Sam logo.

Design Studies


Chill Penguin page on the Mega Man Wiki.
All rights remain with their respective owners.

Mega Man Wiki

I am an administrator on the Mega Man Wiki, an independent fan wiki documenting the Mega Man franchise. Part of my work there includes creating walkthroughs for the games' boss battles, which involves analyzing and breaking down AI behavior and sharing design insights.

▪ In documenting Chill Penguin's ~5 attack patterns, I analyzed how Mega Man X bosses teach players about pattern recognition and the series' signature dance of combat. This page demonstrates my ability to break down combat encounters into learnable components.

▪ Interactive damage data charts visualize the rock-paper-scissors design philosophy at the heart of Mega Man X. This required understanding the systemic relationships between the game's 10 weapons.

▪ My walkthroughs teach through observation, noting how enemy placement creates difficulty curves and teaches mechanics through gameplay. This mirrors level design documentation practices.

▪ I also analyze and reconcile narrative element from +60 games, plus countless adaptations and supplementary materials, to form a cohesive canon across over 40 years of the franchise.

(Read it here!)

Narrative Studies


Sonic '06

In this almost hour-long video, I analyze the character of Silver the Hedgehog from the maligned Sonic the Hedgehog (2006). I delve into both the game's ludic and literary mechanics to paint a full picture of this character. It is my most popular analysis.

Maverick Hunter X

Here, I study the posthumanist themes within Mega Man Maverick Hunter X and the overall Mega Man X series using academic theories. It was fascinating finding such rich, thought-provoking themes even in the games I played as a kid.

Metal Gear Solid V

For a university class, I analyzed Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain to understand how the game teaches the player how languages are suppressed using its game mechanics. The project got me an A+, so that's gotta be worth something.