Ben Vance is a designer, programmer, and writer on Skulls of the Shogun. In addition to building tech, gameplay, and optimizing, he designed visual effects, in-game feedback, and campaign maps. He also designed and scripted most of the campaign cutscenes and tutorials.
Ben was itching to work with a small team on something unique when he saw a gridless Skulls prototype and Jake’s early character designs, inspiring him to join the Skulls of the Shogun team and help infuse turn-based strategy with arcade, action, and adventure vibes. As a (sometimes) impatient gamer, Ben believed that Skulls could bring a truly inclusive genre to new players with sharp style, a tongue-in-cheek attitude, and quick pacing.
Skulls of the Shogun’s completion marks Ben’s 10th year of industry work, which includes traveling to studios to help with both small-scale and AAA titles, as well as programming and protoyping at Electronic Arts.
Ben has shipped Medal of Honor: Airborne and developed tech and gameplay for multiple unseen projects, including Doug Church and Steven Spielberg’s “LMNO.”
Favorite games: 720, Galaga, Ico, Quest for Glory, Space Funeral, Spelunky, Windosil, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.
