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{{Short description|American video game designer}}
{{AfC submission|t||ts=20220226072459|u=Flurrious|ns=118|demo=}}
'''Tanya X. Short''' is an American [[video game design]]er. She is a co-founder of [[Kitfox Games]], an independent video game studio in [[Montreal]], Canada. She was lead designer for titles including ''[[Shattered Planet]]'' (2014) and ''[[Moon Hunters]]'' (2016). In 2012, she co-founded the organization [[Pixelles]], which aims to increase gender diversity in video game development.
'''Tanya X. Short''' is a founder of [[Kitfox Games]] and Co-Coordinator of [[Pixelles]].


== Early life ==
== Early life ==
Short was raised in California, United States. She lived in home that was "in the middle of the desert" so she would often play video games rather than play with other children. Short's mother also disliked "passive entertainment" such as television, so her mother bought the family a [[Nintendo Entertainment System]], feeling as though playing video games is a more "active" activity for the brain. As a teenager, Short would spend her time meeting other people through [[massively multiplayer online]] (MMO) games.<ref name="Radio-Canada 2022">{{cite news |last1=Dupuis |first1=Stephanie |title=Tanya X. Short, celle qui fait briller les femmes dans l'industrie du jeu vidéo |trans-title=Tanya X. Short, the one who makes women shine in the video game industry |url=https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/1867196/tanya-x-short-pixelles-femmes-jeu-video-kitfox |access-date=10 September 2022 |publisher=[[CBC/Radio-Canada]] |date=8 March 2022 |language=fr-ca}}</ref>
Short loved text-based online games called [[MUD]]<nowiki/>s, volunteering to make rooms, monsters, and items and becoming a [[content designer]]. She has a Master's in Level Design from the [[SMU Guildhall]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|date=2022-02-23|title=Tanya X. Short – Womenize! – Inspiring Stories|url=https://www.womenize.net/2022/02/23/tanya-x-short-womenize-inspiring-stories/|access-date=2022-02-26|website=Womenize! Action Program|language=en-US}}</ref> Her degree helps with getting [[Work permit|work visas]] to be a designer in Norway and travel Europe.

Short knew she wanted to work as a video game writer after volunteering her time as a [[Online community manager|community manager]] and content designer for an online game.<ref name="IDGA interview">{{cite web |last1=Mood |first1=Jillian |title=IGDA Interview Series: Tanya X. Short |url=https://members.igda.org/blogpost/1253156/239205/IGDA-Interview-Series-Tanya-X-Short |publisher=[[International Game Developers Association]] |date=16 February 2016 |access-date=12 September 2022}}</ref> She attended college in [[Portland, Oregon|Portland]], Oregon, to study English literature. In 2006, she applied for the master's degree program in video game design at [[SMU Guildhall]] in Texas.<ref name="Radio-Canada 2022"/><ref name="IDGA interview" /> Upon graduating from SMU Guildhall in 2008, Short received a few job offers to work on MMO games at video game companies.<ref name="Radio-Canada 2022"/><ref name="IDGA interview"/> She chose to work for Norwegian video game developer [[Funcom]], which was at the time working on the online game ''[[Age of Conan]]''.<ref name="Radio-Canada 2022"/>


