16 shipped titles as a game designer, writer, and UX lead. I love working with teams large and small! I've been lucky to contribute to projects that are on the cutting edge of something -- whether it's co-op parent-child gameplay with the Kinect peripheral, or proprietary game-toy hybrids like Disney's Playmation project, I like working with people who are on the frontier of something new.…

Whitney Allen

16 shipped titles as a game designer, writer, and UX lead. I love working with teams large and small! I've been lucky to contribute to projects that are on the cutting edge of something -- whether it's co-op parent-child gameplay with the Kinect peripheral, or proprietary game-toy hybrids like Disney's Playmation project, I like working with people who are on the frontier of something new.…

Available to hire

16 shipped titles as a game designer, writer, and UX lead. I love working with teams large and small! I’ve been lucky to contribute to projects that are on the cutting edge of something – whether it’s co-op parent-child gameplay with the Kinect peripheral, or proprietary game-toy hybrids like Disney’s Playmation project, I like working with people who are on the frontier of something new.

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Skills

Experience Level

Game Design
Expert
Script
Expert
Affinity Designer
Expert
Voiceover
Intermediate
Lua
Beginner

Language

English
Fluent
Japanese
Intermediate

Work Experience

Certified Instructor at Gordon Training International
March 11, 2025 - Present
Instructor for human relations skills training in a small group format. Courses empower parents, teachers, individuals, and youth to define problem ownership, act as effective helping agents when someone else owns the problem, constructively confront others to influence behavior, and use a win-win method of conflict resolution and group-centered leadership to generate radically creative, lasting solutions that keep the problem solved.
Experience Designer, Playmation at Disney Consumer Products
January 1, 2014 - December 31, 2015
Wrote and implemented character-driven missions that allowed players to use their body, imagination, and physical toys to respond to audio scenarios based in the Marvel universe. Designed immersive locations and experiences alongside a skilled audio team. Oversaw content creation and implementation throughout the entire audio pipeline, including voiceover, SFX, and music. Iterated on gameplay for fluid user experience. Assisted Production, Engineering, User Research and Test teams in the final design polish and playtesting of this unusual wearable toy.
Consultant at Blind Squirrel Games
January 1, 2013 - December 31, 2014
Mentored new designers on a AAA science fiction project.
Designer / Writer at Double Fine Productions
January 1, 2010 - December 31, 2011
Utilized the Kinect peripheral to develop story-driven, motion-tracked cooperative gameplay for parents and their young children. Wrote original scripts and gameplay designs, communicating visions to other team members, integrating ideas and creating buy-in. Choreographed gameplay movements and fine-tuned gestures in Lua. Oversaw content through the entire production pipeline, collaborating with Concept Art, Animation, Dev, and Audio teams to shepherd designs from prototype to polish. Coordinated project goals with Sesame Workshop and Warner Bros. partners, integrating all levels of feedback.
Independent Designer at Independent Designer
January 1, 2008 - December 31, 2013
Co-designed and shipped indie game Hieronymus Bash on Xbox Live Arcade alongside a team of four friends. Designed, art directed, funded, and prototyped another indie title, Ghost Chef, for Xbox Live Arcade and iPad. The IP was licensed by Dover Publications.
User Experience Lead / Content Editor at Microsoft Game Studios
May 1, 2007 - April 10, 2010
Eight shipped titles on Xbox 360 and PC, including Fable II. Sole editor and partial writer of Fable II’s 750,000 words of content. Stack ranked in the top 10% of all Microsoft employees for work on Fable II. Edited over 45,000 lines of dialogue and contributed to story and game design. Created Limited Collector’s Edition contents, edited the strategy guide, and oversaw the game’s ESRB submission. Implemented usability-focused changes with User Research. Collaborated with Marketing, Legal, Design, Art, Audio, Test, Production, Print, and Localization teams to ship on time. Built relationships with partner studios in Japan and Europe.

Education

B.A., English at St. Olaf College
August 1, 2005 - May 1, 2007
Minor degrees in Japanese, Linguistics, and Gender Studies.

Qualifications

International Game Developers Association GDC Scholarship Recipient
March 1, 2007 - March 1, 2007
Speaker, Gamelab Barcelona, "The Art of War for Girls: How to win by being the person you actually are"
June 1, 2015 - June 1, 2015

Industry Experience

Gaming, Software & Internet, Media & Entertainment, Education, Professional Services
    uniE621 Playmation
    I was an Experience Designer during the later stages of Disney’s Playmation project, which integrated physical toys, custom speakers, imaginative play, and interactive audio missions based in the Marvel Universe. I created roadmaps for future IPs using this system. My working process is as spontaneous, direct, and effective as possible, in the sense that I’ll come with an idea for a level, mission, or feature design from scratch and diagram it on a whiteboard in full view of the team. I worked closely with a skilled audio and narrative team on this project and I felt proud of the immersive soundscapes and guided missions we created together.…
    paper Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster

    This project featured co-op, story-driven, motion-tracked gameplay intended for parents and their young children.

    paper Fable II

    I was the sole editor and partial writer of Fable II’s 750,000 words of content. The project also included multiple DLC titles.

    paper Ghost Chef (2011)

    I created this original IP while still at Microsoft, wanting more practice in designing and implementing my own ideas. I hired Steph Laberis, an incredible concept artist, and worked with animator Abby Goldsmith to achieve a hand-animated look in Flash. The systems in this game were based on WarioWare-style micro-interactions and the ghosts have a simple AI of their own – the game can play itself, to a degree, and it invites the player to participate to whatever degree they choose.

    This trailer is from the Xbox Live Arcade version. The first iPad was released in 2010, and Ghost Chef had an iOS prototype in addition to the console version that was programmed by Sean Mann.

    Ghost Chef currently lives on as assets (Flash in 2026! Woo!), and Dover Publications licensed the IP for a printed stickerbook.