Senior Game Designer & Developer

Rafael
De Miguel

Narrative · Gameplay · Combat · Level

Rafael De Miguel
About Me

Rafael De Miguel,
Game Designer.

Although specialized in Narrative and Progression, I have experience in almost all of the areas of game design and development. Since 2018, I have worked on many different video games all of which have been launched on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch.

With experience leading teams, as well as taking ownership over large sections of the development process from conception to finish, I always face any obstacle with optimism and passion.

"Rafael is a dedicated and knowledgeable designer who works well in a team setting. He would be a valuable addition to any creative studio, and I wish him the best in his future endeavors."

— Adrian Cuevas, Co-Founder of Nomada Studio
8 Years of
Experience
5 Games
Published
3 Studios
Worked At
Experience

Previous Roles

2025 – 2026

Nomada Studio

2D · Action Platformer · 2026

Senior Game Designer (Sole Designer)

Neva: Prologue — 2026 / PC & Consoles

  • Designed and prototyped all level layouts, level mechanics and puzzles
  • Designed and prototyped the final boss as well as all enemy encounters
  • Worked closely with the Creative Director and the art team to design and implement all story beats
  • Maintained a consistent workflow of playtesting, documenting feedback as well as asking for feedback

2019 – 2025

Aheartfulofgames

3D · Action Platformer · 2024

Lead Narrative & Progression Designer

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants Unleashed — 2024 / PC & Consoles

  • Collaborated with the whole design team to develop and document the concept of the game
  • Led a flexible team of up to 3 other designers to design and implement all in-game cutscenes
  • Coordinated with writer to create and integrate the story, characters and script
  • Designed and partially implemented game progression mechanics and tools
  • Worked closely with level design, animation and environment teams to create each game mission

3D · Strategy · In Development

Lead Game Designer & Co-Writer

Ironskins — In Development

  • Involved all aspects of the game's design and development
  • Focused on system design, narrative structure, script and mission design
  • Worked closely with a small multidisciplinary team across all disciplines
  • Led a team of other 2 designers

3D · Action · 2022

Narrative & Game Designer

DreamWorks Dragons: Legends of the Nine Realms — 2022 / PC & Consoles

  • Collaborated with the whole design team to develop and document the concept of the game
  • Designed and implemented all in-game cutscenes
  • Integrated all dialogues
  • Designed the audio system and worked with composer and sfx artist to integrate all sounds using FMOD
  • Implemented and polished most of the game UI

3D · Open World · 2021

Game Designer

DreamWorks Spirit Lucky's Big Adventure — 2021 / PC & Consoles

  • Designed and implemented several in-game cutscenes
  • Partially implemented and polished animal AI system
  • Partially implemented and polished horse vault and movement systems
  • Polished several game missions and set pieces

2018 – 2019

Independent Work

3D · Survival Strategy · 2019

Game Designer & Programmer

Project Katharsis — 2019 / PC

  • Worked on all aspects of the game design and its documentation
  • Programmed and implemented most of the systems and mechanics
  • VFX polish and character art polish
Portfolio

Published Games

All images and videos are either publically available or have been explicitly allowed to be shown

Neva: Prologue

2D · Action Platformer · 2026

Neva: Prologue

Nomada Studio

Senior Game Designer (Sole Designer)

TMNT: Mutants Unleashed

3D · Action Platformer · 2024

TMNT: Mutants Unleashed

Aheartfulofgames

Lead Narrative & Progression Designer

Ironskins

3D · Strategy · In Development

Ironskins

Aheartfulofgames

Lead Game Designer & Co-Writer

DreamWorks Dragons

3D · Action · 2022

DreamWorks Dragons: Legends of the Nine Realms

Aheartfulofgames

Narrative & Game Designer

Spirit Lucky's Big Adventure

3D · Open World · 2021

DreamWorks Spirit Lucky's Big Adventure

Aheartfulofgames

Game Designer

Project Katharsis

3D · Survival Strategy · 2019

Project Katharsis

Independent

Game Designer & Programmer

Responsibilities

    Skills

    Tools & Education

    Design

    Game Design

    • Mechanics & Gameplay Design
    • Narrative Design, Dialogue Systems & Cinematics
    • Game Structure & Progression
    • Level & Quest Design
    • Combat Systems & Enemy Design

    Production

    • Experience leading teams
    • Prototyping & Rapid Iteration
    • Detailed documentation
    • Extensive experience working with other departments

    Tools

    Game Engines

    • Unity
    • Unreal Engine

    Programming

    • C#
    • Blueprint
    • JavaScript

    Workflow

    • JIRA
    • Plastic SCM / Sourcetree
    • Trello / Hack N Plan

    Documentation

    • Word
    • Power Point
    • Excel
    • Flowchart Tools

    Art

    • Photoshop
    • Illustrator
    • 3D Max
    • Premiere

    Audio

    • FMOD
    • Audition
    • Audacity

    Education

    2015 – 2019

    B.A. in Game Design

    U-TAD University (Madrid, Spain)

    2023

    Leadership Training Course

    ADEK Course (Madrid, Spain)

    Languages

    English — Native

    Spanish — Native

    Catalan — B1

    German — A2

    Japanese — A2

    Contact

    Let's Work Together

    Are you interested in my work? Feel free to reach out for job opportunities, collaborations, or just to talk about games.