== Career ==
== Career ==
At Funcom, Short worked as a narrative designer,<ref name=":1">{{Cite magazine |date=19 March 2020 |title=From AAA to Indie: Kitfox Games Is Carving Its Own Quirky Path to Success |url=https://www.escapistmagazine.com/aaa-indie-kitfox-games-tanya-x-short-interview/ |access-date=26 February 2022 |magazine=[[The Escapist (magazine)|The Escapist]]}}</ref> designing levels and [[Boss (video games)|boss fights]] for MMORPGs.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=23 February 2022 |title=Tanya X. Short – Womenize! – Inspiring Stories |url=https://www.womenize.net/2022/02/23/tanya-x-short-womenize-inspiring-stories/ |access-date=26 February 2022 |website=Womenize! Action Program}}</ref> She moved to [[Montreal]], Canada, in her mid-twenties at the request of her employer, which wanted to take advantage of attractive tax subsidies offered by the province to the video game industry. She participated in meetings held by the Montreal Gaming Society, which Short recalls helped her integrate into the local gaming community even though she did not speak French.<ref name="Radio-Canada 2022"/> In 2012, Short and game hobbyist Rebecca Cohen Palacios founded [[Pixelles]], a non-profit organization which has organized free events to teach video game development to women, non-binary people, transgender people, and people from other marginalized groups.<ref name="Radio-Canada 2022"/><ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last1=Spiegelman |first1=Karen |date=2 March 2020 |title=20 women in gaming you should know |url=https://venturebeat.com/2020/03/02/20-women-in-gaming-you-should-know/ |access-date=26 February 2022 |work=[[VentureBeat]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Boudreau |first1=Kelly |title=Beyond deviance: toxic gaming culture and the potential for positive change |journal=[[Critical Studies in Media Communication]] |date=27 May 2022 |volume=39 |issue=3 |pages=181–190 |doi=10.1080/15295036.2022.2080848 |s2cid=249326044 |doi-access=free }}</ref>
At [[Funcom]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=Tanya Short {{!}} SMU Guildhall|url=https://www.smu.edu/Guildhall/People/Alumni/Alumni-Spotlight/Tanya-Short|access-date=2022-02-26|website=www.smu.edu}}</ref> Short worked as a narrative designer on Age of Conan and The Secret World.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|date=2020-03-19|title=From AAA to Indie: Kitfox Games Is Carving Its Own Quirky Path to Success|url=https://www.escapistmagazine.com/aaa-indie-kitfox-games-tanya-x-short-interview/|access-date=2022-02-26|website=The Escapist|language=en-US}}</ref> She designed levels and [[Boss (video games)|boss fights]] for [[Massively multiplayer online role-playing game|MMO]]<nowiki/>s. On the side, she made little games for fun in [[game jam]]<nowiki/>s and community activities.<ref name=":0" /> Short built the survival adventure [[Shattered Planet]] at the Execution Labs incubator with artist Xin Ran Liu and programmer Jongwoo Kim. Then they founded Kitfox Games in 2014 and created games including the Henry VIII simulator Fit for a King


Around 2013, when Funcom halted its activities in Montreal to continue its activities in [[North Carolina]], Short chose to stay in Montreal and became unemployed.<ref name="Radio-Canada 2022"/> In 2013, she founded [[Kitfox Games]] with three other people. The studio soon developed the game ''[[Shattered Planet]]'', released in 2014, as part of a video game [[Business incubator|incubator]]; Short acted as lead designer of the game.<ref name=":2" /><ref name="Gazette">{{cite news |last1=Guite |first1=Matthew |title=Inside the game in three takes |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/109366976/inside-the-game-in-three-takes/ |work=[[Montreal Gazette]] |date=6 May 2014 |page=20 |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |access-date=11 September 2022}}</ref> As lead designer of the studio's later project ''[[Moon Hunters]]'' (2016), she was motivated to create a game that used [[procedural generation]] to create "personal player narratives."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Francis |first1=Bryant |title=3 lessons on procedural storytelling from Moon Hunters |url=http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/263303/3_lessons_on_procedural_storytelling_from_Moon_Hunters.php |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170511144701/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/263303/3_lessons_on_procedural_storytelling_from_Moon_Hunters.php |archive-date=11 May 2017 |access-date=11 September 2022 |work=[[Gamasutra]] |date=12 January 2016}}</ref> Short later discussed the studio's focus on inclusivity<ref name="VentureBeat 2017">{{Cite news |last1=Chan |first1=Stephanie |date=19 October 2017 |title=Boyfriend Dungeon is like Tinder for swords |url=https://venturebeat.com/2017/10/19/boyfriend-dungeon-is-like-tinder-for-swords/ |access-date=26 February 2022 |work=[[VentureBeat]]}}</ref> when designing ''[[Boyfriend Dungeon]]'' (2021), a [[dungeon crawler]] game about dating one's weapons,<ref name=":3">{{Cite news |last1=Price |first1=Renata |title=Boyfriend Dungeon Director: Despite The Bad Faith, It's Good That We're Talking |url=https://kotaku.com/boyfriend-dungeon-director-despite-the-bad-faith-it-s-1847555533 |access-date=26 February 2022 |work=[[Kotaku]] |date=25 August 2021}}</ref> which meant also giving the player options to date women and non-binary characters despite the title of the game.<ref name="VentureBeat 2017" />
[[Boyfriend Dungeon]] is a RPG and queer weapon-dating sim.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Boyfriend Dungeon Director: Despite The Bad Faith, It’s Good That We’re Talking |url=https://kotaku.com/boyfriend-dungeon-director-despite-the-bad-faith-it-s-1847555533 |access-date=2022-02-26 |website=Kotaku |language=en-us}}</ref> Short apologized for lack of specificity in content warning. Discussion over whether emotional [[Manipulation (psychology)|manipulation]] content should be optional raised questions about [[artistic freedom]] and personal responsibility engaging with potentially upsetting storylines.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Boyfriend Dungeon Updating Content Warning Following Backlash |url=https://kotaku.com/boyfriend-dungeon-updating-content-warning-following-ba-1847493256 |access-date=2022-02-26 |website=Kotaku |language=en-us}}</ref> She used [[Kickstarter]] for market research, saying marketing is mainly managing expectations with sales secondary.<ref name=":3" />


