Biography
Aaron Conners was born and raised in the back woods of Maine by a family of bears. To this day, he enjoys chairs, porridge, and a bed that feels “just right”. He grew up in a time when you could play outdoors and go out exploring all day long. When it was dark or raining, he devoured (figuratively) piles of books – the Hardy Boys, Sherlock Holmes, Stephen King, History, anything about Baseball – and created board games about everything from military battles to fantasy quests to sports.
After an uninspired stint at the University of Slacking Off of Utah, Aaron was on track for a career as an English Literature teacher/Baseball Coach when a friend invited him to come work at Access Software, where they were just getting into “Interactive Movies”. Despite Aaron’s complete ignorance of computers, the friend thought Aaron would be perfect for writing and designing these new story-based games. After a brief incubation period in Tech Support –where Aaron learned how to turn on a computer and, later, insert floppy disks – he was introduced to Chris Jones and, soon after, they were collaborating on what would become Under a Killing Moon.
That was only the beginning....
Work Experience
Creative Director, or equivalent position, of ten video games, two of which won the highest possible awards in their category. Titles include the Tex Murphy series (Under a Killing Moon, The Pandora Directive, Overseer), Shaun White Snowboarding, Murder Island: The Secret of Tantalus and the "Three Cards" series of casual games, and three expansion packs for The Sims 3: "Showtime", ”Supernatural" and ”University Life”.
Has written and/or been Story Director of 12 video games, including Amped 3, Three Cards to Midnight, and the Tex Murphy series (all of which were nominated for or won awards for Best Story).
The lead designer or producer of fourteen video games and contributed UX, dialogue and/or technical writing to dozens of other titles, including Monkey Quest, Nerf N-Strike, Links, Top Spin, Inside Pitch, Age of Empires and Brute Force.
Written screenplays and published three books: two novels and one non-fiction.
Has been a consultant, panel member and lecturer, primarily regarding interactive game design and storytelling.
Currently a Senior Designer at Electronic Arts, working on the Sims 3 franchise.
Specialties: Creative Direction; Game Design; Story Design; Production; Creative and Technical Writing
Senior Designer
Electronic Arts
November 2010 – Present Creative direction and gameplay design for The Sims 3 expansion packs.
Contract Writer/Designer
WordPlay, LLC July 2007 – November 2010 (3 years 5 months) Founded this consulting business to provide contract game design, story and dialogue writing, technical writing, etc. Clients included Ubisoft, A2M, EA, TruGolf, PlayFirst, and Big Finish, Inc.
Creative Director
Ubisoft June 2006 – June 2007 (1 year 1 month) Salt Lake City, UT. Supervised conception and development of Shaun White Snowboarding for Xbox 360 and PS3.
Story Director
Take 2 Interactive (Indie Built Studio) October 2004 – April 2006 (1 year 7 months) Salt Lake City, UT. Created the story structure, designed the story-based missions, wrote scripts and dialogue, designed and directed cinematic sequences, cast audio talent and directed audio recordings for Amped 3, which was nominated for Best Story, Best New Character and other awards (and won for "Most Outrageous Game")
User Experience Lead
Microsoft April 1999 – September 2004 (5 years 6 months) Wrote storylines, dialogue, technical content, and manuals for dozens of games, including Freelancer, Brute Force, Age of Empires, Guardian, Links, Top Spin, Inside Pitch, Amped, etc.
Creative Director/Game Designer/Writer/Producer
Access Software January 1991 – April 1999 (8 years 4 months) Wrote and co-designed three Tex Murphy adventure games: Under a Killing Moon, The Pandora Directive, and Overseer.
Interests
Avid snowboarder, dog lover, musician, trivia junkie, film noir movie buff. A big fan of Jack Reacher novels, Sherlock Holmes and murder mysteries. Enjoys spicy food, and music ranging from The Beatles to The Shins to Jane's Addiction.
Die-hard Red Sox fan.
Lives with wife of 20 years, Kris, and their furry bundle of joy Finley.
Has written and/or been Story Director of 12 video games, including Amped 3, Three Cards to Midnight, and the Tex Murphy series (all of which were nominated for or won awards for Best Story).
The lead designer or producer of fourteen video games and contributed UX, dialogue and/or technical writing to dozens of other titles, including Monkey Quest, Nerf N-Strike, Links, Top Spin, Inside Pitch, Age of Empires and Brute Force.
Written screenplays and published three books: two novels and one non-fiction.
Has been a consultant, panel member and lecturer, primarily regarding interactive game design and storytelling.
Currently a Senior Designer at Electronic Arts, working on the Sims 3 franchise.
Specialties: Creative Direction; Game Design; Story Design; Production; Creative and Technical Writing
Senior Designer
Electronic Arts
November 2010 – Present Creative direction and gameplay design for The Sims 3 expansion packs.
Contract Writer/Designer
WordPlay, LLC July 2007 – November 2010 (3 years 5 months) Founded this consulting business to provide contract game design, story and dialogue writing, technical writing, etc. Clients included Ubisoft, A2M, EA, TruGolf, PlayFirst, and Big Finish, Inc.
Creative Director
Ubisoft June 2006 – June 2007 (1 year 1 month) Salt Lake City, UT. Supervised conception and development of Shaun White Snowboarding for Xbox 360 and PS3.
Story Director
Take 2 Interactive (Indie Built Studio) October 2004 – April 2006 (1 year 7 months) Salt Lake City, UT. Created the story structure, designed the story-based missions, wrote scripts and dialogue, designed and directed cinematic sequences, cast audio talent and directed audio recordings for Amped 3, which was nominated for Best Story, Best New Character and other awards (and won for "Most Outrageous Game")
User Experience Lead
Microsoft April 1999 – September 2004 (5 years 6 months) Wrote storylines, dialogue, technical content, and manuals for dozens of games, including Freelancer, Brute Force, Age of Empires, Guardian, Links, Top Spin, Inside Pitch, Amped, etc.
Creative Director/Game Designer/Writer/Producer
Access Software January 1991 – April 1999 (8 years 4 months) Wrote and co-designed three Tex Murphy adventure games: Under a Killing Moon, The Pandora Directive, and Overseer.
Interests
Avid snowboarder, dog lover, musician, trivia junkie, film noir movie buff. A big fan of Jack Reacher novels, Sherlock Holmes and murder mysteries. Enjoys spicy food, and music ranging from The Beatles to The Shins to Jane's Addiction.
Die-hard Red Sox fan.
Lives with wife of 20 years, Kris, and their furry bundle of joy Finley.
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