Senior Gameplay Designer | Salt Lake City, UT | Open to Remote
kelle.limadm[at]gmail.com | (801) 503-2538 | LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kellelima
 

Senior Gameplay Designer with 10+ years of experience across game design, gameplay systems, level design, UI/UX, and cross-functional production. Proven track record of designing player-facing features, building and tuning gameplay spaces in engine, and collaborating closely with engineering, art, audio, QA, and UX to create readable, engaging, and replayable experiences. Background includes live game feature development, traversal and movement systems, level design, mobile and cross-platform development, playtesting, iteration, and hands-on Unreal and Unity workflows.

CORE SKILLS
Gameplay Systems Design • Level Design and Encounter Layout • Movement and Traversal Design • Player Abilities and Mechanics • Live Game Feature Development • In-Engine Implementation and Tuning • Playtesting and Iteration • Cross-Functional Collaboration • UI/UX for Games • Multiplayer, Procedural, and Modular Design • Design Documentation and Prototyping • Player-Centered, Replayable Sandbox Design

HIGHLIGHTED TOOLS 
Unreal Engine, Unity, Perforce, GitHub, GitLab, Jira, Miro, Figma, Adobe Creative Suite, Microsoft Office, Google Workspace, Slack, Discord

RELEVANT EXPERIENCE
Confidential PC Game Studio | Level Designer (Contract / Work for Hire)
Remote | Jan 2026 - Present 

• Design and implement level layouts for an in-development third-person PC title in Unreal Engine, with a focus on navigation, gameplay flow, and readable player spaces.

• Build and iterate gameplay environments hands-on in engine, shaping obstacles, traversal flow, and environmental opportunities for the player.

• Contribute light gameplay suggestions to strengthen interaction, pacing, and moment-to-moment engagement.

• Use sublevels, decals, foliage systems, and Blueprint-based setup to support implementation and content organization.

• Iterate closely with the team based on feedback while contributing within an NDA-bound development environment.

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WildWorks | Senior Game Designer
Salt Lake City/Draper, Utah | 2018–2021 

• Owned player-facing gameplay features from concept through implementation and polish for a live game, including contextual spell interactions, gliding traversal, avatar customization, and casual gameplay systems.

• Designed interactive environmental gameplay elements and puzzles, including rotating totems and object-based spell interactions, to support exploration, engagement, and player problem-solving.

• Built, tested, and tuned hundreds of in-game levels and gameplay spaces in engine, improving readability, pacing, challenge, and player choice through iteration.

• Designed for a broad-audience, cross-platform sandbox environment centered on creativity, exploration, customization, and replayability.

• Partnered closely with engineering, art, audio, and UI/UX to refine game feel and deliver polished player-facing content.

• Led user testing efforts and translated playtest findings, surveys, QA feedback, and player behavior into actionable design improvements.

• Mentored junior designers and contributed to a collaborative, feedback-driven design culture.

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University of Utah | Adjunct Assistant Professor (Game Design & Game Dev) 
Salt Lake City, Utah | 2023–2024 

• Taught studio-based and foundational game design courses focused on prototyping, iteration, collaborative development, and gameplay critique.

• Guided students through feature development, design reasoning, team-based production, and playable prototype creation.

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Writerverse Journey LLC | Founder and Creative Director
Salt Lake City, Utah | 2021 - Present

• Founded and led a small publishing studio, overseeing creative production, project management, and release of 15+ published books while managing multidisciplinary workflows, timelines, budgets, and deliverables across concurrent projects.

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Escribo | Lead Game Designer
Recife, Brazil | 2014 - 2016

• Contributed to the development of an educational gaming platform and content library designed to engage students through game-based learning.

• Worked across ideation, design documentation, prototyping, testing, level design, and asset support in collaboration with internal and external teams.

• Helped shape player experience and gameplay structure for educational products, balancing engagement and usability.

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SELECTED GAME PROJECTS
Something Dark Studios | Master’s Thesis Project | Game Designer and Producer
Salt Lake City, Utah | Jan 2017 - May 2018
Co-led development of an online multiplayer game with procedural generation, contributing to gameplay design, prototyping, scheduling, documentation, and team coordination, while helping shape systems and content intended to support replayability, variation, and collaborative development across disciplines.

 

ReviraVolta | Game Designer
Best Game Award, Other Platforms category, SBGames 2015

EDUCATION 
University of Utah (2016–2018)
M.E.A.E. / Entertainment Arts and Engineering, Video Games
Federal University of Pernambuco (2012-2016)
B.A. in Design (Games) | Valedictorian