== Bibliography ==
She said video game creation accessibility has made games and game development more diverse while ratcheting up indie and mid-tier competition.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Shea |first=Cam |date=2020-06-01 |title=The Games Industry on the Biggest Changes in the Last Decade |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/the-games-industry-on-the-biggest-changes-in-the-last-decade |access-date=2022-02-26 |website=IGN |language=en}}</ref> Venture capitalists encourage moonshots to pay back games that fail. She hopes co-ops, unions, and other tools to prevent exploitation become more common.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-01-16 |title=Your game studio doesn’t have to survive to succeed |url=https://venturebeat.com/2019/01/15/your-game-studio-doesnt-have-to-survive-to-succeed/ |access-date=2022-02-26 |website=VentureBeat |language=en-US}}</ref> Kitfox emphasizes healthy work culture, sensible hours, and an absence of [[Crunch (video games)|crunch]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=published |first=Jody Macgregor |date=2020-01-20 |title=8 people shaping PC gaming at the start of the decade |language=en |work=PC Gamer |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/8-people-shaping-pc-gaming-at-the-start-of-the-decade/ |access-date=2022-02-26}}</ref> Her pledge against excessive overtime has been signed by over 500 game developers.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Schreier |first=Jason |date=2017-10-25 |title=Opinion {{!}} Video Games Are Destroying the People Who Make Them |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/25/opinion/work-culture-video-games-crunch.html |access-date=2022-02-26 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Short |editor1-first=Tanya |editor2-last=Adams |editor2-first=Tarn |editor2-link=Tarn Adams |title=Procedural Generation in Game Design |date=2017 |publisher=[[CRC Press]] |isbn=9781498799195 |doi=10.1201/9781315156378 |s2cid=69727455 |ref=no}}<ref>Review for ''Procedural Generation in Game Design'': {{cite web |title=MBR: Wisconsin Bookwatch, September 2017 |url=https://www.midwestbookreview.com/wbw/sep_17.htm |publisher=[[Midwest Book Review]] |access-date=10 September 2022}}</ref>
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Short |editor1-first=Tanya |editor2-last=Adams |editor2-first=Tarn |title=Procedural Storytelling in Game Design |date=2019 |publisher=[[CRC Press]] |isbn=9781138595309 |doi=10.1201/9780429488337 |s2cid=241639037 |ref=no}}


⚫
== References ==
Short discussed reward systems design in cozy games. Over-[[gamification]] leads to participation for points rather than the intimate feelings of kind actions.<ref>{{Cite web |title=How to design for coziness...and kindness |url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2018-11-05-how-to-design-for-coziness-and-kindness |access-date=2022-02-26 |website=GamesIndustry.biz |language=en}}</ref> She thinks inclusivity is important in every game, especially for love and forging bonds.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-10-19 |title=Boyfriend Dungeon is like Tinder for swords |url=https://venturebeat.com/2017/10/19/boyfriend-dungeon-is-like-tinder-for-swords/ |access-date=2022-02-26 |website=VentureBeat |language=en-US}}</ref>
{{reflist}}


{{Authority control}}
Short was also a founder of [[Pixelles]], which supports women in game development with scholarships and mid-career support.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=2020-03-02 |title=20 women in gaming you should know |url=https://venturebeat.com/2020/03/02/20-women-in-gaming-you-should-know/ |access-date=2022-02-26 |website=VentureBeat |language=en-US}}</ref> Pixelles has grown to serve more marginalized genders providing both artistic empowerment and industry support.<ref name=":0" />


{{DEFAULTSORT:Short, Tanya X.}}
⚫
== References ==
[[Category:Living people]]
<references />
[[:Category:Southern Methodist University alumni]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[:Category:Reed College alumni]]
[[Category:American video game designers]]
[[:Category:Women video game designers]]
[[Category:Southern Methodist University alumni]]
[[Category:People from California]]
{{Drafts moved from mainspace|date=February 2022}}
[[Category:Women video game designers]]
[[Category:American expatriates in Canada]]

Latest revision as of 04:07, 23 August 2023

Tanya X. Short is an American video game designer. She is a co-founder of Kitfox Games, an independent video game studio in Montreal, Canada. She was lead designer for titles including Shattered Planet (2014) and Moon Hunters (2016). In 2012, she co-founded the organization Pixelles, which aims to increase gender diversity in video game development.

