual steps to 5, enabling design team to focus on narrative logic and gameplay rather than technical setup
Documented in my Design Work "From 50 Steps to 5"
Post-script ownership: Managed scenes from initial import through final polish, implementing quest logic, environmental storytelling, and player progression systems
Cross-team collaboration: Bridged narrative, engineering, and cinematics teams to maintain design intent throughout implementation
Detailed Design Work posts about LIS: Reunion will be published after March 2026
Experience
Want to see more of my design process before then? -> Explore my Design Work Breakdowns
Life is Strange: Double Exposure
Gameplay Designer | 2024
Narrative adventure featuring dual timeline mechanics and player choice systems
Dual timeline implementation: Managed variable tracking and branching logic across parallel realities—NPC states, dialogue variations, environmental changes—ensuring world consistency reflected player choices in both timelines
Systematic interaction polish: Strike team member polishing environmental hotspots, establishing design principles for player guidance under tight production deadlines
Documented in my Design Work: “Interaction Polish”
Player progression systems: Implemented state-dependent content including collision passes and photo wall displays that updated based on story progression and player actions
Pipeline documentation: Identified workflow bottlenecks during production, providing foundation for tool advocacy and process improvements on subsequent projects
Design Work posts are available: See the systematic approach, design principles, and pipeline improvements that made this shippable.
Explore my Design Work Breakdowns
The Expanse: A Telltale series
Cinematic Animator & Design Contributor | 2023
Narrative adventure featuring interactive cinematic mechanics
Contributed to interactive gameplay systems design alongside animation responsibilities:
Point Targeting System (PTS) prototyping: Strike team member establishing technical foundation for interactive cinematics—environment setup, pacing implementation, first system integration
How we prototyped and validated an interactive cinematic system
"The Ladder" sequence: Design-driven implementation transforming brief script moment into high-stakes interactive gameplay, solving technical constraints (mocap stitching, spatial orientation, camera gimbal) that proved PTS value for narrative tension
Transforming 3 script lines into proof-of-concept gameplay
Creative direction impact: The Ladder's success directly influenced Episode 5's heavy PTS usage, with majority of 40-minute runtime dedicated to interactive sequences—validating system for emotional storytelling beyond combat scenarios
Cross-discipline collaboration: Bridged animation, design, and engineering perspectives to advocate for system utility and establish workflow for future interactive moments
My Design Work Breakdowns detail the full prototyping and implementation process
Life is Strange: Remastered Collection
Cinematic Animator | 2022
Remastered edition featuring updated facial performances
Polished motion capture performances using FACS framework for facial animation, including emotionally critical sequences
Managed branching dialogue content adjustments in Unreal Engine 4's Matinee tool, ensuring consistency across conversation variations
Coordinated NPC conversation review pipeline—cataloged branching moments, assigned work to team members, conducted quality reviews, and collaborated with production on prioritization
Supported contractor onboarding and integration, providing technical guidance on studio tools and project standards
Design Work Breakdowns
These shipped titles represent years of collaborative work. Want to see the specific design problems I solved?
Featured Breakdown!
Ideas are easy; implementation is everything. I thrive on being hands-on—prototyping, building, and assembling the systems that bring the team's vision to life for a high-quality player experience.
Additional Design Work Breakdowns
Want to understand my design process? Check out detailed breakdowns of shipped work.
I approach every system with a passion for balance and the rigorous iteration required to find the fun. I finish what I start, bringing a professional, solution-oriented perspective to every development challenge.
About Me
Hello, Jade here. I'm a passionate video game animator turned designer. I love geeking out about game design; be it gameplay loops, skill trees, branching narratives, or combat flow, I enjoy diving deep and discussing what makes a game FUN for its audience.
Beyond video games, I'm human. I live in the Denver Metro area with my wonderful wife and our growing family of little munchkins and fur babies. I strive for a balanced, active lifestyle. For every moment I'm behind a screen, I'm equally likely to be above a knife, cooking for the crowd, or in the gym pushing some iron.
With little ones underfoot, my time for the written word has shrunken (praise be to Audible)- often have a fantasy epic queued up for my next dog walk, and 23+ children's books borrowed from our local library.
My background was forged managing a high-volume restaurant, where I learned to juggle complex, real-time dilemmas while maintaining a strategic, big-picture perspective. This skill translates well to game development, enabling effective teamwork across teams while remembering that decisions need to be fluid to keep the guest (final client) happy and engaged while remaining within our desired scope.
My dedication to finishing projects is shown by my experience in filming, editing, and co-producing a feature-length documentary from start to finish. Quaff Kings is an easy-to-watch 60-minute film about a group of beer-drinking professionals. Gather a few buds, find yourself a PBR (or two), and watch it here - QuaffKings.com
Thank you for taking the time to explore my portfolio! I'm excited about the possibility of contributing to your next big project. Let’s connect and see how we can work together to achieve your goals!
I bring enthusiasm for collaboration and a cook's mindset: taste as you go, iterate quickly, and serve something people want to come back for.
See my design process in action through detailed project breakdowns.
Contact Me!
Are you building the next blockbuster game?
I want in.
I’m a relentless, team-first designer who ships polished systems, smashes blockers, and elevates design with thoughtful story integration and fearless creativity.
What you’ll get:
A passion for player-first design and relentless playtesting to find THE FUN!
Proven experience transforming ideas into playable features, weaving gameplay and narrative.
A collaborative mindset: clear communication and mentorship that accelerates the whole team.
If your studio is assembling an elite team to build something unforgettable, reach out now. I want to help you make the next awesome game — no ego, all execution, and some dad jokes.
You can contact me via e-mail or LinkedIn