#MeetIronGalaxy – Fernando Rivera

Designers think a lot about what makes a video game fun. Final judgment is always reserved for the player, but the designer’s challenge is to capture their imagination. Let’s connect with Fernando, one of our designers who creates content with you in mind.

Iron Galaxy: What’s up Fernando? Tell us about yourself.

Fernando Rivera: I’m a game designer. Most of the time, that means designing interfaces and user experiences, making sure they’re fun or easy to use (ideally both!) and working with my artist and engineering friends to make sure they don’t break everything else in the game.

IG: Hard to love a game that’s broken! What’s the one skill you learned growing up that you’d say you use the most?

FR: So much of my work comes down to anticipating how people perceive and process the world. Putting myself in other people’s shoes and trying to understand how they think and what their motivations are is something I’ve practiced a lot, ever since I was young. I ended up getting a degree in psychology and quit out of a doctorate when I realized I hated academia. If you asked me what I learned in seven years of studying psychology, you’d probably get five minutes of disjointed, out-of-date information. But, the practice of examining and understanding people is something that, has carried me far.

IG: Interesting, we wonder how many other psychology majors have ended up in game design. What’s been your proudest moment as a member of the Iron Galaxy team?

FR: Shipping THPS3+4 has been a legitimate dream come true. Prior to this, I’d say I’ve had a successful and fulfilling career of low-key releases and cancelled projects, but going from one of the fans wishing 3+4 would be made to actually helping make it happen is an absolute peak for sure.
‍

IG: Goals. What was a memorable takeaway from attending GDC last year?

FR: Every time I go to GDC, I am invigorated and rejuvenated, and my inspiration goes up by like a thousand percent. Meeting people, reconnecting with people, and just seeing the industry come together is the best. More than any talks, tips, or information I get from any session, I come away with this vigor that comes from being at the center of so many hopes and dreams and so much creative energy. The talks are cool, but you can watch a lot of that online and get as much or more out of that. Nothing beats being in that space with those people.‍
‍

IG: You might have not enjoyed academia as a student, but you have became a game design and C# programming instructor. How has teaching enriched your career?

FR: Getting to work with students and oversee many game projects gave me a lot of micro-opportunities to work through design and debugging problems, so it was always great problem-solving experience. Understanding how to work through those problems and giving feedback in particular maps pretty directly with managing other designers.

IG: Helpful experiences you can remember for the future. At Iron Galaxy Orlando, you’re known to frequent the GameCube controllers during Smash lunch sessions. Who’s your main and why?

FR: I tried for a long time to make Inkling work, and I’ve gotten decent with them, but I think ultimately, I’m better with Terry Bogard.

‍‍

IG: Hey, c’mon c’mon, your Inkling is better than decent! Where were you born and where did you grow up?

FR: I was born in Chicago but moved to Orlando when I was five. Orlando has always been my home since, but Chicago has always been very close to my heart.

IG: If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would you choose?

FR: I legitimately think I could eat Indian food every day forever.

IG: Mhmm, great choice. What’s your favorite travel destination?

FR: I’ve been to Paris twice now and I just absolutely adore it. It was honestly never super high on my list, but I fell in love the first time I went a couple of years ago. My favorite things to do visiting anywhere is walking around a city and eating food and Paris is really good at that.
‍

‍IG: Who doesn’t love getting their grub on somewhere new? Tell us about the most recent concert you saw.

FR: Most recently we went to see Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution, which is an annual show where Streetlight Manifesto plays accompanied by an acoustic orchestra. My wife was just talking about how this was the year she was going to travel for that show, but they happened to have it in Orlando!‍
‍

IG: Super convenient. Y’all still deserve the trip another year! What’s the one song most likely to earn you a speeding ticket?

FR: Not a song, but when I was in undergrad I'd make occasional four hour drives between Orlando and FSU. Sometimes, I would hook up my portable DVD player to my stereo and listen to Star Wars movies, and I was definitely driving faster during a Death Star run.‍

‍

IG: We’ll assume you had the good sense to turn off your targeting computer! What’s been your favorite series to binge?

FR: These days, I’m not one for binging, and I generally think media is more memorable and interesting enjoyed over time with a community and friends, and binging often undercuts that. All that aside, Avatar the last Airbender is the answer, and it is probably the series I’ve seen most times start to finish. In college, my friends and I would get together and just spend all day watching a whole season of the show. I got to revisit all of that later when the blu-rays released and I could watch it with my kids, and again once it hit streaming. My youngest is still only five and I look forward to watching it with him when he’s older as well.
‍

IG: That sounds like a blast. Enjoy when that day comes. What’s the one superpower that you would like to have?

FR: Teleportation, easy. I hate driving and being in a car in general. A lot. I could travel so much more and save so much time.

IG: But then, who would destroy the Death Star? Moving beyond the real world, what fictional universe would you choose over our own and what if there was no coming back?

FR: The world of Pokémon, for sure. Not just because I’m a lifelong fan, but also one of the things I love about it is how much that world mirrors our own. It wouldn’t be like some drastic change where I’m like on an alien planet or a medieval peasant fighting for my life. It’s basically our world but a little more sci-fi and many more huggable friends that love beating the crap out of each other. But it’s ok if they like doing it, they want to fight it’s not bad I promise.

IG: Seeing the world react to IRL pokébattles would certainly be a curious experience. If you could have dinner with anyone in the world, who would you choose?

FR: I don’t really follow food industry people, but I would probably pick some kind of world class chef, have them pick/cook the dinner and then I would love to hear them tell me in excruciating detail how they made it and why it’s so good.

New, clever take on an answer for that last question. Design likely lives in every element of life. It’s nice to hear that players have a designer like you, thinking about their perceptions and reactions, every step of the way. If we were to guess, it’s a part of your brain that’s likely hard to turn off sometimes, but hey, it leaves you curious and thinking which must be fun right? Thanks for popping out on the blog Fernando. Cheers on the success of THPS 3 + 4 and best wishes on your latest project.