Christopher Teskey, Lead Game Designer, is a seasoned veteran of the gaming industry. He’s worked all over the world on types of games over the past two decades!
After leaving his previous job, it was important to Chris that his next one would offer a fun challenge, new opportunities, and like-minded coworkers, and he found it all at Gameloft Barcelona!
Learn more about Chris and the reasons why he decided to join Gameloft below!
Hi, Chris! Tell us about yourself.
Hi, my name is Chris Teskey, and I’m the lead designer for Asphalt 9: Legends based out of Gameloft’s Barcelona studio.
I joined the company remotely in June 2020 before relocating to Barcelona in August. I’m going on about 27 years in the industry now, and I’ve worked in 15 different countries for numerous companies.
I have had the great fortune and privilege as a designer to have worked on everything from tabletop RPG’s to AAA console titles and to have experienced the dawn of F2P games in the West and the growth of mobile gaming from its infancy to what it is now.
Outside of work, I love to play games (and let’s be honest who in our industry doesn’t), and I keep going back to MMO’s as the biggest time sync and method for gaming relaxation.
As I’ve just moved to Barcelona, I’m also taking advantage of the lack of tourists and good weather to explore this beautiful city by running around the different parts in the morning and on the weekends.
But if I’m not out and about or playing games, I’m usually sitting on my balcony reading a book. Gamification of my reading habits has gotten me determined to keep my streak going so even outside of work my life ends up being run by game mechanics.
Why did you join Gameloft?
When I decided to leave my last job, I was looking around for a new role with a few criteria.
Firstly, it would let me work with games directly. Secondly (and most importantly), it would be fun to work on and the people I would work with are people I would want to work with. Thirdly and finally, the job would be located somewhere warm (I hate cold weather at the moment). After considering lots of different opportunities, the role here in Barcelona checked off all the boxes for me.
Not only is Asphalt 9: Legends a huge mobile success, but it’s also cross-platform. This, combined with Gameloft’s ambition to continue making games for all platforms, makes it an exciting challenge with lots of opportunities.
The interview process was also fun—it cannot be said enough how important it is that the people you interview with come across as open and friendly. Barcelona also has a lovely Mediterranean climate, and I can’t argue with that.
What is your role, and what do you enjoy most about your job?
As I mentioned above, I’m the lead designer of Asphalt 9: Legends, and the best part of the job is that it’s never the same for very long.
Every day there are new questions to answer, ideas to explore, or even just cool things to see. This keeps the job from being boring and keeps me challenged and on my toes because I have to keep learning, thinking, and growing. I never know what we’ll have to solve next!
As a lead, my role is to not just coordinate the designers on the team and ensure they have what they need to work, but also to help the design team communicate with the other departments so that everyone has what they need to keep building the game. I also work with junior designers to help them create new features or adjust the game and seeing the results is really rewarding.
Additionally, a big chunk of my job is to see how the game is going, what the players are seeing and experiencing, and working with the team to see what we can do to address players’ comments, improve game balance, and plan out future features to grow the game. Lastly, but certainly not least, I also get to do some design now and again.
What are some of your most memorable moments at Gameloft?
As I haven’t been at Gameloft for very long (just about a year now, which has gone so quickly), I haven’t had many “big” memorable moments, but I’d have to say seeing update launches and the positive response from the community is always great.
Other than that, starting the role remotely in a different time zone then moving across the world (I relocated from Australia) all the while working remotely and getting up to speed is pretty memorable. Full credit and thanks goes to the entire Barcelona team in making it one of the easiest experiences I have ever had when starting a new job. It was very easy to get to know everyone virtually and the help I had getting up to speed and moving to Barcelona has been fantastic.
What advice do you have for people who want to work in gaming in a similar role?
If you want to be a designer in the industry, you need to have more than just a passion for games—you need to love the challenge of solving problems and working with people.
Throughout my career I’ve worked on just about every genre of games you can think of. Some I have loved and others I have hated, but at the end of the day it has always been the challenge of the design and the opportunity to work with a huge variety of people that has kept me going.
You need to love a challenging job and communicating with people to succeed as a designer. The actual job we do as designers is so varied (systems, mechanics, economy, level, etc.) that once you have a foot in the door you can find the part you really enjoy, but the challenge and need for communication will never change.
If you love a good challenge like Chris, be sure to check out our job opportunities in our studios around the world here ! Stay tuned for another edition of Humans Behind the Game!
