tom lapille

senior game designer

About

I specialize in collectible games. I started playing them in 1997, started designing them in 2008, and haven't looked back since. I worked on Magic: The Gathering for over five years, and I was the lead designer of Skylanders Battlecast, a free to play mobile kids' TCG. Within the collectible game world, I've done pretty much everything. I've led both the initial and final design of card sets. I've written game story and commissioned card art to fit established parts of IP's. I've engineered competitive tournament formats and digital event offerings to keep players engaged. I've scripted card and AI behavior with and without Unity tools. I've managed a design team that was responsible for all of these things.

Country

united states

City

oakland

Industry

computer games

Skill

game development, game design, game mechanics, gameplay, project management, public speaking, computer games, online gaming, game balance, level design, technical writing, character animation, user interface design, storyboarding, concept design, creative direction, monetization, gaming, multiplayer, interactive entertainment, adobe creative suite, kenjutsu, japanese history, trading card games

Experience

senior game designer

pocket gems

2016-7 - Present · 10 yrs 3 mos

* Design and tune content structure, supergame, and economic models * Improve existing minigame rule set * Create and implement process for creating unique 3D assets from mechanical design to concept outsourcing to final implementation * Manage all designers and associate designers on the project

designer

wizards of the coast

2009-2 - 2012-8 · 3 yrs 7 mos

* Led final design of Magic 2012 and Dark Ascension, both the best-selling sets of their kind upon release * Led final design of Archenemy and the Magic Online-exclusive sets Masters Edition III and IV * Served on eight final design teams and three initial design teams for Magic mainline booster releases * Wrote DailyMTG's Latest Developments column from January 2009 to November 2011 * Built and playtested decks in Future Future League competitive constructed playtesting * Built all Magic acquisition products, including Intro Packs, Sample Decks, and Deck Builder's Tool Kit * Led final design of mathematical systems for D&D 5th edition * Served on final design team for three Kaijudo card sets * Served on initial design team for the Scoundrels of Skullport expansion to Lords of Waterdeep

lead game designer, skylanders battlecast

activision

2014-12 - 2016-6 · 1 yr 7 mos

Created and managed five-person design team that spans both card and video game design experience Designed multi-year release plan for launch and future card content Scripted card mechanics, animations, VFX, SFX, and AI in Unity Created and owned the card concepting, art commissioning, and naming process Designed single player content structure and AI Designed economy and monetization model

designer advanced, magic: the gathering r and d

wizards of the coast

2012-8 - 2014-11 · 2 yrs 4 mos

* Led final design of Modern Masters 2015 Edition and initial design of an unannounced Magic set * Designed digital implementation for all paper Magic products * Designed Magic Online-exclusive products and owned the Magic Online Cube product line * Designed and maintained Magic Online tournament and event offerings * Created strategy for maintaining player engagement during activity troughs * Led final design of Born of the Gods and Dragons of Tarkir and served on three other final design teams * Managed five in-house contract designers, four of whom converted to full time employees * Owned the paper Magic introductory product line * Drove the creation and maintenance of the Modern tournament format, including its vision and banned list