Departments
Art + Design
Education
- BFA, Writing, Literature, and Publishing, Emerson College
Awards
- Rio Grande Game Design Competition 2010 Winner: Gladiators
- Game Chef 2011 Winner: Forsooth!
- Games For Change 2014 Presenter Cyber Run
- Dice Tower Award 2014 Nominee
- IndieCade 2017 Official Selection
Research Focus
- Serious Games
- Games for Real World Impact
- Political Play
Sam is a designer obsessed with how games make meaning. He was Senior Game Designer at the Engagement Lab at Emerson College, where he designed impactful games for organizations at the highest levels of government and civil society. He has created and run workshops on games for real world impact for organizations like the United Nations Development Programme and the MIT Media Lab. As a consultant, he’s designed games for clients such as the U.S. Department of Defense and MIT Lincoln Labs.
Additionally, he’s designed a number of award winning party, roleplaying, and tabletop strategy games. He currently lectures at Northeastern University on the topics of game design and game criticism and theory, and explores ways of spreading knowledge and changing behaviors and outlooks for a safer, more prosperous, and resilient world.
Professional Experience
- Principal and Creative Director, Spoiled Flush Games (2005-17)
- Lead Game Writer, Engagement Lab at Emerson College (2012-14)
- Senior Game Designer, Engagement Lab at Emerson College (2014-16)
- Co-Founder, Extra Ludic INC (2016-17)
Past Clients
- International Red Cross / Red Crescent Climate Center
- World Bank Institute
- United Nations Development Programme
- UNDP Egypt
- UNDP Bhutan
- DARPA
- U.S. Department of Defense, Research & Engineering
- MIT Lincoln Labs
- MIT Media Lab
- UNICEF
- World Wildlife Fund