Hello, I'm Hayden Wilkinson, I'm from New Orleans, Louisiana, and I'm a Principal Designer specializing in narrative-driven interactive experiences. That's right, I love to tell stories and craft experiences for others, and sometimes I just make shit up. 

Games have always been a big part of my life and often times I found myself most attracted to games that allowed me to modify it, or construct my own version, to create my own tower or my own perfect little city. It was no surprise that I fell in love with creating levels back in the early days of Quake and Unreal -- there's something special about crafting something from nothing, sometimes I feel like a magician.

For more than two decades, I've been designing and building interactive experiences, with a focus on narrative-driven gameplay, environmental storytelling, and player exploration.

From concept ideation and rapid prototyping to final implementation and polish, along with a deep expertise in Unreal Engine and Blueprint scripting, I've contributed to various teams and projects helping shape experiences that balance player agency, narrative intent, and meaningful engagement.
 

Over the years I've developed three core principles... Collaboration, Intentionality and Craftsmanship.
 

It turns out that most memorable experiences in games are built by great teams. Strong ideas emerge through open communication, and collaborative partnerships across all disciplines. Every mechanic, environment, encounter, and story beat has to serve both the players experience and the teams goals for the project. The quality of our offerings comes from quick failures and iteration, attention to detail, and a commitment to bring your best to the table everyday. It doesn't matter if I'm building a prototype, scripting a gameplay sequence, refining a level, or closing a jira, I approach every challenge with a focus on excellence and presentation.