Hi!
I'm Hugo, a motivated Level Designer.
I've been a player since I was a kid, and it was at the age of 12 that I began to be interested in creation. I was lucky enough to be able to experiment with several aspects of production through summer internships: Sound Design, Game Programming, and finally Level Design.
In 2020, I joined Isart Digital Paris, one of the most prestigious video game creation schools in France, to do a Master's degree in Game Design. For the last year, I moved to the Montreal campus to get closer to North American studios.
Hi!
I'm Hugo, a motivated Level Designer.
I've been a player since I was a kid, and it was at the age of 12 that I began to be interested in creation. I was lucky enough to be able to experiment with several aspects of production through summer internships: Sound Design, Game Programming, and finally Level Design.
In 2020, I joined Isart Digital Paris, one of the most prestigious video game creation schools in France, to do a Master's degree in Game Design. For the last year, I moved to the Montreal campus to get closer to North American studios.
Education
Level Design for games with Emilia Schatz and Shane Canning
The Architectural Imagination: The fundamental principles of architecture
Experience
QA Tester on Mahokenshi, a Marvel Avengers DLC, and an unannounced AAA game
Within the production process, with the respective project teams, I identified, documented and filed numerous bugs in a Jira database. I made sure that the bugs were understood by the development team, and helped to elaborate solutions.
I wrote a few pre-production documents, such as a graphical reference table or a feature benchmark document.
Finally, I was able to learn from the Game and Level Design teams during numerous playtests and training sessions.
Education
Master's degree in
Game Design
Level Design for games with Emilia Schatz and Shane Canning
The Architectural Imagination: The fundamental principles of architecture
Experience
QA Tester on Mahokenshi, a Marvel Avengers DLC, and an unannounced AAA game
My relationship with games
My childhood
My relationship with video games began a long time ago. I got my first console at the age of 3. It all started with a Nintendo DS and three games. I'm lucky to have an older brother, so I could pick up all his old consoles while he had the new ones. I got access to online games rather late, in 2016. Before that, I played thousands of solo experiences, on every game system that came out after the GameCube. I've never finished the vast majority of them, which proves that my problem with finishing games is not new.
Nowadays
Today, I like short, single-player, carefully crafted experiences. On the multiplayer side, I like competitive games, especially shooters, and games that encourage cooperation and role-playing. I discovered MOBAs late in life, but exploring their many systems and mechanics has always fascinated me. Apart from these preferences, I play all kinds of games. I'm curious by nature and I love to try out, even just for a moment, what an experience that's out of the ordinary has to offer.
My relationship with games
My childhood
My relationship with video games began a long time ago. I got my first console at the age of 3. It all started with a Nintendo DS and three games. I'm lucky to have an older brother, so I could pick up all his old consoles while he had the new ones. I got access to online games rather late, in 2016. Before that, I played thousands of solo experiences, on every game system that came out after the GameCube. I've never finished the vast majority of them, which proves that my problem with finishing games is not new.
Nowadays
Today, I like short, single-player, carefully crafted experiences. On the multiplayer side, I like competitive games, especially shooters, and games that encourage cooperation and role-playing. I discovered MOBAs late in life, but exploring their many systems and mechanics has always fascinated me. Apart from these preferences, I play all kinds of games. I'm curious by nature and I love to try out, even just for a moment, what an experience that's out of the ordinary has to offer.
Games that inspire me
These six games have helped me establish the three design pillars that affect me most, and which I try to incorporate into my creations:
Every aspect of a game must serve its message
The Last of Us Part II – Dishonored 2 – Half-Life 2 – Returnal – Shadow of the Colossus
The player must be able to feel the message of the game through all its content. In The Last of Us Part II, the escalating violence witnessed by the main character is felt through sound, music, lighting, levels, character animations, and many other aspects.
Design by subtraction
Half-Life 2 – Returnal – Counter-Strike – Shadow of the Colossus
The idea is to focus the experience around the core gameplay, removing anything that doesn't directly contribute to it, to create a stronger link between the core experience and the player. Shadow of the Colossus is designed to showcase the Colossi, and tell its story. Music, UI, and navigation have been reduced to a minimum to create the purest core experience.
Emphasis on Level Design
The Last of Us Part II – Dishonored 2 – Half-Life 2 – Counter-Strike
Level design and scenery are the elements of a game that touch me the most. Games like The Last of Us Part II, Counter-Strike, and Dishonored 2 are all examples of the importance of good level design in a game. Level Design is the aspect I want to focus on in my future productions.
Cool things I do outside
A passion for architecture
Apart from video games, I have a real passion for architecture, both functional and purely aesthetic. I think it started when, as a youngster, I began my journey into the world of 3D spaces with building toys like Legos.
Arkane's games really made me want to study architecture
Today, I study architecture in my spare time, reading books, watching videos, and discovering cities with my eyes and camera. I also took an online course at Harvard on the fundamentals of architecture, studying some of the most important buildings in history.
I've been playing basketball since I was 10
This role requires lucidity, excellent communication with the team, and the game sense to see opportunities.
From a social perspective, I've played with players whose backgrounds were completely different from mine, and that's enriched me a lot. It's a sport that unites people, despite their different social backgrounds and origins.
I started playing basketball on the advice of my older brother, who had started earlier, and I loved it right away. I had the opportunity to play at a fairly high level, and because of my small size compared to the rest of the team, I played point guard.
The point guard is the team's coordinator, the one who organizes tactics, creates action, and makes passes at the right moment.
The team in my second year
I often stop to take pictures
I love all art forms that involve images. Video games are one of them, but there's also cinema, theater, painting, and photography. Whether it's a street corner, a window, a park, or a desert, there are beautiful scenes everywhere, you just have to pay attention. Through my photos, I imagine stories, and it's for these kinds of imaginary stories that I like to take pictures.
National Museum, Prague, Czech Republic
What if this museum was the setting for a Hitman level?
What if this child was a rising soccer star?
Child playing soccer, Thar Desert, Rajasthan, India
The Medina, Agadir, Marocco
What if this village hosted a souk full of magical oriental curiosities?
Cool things I do outside
A passion for architecture
Apart from video games, I have a real passion for architecture, both functional and purely aesthetic. I think it started when, as a youngster, I began my journey into the world of 3D spaces with building toys like Legos.
Arkane's games really made me want to study architecture
Today, I study architecture in my spare time, reading books, watching videos, and discovering cities with my eyes and camera. I also took an online course at Harvard on the fundamentals of architecture, studying some of the most important buildings in history.
I've been playing basketball since I was 10
I started playing basketball on the advice of my older brother, who had started earlier, and I loved it right away. I had the opportunity to play at a fairly high level, and because of my small size compared to the rest of the team, I played point guard.
The point guard is the team's coordinator, the one who organizes tactics, creates action, and makes passes at the right moment.
The team in my second year
This role requires lucidity, excellent communication with the team, and the game sense to see opportunities.
From a social perspective, I've played with players whose backgrounds were completely different from mine, and that's enriched me a lot. It's a sport that unites people, despite their different social backgrounds and origins.
I often stop to take pictures
I love all art forms that involve images. Video games are one of them, but there's also cinema, theater, painting, and photography. Whether it's a street corner, a window, a park, or a desert, there are beautiful scenes everywhere, you just have to pay attention. Through my photos, I imagine stories, and it's for these kinds of imaginary stories that I like to take pictures.
National Museum, Prague, Czech Republic
What if this museum was the setting for a Hitman level?
Child playing soccer, Thar Desert, Rajasthan, India
What if this child was a rising soccer star?
The Medina, Agadir, Marocco
What if this village hosted a souk full of magical oriental curiosities?