Meet our alumni
James Mouat - Game Art & Design
Original program: Game Art & Design
Alumni Information
School: LaSalle College Vancouver
Grad Year: 2004
Program of Study: Game Art & Design
Degree: Diploma
Employment/Professional Information
Company Name: Electronic Arts
Location: Sweden
Job Title: Lead Designer
Primary Responsibilities: Studio Design Direction.
Describe a Typical Work Day:
Communicating design specifications, troubleshoot problems and building fun.
What accomplishments are you most proud of?
I guess my proudest achievement would be contributions I made to the productions of Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War - Dark Crusade; Penny Arcade - On the Rainslick Precipice of Darkness (Episodes 1 & 2); Driver San Fransisco; From Dust; Heroes of Might and Magic VI; Ghost Recon Online; and Ghost Recon Future Soldier.
What are your creative inspirations or influences? Who are your heroes?
Influences: Photography, Music, Cinema. Heroes: Risk-takers & Dream-chasers (also: Shigeru Miyamoto & Steve Buscemi)
What do you enjoy the most about your career?
The fact my career has opened doors for me all over the world.
How did your education at LaSalle College Vancouver help prepare you for your career?
I was exposed to a lot of industry professionals in the forms of my instructors, all whom had incredibly valuable insight into the video games industry and my possible career paths leaving school. Learning from them allowed me to better understand what was coming.
What advice do you have for people beginning their careers in your profession?
Work like crazy. Get involved with as many opportunities as you can while in school to build depth of knowledge. Take any job you can to break into Game Design; you don’t have the luxury of being picky until you get a professional credit or two on your CV.
Your profession is constantly evolving, from the technology you use to new career opportunities that didn’t exist five years ago. What trends do you see on the horizon that will affect how you do your job or your profession at-large?
Social gaming is shifting traditional development communities, and game design practices, towards a purely profit driven mentality. With a medium as young as games, when we are just starting to find a creative voice beyond simple fun, this shift - if made solely as a function of accounting departments - threatens to erode the credibility of our medium as a means of valid expression, just as it was only starting to be earned in the first place.