[00.INTRO] Vancouver, BC 49.2827°N, 123.1207°W
→ I plant seeds knowing not all will bloom

J Tyler McCulloch

Design Director & Creative Lead
with 22+ years of video game experience across AAA, VR, mobile, and live service. 12+ years in design leadership. 15 shipped titles.
I design and lead emotionally resonant interactive experiences —
from vision to vessel.
From concept to controller.

[01.ABOUT]

Crafting Experiences That Resonate

Design is not what we add.
It is what remains when we remove everything unnecessary.
I'm a Veteran creative leader with an empathetic, player-first design philosophy grounded in psychology, data-driven iteration, and collaboration. From directing Pistol Whip's studio-wide creative design strategy to shaping Journey To Foundation's narrative vision,I've delivered 13 shipped titles across AAA, VR, mobile, and live service platforms.

I thrive on defining, upholding, and executing creative vision from concept through production — leading and mentoring multidisciplinary teams while driving cross-team collaboration with production, engineering, art, marketing, and leadership. Whether I'm hands-on scripting prototypes or managing designers, I bring both strategic vision and technical fluency to every project.

[WHO I'VE WORKED WITH]

[02.SKILLS]

Skill highlights

Core competencies honed over 22 years that apply across industries and mediums.

01

Studio & Project Leadership

Defining and upholding creative vision from concept through production across multiple projects.

Pistol Whip Foundation Horizon Worlds Flourish
02

UX and System Architecture

Deep expertise in core mechanics, progression systems, and user-centered design.

FORM Petra's Planet SOCOM Resident Evil Bully
03

Pitching & Creative Direction

Proven track record pitching concepts to stakeholders and driving projects to greenlight.

Pistol Whip Proximity Flourish Foundation
04

User Motivation

Behavioral design rooted in psychology to drive engagement, retention, and monetization.

Petra's Planet Citizen Grim Pistol Whip Flourish
05

Product Communication and Narrative

Crafting compelling stories and character experiences that drive emotional engagement.

FORM Proximity Dimension of Heroes Bully
06

Cross-Discipline Leadership

Leading and mentoring multidisciplinary teams while aligning production, engineering, and art.

Pistol Whip Foundation Marvel Horizon Worlds Flourish
○○○
[03.CAREER]

Experience Timeline

I've done a lot over the years and fortunate to have a wide variety of projects. Every new project is an opportunity to grow and to learn something new.

July 2022 – Nov 2025

Game Director

Cloudhead Games

  • Pistol WhipAward-winning, critically acclaimed, 500+ community remixes
April – Nov 2023

Art Director (part-time)

National Film Board of Canada

  • SunalimitRemotely managed team of indigenous artists on experimental project
Jan 2019 – July 2022

Creative Director

Archiact Interactive

  • Journey to FoundationIn collaboration with Mass Effect veterans, co-directed and responsible for narrative cited as "main highlight" in reviews
  • Horizon WorldsTopped Meta's retention charts, top-performing, contract extended 6mo → 2+ years
  • FlourishConceptualized creative vision; pioneered approach transforming repetitive physio into engaging gameplay
  • Marvel: Dimension of HeroesUnited and focused a fractured, over-scoped team to deliver within tight timelines
Feb 2018 – July 2023

Co-Founder / Director

Inscape Studios

  • ProximitySole developer to team lead; pitched, raised funds, and shipped experimental AI narrative game
Jun 2015 – July 2017

Lead Game Designer

Charm Games

  • FORMAward-winning, noted for quality and critical reception
May – Nov 2014

Lead Game Designer

Dramaforum

  • Petra's PlanetTransformed struggling platform (near-zero D2 retention) into thriving world; designed economy and reward loops
Feb 2013 – May 2014

Lead Designer

Eruptive Games

  • Citizen GrimDesigned and tuned mechanics using metrics analysis; improved retention and ratings
Sept 2012 – Jan 2013

Senior Game Designer

Kennedy Miller Mitchell (Team Bondi)

