Overview

• Scope: Owned all POIs, encounters, and level designs across Brimstone Sands
• Flagship systems: Ancient Glyphs collectibles and interactables, Soul Trial game mode, Sandwurm open-world encounter, Monuments and regional resources
• Quest integration: Created MSQ map with Quest team, built the MSQ puzzle “Ordeal of the Nine Gates”, designed level flow for “Ultimate” ability unlock quest at Great Wall of Nebet-Het

Main Story Quest map

Zone Pillars

Every route, landmark, and encounter cluster was evaluated against a compact set of pillars:

• Secrets of the Ancients: mysteries, artifacts, ruins, ancient glyphs
• Monumental Landmarks: Pyramid, Colossus of Rhodes, Diana’s Nemorensis
• Unrelenting Desert: harsh environment, sandwurms, the desert fights back
• Myths & Pantheons: ancient Egyptian and Roman gods, myths, legends

POIs and Level Design Ownership

Owned the zone’s POIs end to end, including encounter layouts, traversal logic, routing readability, and the presentation layer (flyout tooltip standards).

• Design owner for all POIs with iterative prototyping, collaborating with environment art, concept, creatures, quest, tech, and audio
• Introduced jumping puzzles to the game as a unique world feature
• Introduced day and night enemy spawns to the game as a defining world feature in collaboration with engineering
• Designed new Monument POI system: Visiting major landmarks rewards territory standing (Pyramid, Colossus, Great Wall, Giant Tree)
• Designed new Passive POIs: POIs that offer jumping puzzles and/or teleportation networks (Place of Pillars, Great Shrine of Thoth, Palace of Nekhbet)
• Implemented final polish standards for POI flyout UI tooltips, including unique backgrounds and flavor text, applied across the game
• Designed level flow for “Ultimate” ability unlock quest (Secrets of the Heartgem) at Great Wall of Nebet-Het, collaborating with quest and environment art

Ancient Glyphs System

Concepted and implemented Ancient Glyphs as a collectible discovery system that reinforces exploration and environmental storytelling, unifying a hidden language across POIs.

• Created and animated Glyph interactables in collaboration with environment art, engineering, and audio
• Created VFX and Animations for Glyph Chests, Portals, and Glyph Walls
• Integrated Glyph logic into the MSQ puzzle “Ordeal of the Nine Gates”
• Partnered with economy team on end-game Runeglass Gem and Glyphstone crafting systems

Ancient Glyphs map

MSQ Puzzle: Ordeal of the Nine Gates

Designed and implemented a main story environmental logic challenge built around lore journal symbol matching, and Ancient Glyph integration.

• Built environmental logic challenges and routing beats to maintain momentum while testing comprehension
• Aligned puzzle readability with environment art
• Integrated a hint mechanic using the Ancient Glyph system

Introduced New Game Mode: Soul Trial

Invented and owned the first Soul Trial, Necropolis of Sutekh, as a proof of concept for a new capstone MSQ experience: instanced solo boss fights.

• Unlock flow: Immediately available after the “Ordeal of the Nine Gates” MSQ puzzle
• Design intent: A story-forward solo challenge that tests learned combat fundamentals in a controlled arena format

Sandwurm

Developed as a flagship spectacle encounter that anchors the desert fantasy and creates a repeatable, high-visibility open world event.

Sandwurm glimpse

Sandwurm spawn location map

• Delivered marquee encounter presence and zone identity through placement and player flow
• Supported routing and population movement so the event remains discoverable and socially legible

Biome Design, Resources, and Systemic Worldbuilding

Planned biome layout and composition with environment art, then implemented systemic distribution to support resource readability and economy balance.

• Added gatherables, wildlife, encounter design, and biome composition across the full zone
• Designed the Sulfur Pools biome
• Designed biome gatherables and resource identity, including cactus (water), aloe plants, sandstone, and brimstone (sulfur)
• Implemented full wildlife distribution in service resource and economy balance
• Developed unique regional resources and established the Monuments system in collaboration with economy
• Created desert Spirit Shrine kitbash and integrated all new Fast Travel points

Cross-Discipline Collaboration

• Authored the Zone Design Document defining pillars, vision, goals, and encounter flow in collaboration with concept, art direction, environment art, creatures, quest, QA, economy, tech, engine, and server
• Created the MSQ map with Quest team to unify narrative routing and exploration beats
• Collaborated with the AI team on new enemy creature design and combat readability, including armadillos, sulfur dragons, sulfur scorpions, angry earth elementals, and baby scorpions
• Worked with the Server team to produce traffic prediction maps optimizing world population flow
• Integrated and designed the flow for the Heartgem sidequest at Great Wall of Nebet-Het
• Contributed to marketing article called Making of Brimstone Sands

Media Gallery

Impact

Brimstone Sands transformed an outsourced zone into a flagship biome and reset the bar for quality, narrative cohesion, and systemic discovery, while shipping as the largest zone in New World at the time.