I’m Sachka (Sandra) Duval, a French game designer. This is my portfolio, showing the projects I’ve been working on since 2004.
CONTACT
Email: sachka.dr (at) free.fr
Twitter: @RadioSachka
LinkedIn: Sachka Duval
I started working in the games industry with Ageod / Paradox France circa 2004. As the team was small, I got to take on a variety of roles: I’ve been co-producer, UI designer, artist, web designer, community manager, QA tester… I learned a LOT while working on 3 of the Ageod historical wargames (Birth of America, American Civil War, Pride of Nations).
In 2007 I joined Ankama as a game designer and writer: I worked mainly on transmedia MMORPG Wakfu (though I also helped on Dofus and Dofus Arena), and as a lead designer on unreleased projects for Nintendo DS and iPhone.
In 2010 I was hired by Lexis Numerique to work on a very ambitious narrative game for PS3. Perfect opportunity to use both my background in Literature/Cinema and my skills in game design, and to learn many more things (interactive storytelling, actors’ direction, motion capture…). Unfortunately the project was cancelled, along with the episode of Red Johnson I was also working on when the studio closed.
After some time developing indie projects by myself or with friends, I worked as the main writer on Styx: Master of Shadows at Cyanide (released in 2014), which was a short but very fun experience.
From 2013 to 2018 I have been delighted to be Lead Narrative Designer at Arkane Studios, working on Dishonored 2, then Death of the Outsider, which both star an awesome female protagonist. I feel so lucky to have been able to learn AAA development under the guidance of Creative Director Harvey Smith, who is an awesome human being. The Dishonored IP was also fantastic to work on, it’s such a special world, and I’m so grateful that I got to direct the narrative experience on two of its titles. I also started working on a 3rd Arkane game, Deathloop during the whole preproduction. Creating a new IP from scratch was so exciting, I got to invent new characters, new stories, and new narrative mechanics. Everything I love!
But as tough a decision as it was, I decided to leave Arkane to go on new adventures in Canada, joining Electronic Arts Montreal for the unique opportunity to be the Narrative Director on a totally new IP. New team, new methods, new projects… I’m still learning a lot about my craft! And I’m still trying to promote the kind of experience-driven approach to interactive stories that I love.