by RaioixGreetings all,
It’s December 23, 2025, and if you’ve checked out my site lately, you’ve seen that the portfolio section has been empty for far too long. I graduated with a bachelor’s in game design and a Master’s in Entertainment Business—degrees that were intensely hands-on and deeply rewarding. I spent years diving into systems design (balancing economies, tuning progression curves, crafting core loops that keep players coming back), live ops planning (seasonal events, retention strategies, community-driven updates), monetization models (from premium to F2P, battle passes to ethical cosmetics), and above all, building experiences that players genuinely love and talk about. I led group projects, prototyped mechanics in Unity and Unreal, pitched original game concepts with full market analysis, and dissected real-world hits to understand why they succeed both creatively and commercially. That unique blend of creative design and business thinking is exactly what excites me—and it’s what I know I can bring to a team.
But here’s the frustrating part: I had restarted so much, that I have little to show for it. Few gameplay recordings, no detailed case studies, no breakdowns showing my process from initial concept to polished mechanic to business rationale. Nothing that clearly pitches my skills, knowledge, and perspective to recruiters or studios. All that hard-earned expertise stayed locked away in old project files, scattered notes, and my head—invisible to anyone looking at my site. That lack of visible proof has held me back more than I like to admit. It turned applying for roles I’m qualified for into an uphill battle, because a bare portfolio doesn’t tell the story of what I can actually do. Why?
Life hit hard, and it hit repeatedly. First, a burglary assault. A couple months later, another assault—this one broke my knee. Then, just a month after that, a third assault. That’s when I knew I had to get out. I relocated out of state with help from an old friend. The knee injury took 3½ months to get surgically fixed because of everything going on in my life at the time. I finally had the operation three weeks ago (early December). The pain, limited mobility, constant moves, and emotional fallout made it nearly impossible to focus on creative work. Add in the restart cycle—starting portfolio pieces, getting overwhelmed, scrapping them, starting over—and nothing ever shipped. It wasn’t just the portfolio that suffered. My routines, health, and momentum all took massive hits. But that’s ending now. This rebuild is about the whole picture: mind, body, and life., I’m locking into a clear plan:
- Daily to weekly progress on product-minded portfolio work that showcases both design and business thinking (live ops pitches, economy designs, vertical slices with market analysis).
- Rebuilding habits: gentle movement as I heal, solid sleep, consistent nutrition.
- Shipping quick, polished pieces to finally break the restart loop and stack real momentum.
I’m putting this out publicly for accountability. If you’ve gone through repeated setbacks—physical, emotional, or creative—and are fighting your way back, I hope this lands. Starting from rock bottom is still starting. The portfolio is going to fill up, one solid piece at a time. I’ll update here as new work goes live. First one coming soon. Thanks for reading. Here’s to rebuilding stronger—one focused day at a time.