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Hi, I’m Andrea

Ex Rockstar North,
now Design Lead at
Studio Pixanoh.
I specialise in gameplay, systems, and combat design. I look forward to learning more about your project and exploring new opportunities.

TRACK RECORD

6 years of professional experience across combat, systems, and gameplay design — from AAA (Rockstar Games) to indie and mobile.
3 years in leadership roles
(Lead Combat Designer and
Design Lead).

DESIGN EXPERT & MENTOR

Well-versed in design theory and practice, with experience in Unity and Unreal Engine 5.
I’ve developed my own design frameworks and processes, which I use to mentor designers and strengthen team quality.

SHIPPED TITLES & CREDITS

Led design on Town of ZoZ from early development to release, shaping the design and guiding the team. Featured credits includes GTA V and Red Dead Redemption. Also contributed to Bloom and Mystery Match Village.

HIGHLIGHTS

RECENT PROJECTS

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Leadership: built pipelines and workflows, refined design processes, created frameworks, and provided strategic direction across all aspects of design.

Combat & Gameplay Design: designed enemies and bosses from concept to implementation using UE5. Implemented blueprints, AI trees, and montages (animation and notifiers). Polished the 3Cs from the combat and exploration camera, to inputs, and character locomotion and stats.

System Design: defined the overall macro and micro loops of the game, integrated farming and cooking progression, balanced the in and out of the in-game economy, difficulty, and character progression.​

TOWN OF ZOZ
STUDIO PIXANOH
DESIGN LEAD

Led the design of an action-RPG focused on combat and interconnected systems.

​Worked as a Content Designer at Rockstar North, credited on GTA V, GTA Online, Red Dead Redemption 2, and Red Dead Online. Contributions covered mission and content design within large-scale production pipelines.

Worked following briefs and on my own initiative, from concept to implementation, using in-house tools. Brought life to in-game events and modes through visual scripting and game object placement (Full details under NDA).

GTA V, RDR 2
ROCKSTAR GAMES
CONTENT DESIGNER
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OTHER PROJECTS

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BO: THE PATH OF TEAL LOTUS
LEVEL DESIGNER CONSULTANT

Provided level design consultancy on Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus, focusing on layouts, enemy encounters, and progression systems to support its Metroidvania structure.

SQUID SHOCK STUDIO
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BLOOM
PUZZLE DESIGNER

Worked as Lead Level Designer on the mobile puzzle game Bloom. Designed 74 levels, planned the game’s learning and difficulty curve, and iterated mechanics and puzzles based on player feedback.

LUCID LABS
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MYSTERY MATCH VILLAGE
PUZZLE DESIGNER

Worked remotely as a Puzzle Designer on Mystery Match Village; created Match-3 levels and contributed to documentation, mechanics, research, balance, and level reviews.

OUTPLAY ENTERTAINMENT
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Designed levels, enemies, and AI for SHIRO, from paper prototypes to Unity Tilemap blockouts and iterations. Contributed workflows, research, and general design direction to support the team. Projects still in development.

SHIRO
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LEVEL DESIGNER (METROIDVANIA)

PORTFOLIO

I’ve organised detailed case studies from real projects by core skills. While every project is different, I apply repeatable methods to new constraints.
​
This portfolio section is password-protected. Send me an email to gain full access.

"Andrea is one of the most talented and effective lead designers I have had the privilege of working with. His ability to coordinate, communicate, and manage a team is nothing short of inspiring.

At every stage of my growth as a combat designer, Andrea was there to guide me, offering thoughtful feedback that helped me refine my skills and push my work to the next level. He was never distant when the team needed him most—his presence and leadership were a constant source of support and motivation.

I’ve learned an incredible amount under his guidance, and his influence continues to shape how I approach combat design in my own projects today. Simply recommending him doesn’t do justice to the impact he brings to a team. Any studio would be lucky to have him."

Bader AlQahtani
Combat Designer

TESTIMONIALS

© Andrea Ortino. All rights reserved.

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