  • Whore of the Orient (cancelled)Prototyped innovative Defendu combat and crowd cover mechanics
Aug 2006 – April 2012

Senior Game Designer

Slant Six Games

  • Resident Evil: ORCPrototyped the level that led to Capcom greenlight, co-created proprietary scripting language
  • Star Wars: Battlefront Online (cancelled)Contributed to vehicle physics system
  • SOCOM: Fireteam Bravo 3Proposed narrative concept that became basis for entire game; drove single-player campaign
  • SOCOM: ConfrontationResponsible for Kasbah (regularly voted best map), launch of game so popular it brought down Sony's servers
  • SOCOM: Tactical StrikeHelped reimagine SOCOM as strategy game; received a BAFTA nomination (Strategy/Simulation)
Sept 2003 – June 2006

Game Designer

Rockstar Games

  • BullyCritically well received, worked on combat system that influenced Sleeping Dogs and Arkham Asylum
  • Max Payne 2QA support on award-winning title
[04.WORK]

Portfolio

Highlighted projects showcasing creative direction, technical implementation, and design leadership.

Pistol Whip

Pistol Whip

Game Director

Directed content strategy and created the 'Pistol Mix' level editor for this VR rhythm-shooter.

Journey To Foundation

Journey To Foundation

Co-Creative Director

VR Roleplaying Adventure based on Isaac Asimov's saga.

Proximity

Proximity

Creative Director / Founder

Pioneering AI-driven narrative adventure. Early GPT-3 beta collaborator.

Horizon Worlds

Horizon Worlds

Creative Director

Creative direction for Meta's social VR platform experiences.

Flourish

Flourish

Creative Director

VR Physiotherapy Game transforming exercises into magical spells.

Marvel: Dimension of Heroes

Marvel: Dimension of Heroes

Design Lead

Design leadership for this AR Marvel gaming experience.

FORM

FORM

Lead Game Designer

Designed and scripted all puzzles for this surreal VR narrative experience.

Petra's Planet

Petra's Planet

Lead Designer

Kids Educational MMO with social and retention features.

Citizen Grim

Citizen Grim

Lead Designer

F2P Wave Shooter with progression and retention systems.

Whore of the Orient

Whore of the Orient

Senior Designer

Open-World game set in 1920s Shanghai (cancelled).

Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City

Resident Evil: Op. Raccoon City

Senior Game Designer

Senior design on this squad-based shooter set in the RE universe.

Star Wars: Battlefront Online

Star Wars: Battlefront Online

Game Designer

Multiplayer shooter (cancelled).

SOCOM: Fireteam Bravo 3

SOCOM: Fireteam Bravo 3

Senior Designer

Tactical Shooter for PSP.

SOCOM: Confrontation

SOCOM: Confrontation

Game Designer

Multiplayer shooter for PS3.

SOCOM: Tactical Strike

SOCOM: Tactical Strike

Game Designer

Real-time Tactics for PSP.

Bully

Bully

Game Designer

Game design on Rockstar's beloved open-world action-adventure.

Max Payne 2

Max Payne 2

Dev Support

Third-person Shooter development support.

???

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The Unreleased

Seeds planted but not bloomed...

Over the years, there have been about as many, if not more, projects I have worked than ones considered complete.
These have died in various stages of development each with its own unique set of circumstances.
Each one a unique branch of effort, collaboration, and creativity.

Each one having some part of myself in it.

Though not every project we work on blooms into something presentable, with each one we learn a little more about ourselves, what we create and how we collaborate.
It is true that each seed we plant has the opportunity to bloom into something great but in my mind, it is important to stay in the moment and love the act of planting the seed itself.
That is to say, enjoy the process of creating.
Enjoy the process of collaboration.

Enjoy creating art simply for the act of creating it.

Each project is an experience that stays with you in some way.
It continues to shape and mold you whether you realize it or not.
Though not every project grows, with the right mindset, we do and we can shape ourselves into something
stronger, kinder and more open to what the universe has in store for us next.

[05.CONNECT]

Let's Work Together

Open to creative opportunities.
Let's discuss how great design can elevate
your next project.