Early life

[edit]

Short was raised in California, United States. She lived in home that was "in the middle of the desert" so she would often play video games rather than play with other children. Short's mother also disliked "passive entertainment" such as television, so her mother bought the family a Nintendo Entertainment System, feeling as though playing video games is a more "active" activity for the brain. As a teenager, Short would spend her time meeting other people through massively multiplayer online (MMO) games.[1]

Short knew she wanted to work as a video game writer after volunteering her time as a community manager and content designer for an online game.[2] She attended college in Portland, Oregon, to study English literature. In 2006, she applied for the master's degree program in video game design at SMU Guildhall in Texas.[1][2] Upon graduating from SMU Guildhall in 2008, Short received a few job offers to work on MMO games at video game companies.[1][2] She chose to work for Norwegian video game developer Funcom, which was at the time working on the online game Age of Conan.[1]

Career

[edit]

At Funcom, Short worked as a narrative designer,[3] designing levels and boss fights for MMORPGs.[4] She moved to Montreal, Canada, in her mid-twenties at the request of her employer, which wanted to take advantage of attractive tax subsidies offered by the province to the video game industry. She participated in meetings held by the Montreal Gaming Society, which Short recalls helped her integrate into the local gaming community even though she did not speak French.[1] In 2012, Short and game hobbyist Rebecca Cohen Palacios founded Pixelles, a non-profit organization which has organized free events to teach video game development to women, non-binary people, transgender people, and people from other marginalized groups.[1][5][6]

Around 2013, when Funcom halted its activities in Montreal to continue its activities in North Carolina, Short chose to stay in Montreal and became unemployed.[1] In 2013, she founded Kitfox Games with three other people. The studio soon developed the game Shattered Planet, released in 2014, as part of a video game incubator; Short acted as lead designer of the game.[5][7] As lead designer of the studio's later project Moon Hunters (2016), she was motivated to create a game that used procedural generation to create "personal player narratives."[8] Short later discussed the studio's focus on inclusivity[9] when designing Boyfriend Dungeon (2021), a dungeon crawler game about dating one's weapons,[10] which meant also giving the player options to date women and non-binary characters despite the title of the game.[9]

Bibliography

[edit]
  • Short, Tanya; Adams, Tarn, eds. (2017). Procedural Generation in Game Design. CRC Press. doi:10.1201/9781315156378. ISBN 9781498799195. S2CID 69727455.[11]
  • Short, Tanya; Adams, Tarn, eds. (2019). Procedural Storytelling in Game Design. CRC Press. doi:10.1201/9780429488337. ISBN 9781138595309. S2CID 241639037.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g Dupuis, Stephanie (8 March 2022). "Tanya X. Short, celle qui fait briller les femmes dans l'industrie du jeu vidéo" [Tanya X. Short, the one who makes women shine in the video game industry] (in Canadian French). CBC/Radio-Canada. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
  2. ^ a b c Mood, Jillian (16 February 2016). "IGDA Interview Series: Tanya X. Short". International Game Developers Association. Retrieved 12 September 2022.
  3. ^ "From AAA to Indie: Kitfox Games Is Carving Its Own Quirky Path to Success". The Escapist. 19 March 2020. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  4. ^ "Tanya X. Short – Womenize! – Inspiring Stories". Womenize! Action Program. 23 February 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  5. ^ a b Spiegelman, Karen (2 March 2020). "20 women in gaming you should know". VentureBeat. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  6. ^ Boudreau, Kelly (27 May 2022). "Beyond deviance: toxic gaming culture and the potential for positive change". Critical Studies in Media Communication. 39 (3): 181–190. doi:10.1080/15295036.2022.2080848. S2CID 249326044.
  7. ^ Guite, Matthew (6 May 2014). "Inside the game in three takes". Montreal Gazette. p. 20. Retrieved 11 September 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Francis, Bryant (12 January 2016). "3 lessons on procedural storytelling from Moon Hunters". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 11 May 2017. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  9. ^ a b Chan, Stephanie (19 October 2017). "Boyfriend Dungeon is like Tinder for swords". VentureBeat. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  10. ^ Price, Renata (25 August 2021). "Boyfriend Dungeon Director: Despite The Bad Faith, It's Good That We're Talking". Kotaku. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  11. ^ Review for Procedural Generation in Game Design: "MBR: Wisconsin Bookwatch, September 2017". Midwest Book Review. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
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